This cheesy Instant Pot Sloppy Joe Mac and Cheese is made with ground beef, a homemade sloppy joe sauce, and two types of cheese.
This Sloppy Joe Pasta is ready to serve in less than 30 minutes and great for a busy weeknight meal. It's easy to make and the result is a saucy mac and cheese with melted cheese.
Ingredients in Instant Pot Sloppy Joe Mac and Cheese
- macaroni
- ground beef
- beef broth
- garlic, minced
- onion
- brown sugar
- ketchup
- barbecue sauce, of choice
- yellow mustard
- apple cider vinegar
- Italian seasoning
- ground pepper
- salt
- fresh parsley
- mozzarella cheese, shredded
- cheddar cheese, shredded
How to Make Sloppy Joe Mac and Cheese
Saute - Drizzle the inner liner of the Instant Pot with olive oil and add the ground beef, garlic, and onion and cook until the beef is browned and crumbled. Drain any grease.
TIP: A garlic press is a useful tool to get freshly minced garlic.
Deglaze - Add the broth to the inner liner and deglaze the bottom of the pot to remove any stuck-on bits.
Add the pasta - Add the macaroni to the inner liner and press the pasta down into the broth.
Make the sloppy joe sauce - Combine the brown sugar, ketchup, mustard, apple cider vinegar, Italian seasoning, ground pepper, and salt together in a bowl and pour it over the pasta. Do not stir.
Pressure cook - Pressure cook on HIGH/MANUAL PRESSURE for 4 minutes.
Quick Controlled Release - Do a quick release carefully once the timer is up. Do it slowly so the vent doesn't spew liquid.
Add the cheese - Remove the lid and stir in the mozzarella and cheddar cheese.
Garnish - Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
How to Make Pasta in the Instant Pot
A quick rule of thumb for making pasta in the Instant Pot is to divide the boiling time on the back of the box by two and then subtract one minute.
The amount of liquid to use for pressure cooking will vary depending on the amount of pasta that is being pressure cooked. For every 8 ounces of pasta, 2 cups of liquid is used in the recipe.
Once you get comfortable with pressure-cooking pasta the amount of liquid can change as in this Instant Pot Sloppy Joe Mac and Cheese. The reason is, there are other thin liquids being added to the inner liner while pressure cooking.
It's important to submerge the pasta all the way into the liquid for even cooking.
Quick releases are important when pressure cooking pasta as it continues to cook while the pressure releases naturally. Performing a quick controlled release will release the pressure quickly but it's important to do it intermittently so that the liquid doesn't spew out of the valve.
As always, keep faces away from the pressure cooker lid and valve while releasing pressure, and also refer to the pressure cooker's manual for how to safely perform its functions.
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Sloppy Joe Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 cups macaroni pasta
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 ¾ cup beef broth
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 onion - diced
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ cup ketchup
- ½ cup barbecue sauce - of choice
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese - shredded
- 1 cup cheddar cheese - shredded
- chopped parsley - plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Drizzle the inner liner with olive oil and add the ground beef, garlic, and onion and cook until the beef is browned and crumbled. Drain any grease.
- Add the broth to the inner liner and deglaze the bottom of the pot to remove any stuck on bits.
- Add the macaroni to the inner liner and press the pasta down into the broth.
- Combine the brown sugar, ketchup, mustard, apple cider vinegar, Italian seasoning, ground pepper, and salt together in a bowl and pour it over the pasta.
- Do not stir.
- Pressure cook on HIGH/MANUAL PRESSURE for 4 minutes.
- Do a quick release carefully once the timer is up. Do it slowly so the vent doesn't spew liquid.
- Remove the lid and stir in the mozzarella and cheddar cheese.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate based on third-party calculations. Actual values may vary due to ingredients, measurements, and serving sizes.
© Mama Needs Cake
Dana is an experienced recipe creator who crafts easy and delicious recipes for all levels of home cooks.
Her recipes range from classic comfort foods to healthy and nutritious meals, and she is always on the lookout for new and exciting ways to bring flavor and variety to the table.
Gaye says
How would you do this on the stove to.. Unfortunately I don't have a Instat pot..
Bert Johnson says
Don’t do it. Not a very good flavor and the pasta came out crunchy.
Dana says
Hi Bert! If the pasta was crunchy, it's a good indicator that it wasn't submerged in the broth. Regarding the flavors, it's possible that the quick release was done too quickly. Electric pressure cookers are notorious for losing flavor when releasing pressure too quickly.