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This Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce recipe uses simple ingredients and fresh or canned tomatoes to create a rich and hearty pasta sauce that tastes like it has been simmered all day, yet is ready in under an hour.
Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce That Tastes Like It Simmered All Day
This recipe for Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce was inspired by my mom's crockpot spaghetti sauce, which is known for its rich depth of flavor.
And while that recipe is near and dear to my heart, the Instant Pot speeds up the process to deliver spaghetti sauce that is rich, nuanced, and simply delicious! While easy enough for any night of the week, Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce is guaranteed to level up the flavor of any pasta dinner.
Happy Cooking! xo Kristen
Notes on Ingredients
You will find the full list of ingredients, along with quantities in the recipe card. Below is a quick glance at what you need and tips to help you make the right selection.
- Tomatoes: Use a combination tomato paste for a rich, concentrated tomato flavor with crushed tomatoes, tomato puree, passata, or fresh tomatoes that have been peeled and seeded.
- Stock/Broth: Vegetable broth, chicken stock, or beef broth all work. Use what you have on hand.
- Dry Red Wine: Optional, but encouraged for deep rich flavor. Select a dry red wine that is suitable for drinking, such as a Malbec, Cabernet, or Merlot. Never use cooking wine which is overly sweet and metallic in flavor.
- Yellow Onion: For flavor, but feel free to speed it up/make it more kid-friendly, by omitting the fresh onion and replacing it 1 teaspoon of onion powder.
- Garlic: Go for peeled garlic cloves over minced garlic, for a sweet, mellow flavor.
- For Balance: A bit of butter and honey (or sugar) will help to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes.
Ingredient Tip
If using canned tomatoes, I personally recommend San Marzano tomatoes. A bit pricier, but the flavor and texture make them (and your spaghetti sauce) superior!
How to Make Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce
If you are unfamiliar with cooking in an Instant Pot or the functions of your Instant Pot, be sure to start with my guide for using an Instant Pot for the best results on this and future recipes. You will find the full recipe in detail in the recipe card below.
- Saute Onion. Use the saute function to briefly saute a minced yellow onion in a bit of olive oil until softened.
want to add Meat?
Add up to 1 pound of ground beef, ground turkey, or Italian sausage along with the onion and saute until the meat is cooked through. Drain off any excess grease if needed and proceed with the recipe as directed. Or follow my Instant Pot Bolognese recipe for a really rich meat sauce!
- Delglaze the Inner Pot. With the Instant Pot still on the saute function, add in the dry wine (or additional broth) and scrape up any browned bits from the inner pot. Let it simmer for a couple minutes, to let the wine reduce slightly.
- Layer with care. Add the broth, dried seasonings, and garlic and give everything a good stir. Then add the crushed tomatoes and dollop the tomato paste on top of the crushed tomatoes. Finally top with butter and honey. DO NOT STIR! This will prevent a burn notice from occurring.
No Burn Notice
Tomato sauce + Instant Pot CAN equal a burn notice. Prevent that by adding broth to the sauce and NOT stirring the tomatoes into the sauce until after pressure cooking. I can't stress this enough!
- Pressure Cook with Natural Pressure Release. Don't try to speed this recipe up by doing a quick release of pressure. You will be left with hot liquid spewing out of your vent knob! It is best to allow for at least 10-15 minutes to pass after the cooking time is complete before releasing pressure.
- Stir and Discard. Once pressure has been released, remove the lid. Give the sauce a stir to fully incorporate the ingredients together, removing the bay leaves and cloves of garlic as you come across them.
Serving Suggestions
Instant Pot Spaghetti sauce is obviously delicious served over spaghetti noodles topped with parmesan cheese (along with some homemade meatballs). Add a side of homemade garlic toast and a Copycat Olive Garden Salad, and you have a simple, yet amazing meal! Of course, feel free to use this sauce in any recipe calling for spaghetti sauce. Below are some of my favorites:
Recipe FAQs
As written, no, I don't recommend it. Lemon juice would need to be added before proceeding with pressure canning. Here are detailed instructions for pressure canning homemade tomato sauce.
If you scraped the bottom of the inner pot after sauteeing the onion and layered the ingredients as directed, this is unlikely to occur. But if you still get a burn notice, don't panic! Some models are super sensitive and will throw this notice, but then continue to cook and all turns out perfectly!
If you want to double this recipe, I would only do so in an 8 or 10-quart Instant Pot. You can cut the recipe in half using ONLY a 3-quart model. The cooking time will remain the same when doubling or halving the recipe.
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, minced
- ½ cup dry red wine, or additional vegetable broth
- 1-½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth, or beef stock/chicken stock
- 3 cloves garlic , peeled and crushed
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes, or tomato puree/passata *see note for using fresh tomatoes
- 12 ounces tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, or additional olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey, or granulated sugar
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot on using the saute function. Add 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and let briefly heat. Once heated, add in 1 small yellow onion and saute for 2-4 minutes, or until the onions begin to soften.
- Add the ½ cup dry red wine (or additional broth) to the instant pot. Scrape up any browned bits that may have formed on the bottom of the instant pot, allowing the wine to saute and reduce for 1 minute or so. Then hit cancel on the Instant Pot to turn off the sauce function.
- Add the 1-½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth, 2 teaspoons dried oregano, 1 tablespoon dried parsley, 2 dried bay leaves, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 3 cloves garlic , and stir to combine.
- Add 28 ounces crushed tomatoes on top of the broth and dollop 12 ounces tomato paste and 1 tablespoon unsalted butter on top of the sauce. Drizzle the 1 tablespoon honey over the tomato and butter mixture. DO NOT STIR.
- Secure the lid on Instant Pot and make sure the vent knob is sealed. Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes by hitting manual/pressure cook and using the +/- buttons to adjust the time to 25 minutes.
- After the cooking time has elapsed, allow the pressure to release for at least 10 to 15 minutes before releasing pressure. Remove the bay leaf and cloves of garlic stir well, and use as desired or allow to cool before storing.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Fantastic. Has anyone doubled in the 6 qt pot?
Hi Wendy! I am thrilled you enjoy! I have doubled this many times in my 6-quart. Just allow for a full pressure release and keep the cook time the same.
I usually use fresh tomatoes and an immersion blender after it’s pressure cooked so it’s smooth. If I use an immersion blender, can I skip sautéing the onions?
Hi Diana! You can skip, but sauteeing the onions adds richness and mellows out their flavor.
the only part of this recipe i didn't do was add onions and the saute at the start, because i don't like onion. also omitted the garlic. everything else i did as said, and it did not turn out good at all. it's so acidic i can't eat it. would the garlic and onions somehow have made that much difference? genuinely baffled.
Hi C. I am so sorry you didn't care for this recipe. The sauteed onions will add mellow richness to the sauce and the garlic adds flavor. However, this recipe should not be that acidic. Did you happen to use cooking wine rather than a drinking red wine, which is very acidic and bitter?
I didn't use any wine at all, just extra broth.
It may simply have been the tomatoes were more than normal acidic or that you are used to sweeter sauce. In either case, stir in an extra tablespoon of honey or sugar to help balance. That should help.
Just made this and holy moly it is amazing. I made this exactly as specified (except I only had 6.6 oz of tomato paste) - it was perfection. What I’ve found repeatedly with these recipes is that I don’t have to do my usual “tinkering” or enhancing that I’ve always had to do with other recipes. In my very chaotic life, this is oddly calming. Thank you Kristen, from the bottom of my heart! You are my go-to when I need a recipe and I always know they will work and be amazing.
You are so very welcome, Suzanne! I am thrilled you have come to trust my recipes to deliver.
Delicious! I added some more sugar and used Italian seasoning instead of oregano.
Thanks for sharing your review, Judy! Thrilled you enjoyed
I love love love this recipe! I have used it multiple times and it’s my go to for homemade spaghetti sauce. I used to purchase Prego sauce and I was shocked at the ingredients in there. Found this one and it’s 1000 better with healthier ingredients for any type of pasta sauce. Thank you for this super easy recipe. What I do is make the sauce in the instant pot, then ground up some beef or chicken or turkey while the instant pot is cooking. When that is finished, I dump the ground meat in it and slow cook it for a few hours to let the flavors meld. My instant pot also works as a slow cooker so I use it all in one pot. Super easy and worth doing!
Absolutely thrilled to hear you enjoy this spaghetti sauce recipe, Stephanie and appreciate you taking the time to share.
Turned out great. Changed a couple amounts in the list. 1 cup beef stock, just under 1 cup Merlot and added 1 pound ground beef. Best and easiest recipe I’ve made. Made enough eat for a week.