The first time I made this Instant Pot white queso, I brought it to a New Year's Eve party and set the Instant Pot to 'keep warm' in the corner. By midnight the pot was scraped clean and three people had asked for the recipe.
The secret is white American cheese, which melts into something smoother than any bagged shredded cheese ever will. Mild sausage, diced jalapeños, and a cup of chicken broth round it out. Ten minutes of pressure cooking, one stir, and you've got a dip that ruins store-bought queso for everyone who tries it.
Why This Instant Pot Queso Works
- White American cheese melts right. No graininess, no separating, no weird film on top.
- The Instant Pot does the work. Brown the sausage on sauté, dump everything in, pressure cook ten minutes. One pot, no babysitting.
- It holds on warm for hours. Set it to Keep Warm and let people scoop all through the game, the party, or the movie night.
What You Need
- Mild Sausage - can be substituted for Chorizo or ground beef
- Diced jalapeno peppers - with juices. Used straight out of the jar or blended to make smaller pieces.
- White American Cheese slices - From the deli counter, not prepackaged.
- Taco seasoning - not a whole packet, just ½ a teaspoon!
- Garlic Powder
- Chicken Broth - used as the liquid while pressure cooking and adds flavor to the cheese dip
- Milk - to be mixed with the cornstarch for a slurry.
- Cornstarch
How to Make Instant Pot White Queso
Brown the sausage on sauté mode, breaking it into small bits as it cooks.
Pro tip
Deglaze the Pot
Make sure to scrape off any stuck on bits after browning the sausage. This will prevent a burn notice and whole lot of frustration
Add the diced jalapeños, taco seasoning, and garlic powder. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes, then do a controlled quick release to avoid spurts of liquid.
Turn the Instant Pot back to sauté. Add the white American cheese slices and stir until melted. Mix the milk and cornstarch together first so the cornstarch dissolves completely, then pour it in. Sauté just long enough for the queso to thicken, then switch to Keep Warm.
That's it. Ten minutes of cook time and one pot to wash.
Quick and Easy Dips
Here are some other delicious and easy dips to put together in addition to this White Queso Sausage Cheese Dip to give a variety to choose from.
If a cheese dip is what you're looking for, this Black Bean Corn Con Queso Cheese Dip is cheesy and uses three types of cheeses. It's thick and chunky and absolutely cheesy.
Made with cream cheese, this sausage jalapeno popper dip is made with mild or hot sausage, combined with cream cheese, jalapenos, and crushed with a panko and Parmesan topping.
Need more dips for the spread? These are a few of my favorites.
- Black Bean Corn Con Queso Cheese Dip - Three cheeses, black beans, and corn. Thick, chunky, and scoopable.
- Black Bean & Cotija Cheese Dip - It has 6 flavorful layers and it's no-bake cheese dip!
- Sausage Jalapeno Popper Dip - Six layers, no baking required. A cold dip that shows up ready.
Need more easy appetizers? Browse all my appetizer recipes here.
More Instant Pot favorites for game day.
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot White Queso Dip
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb Mild Italian Sausage*
- ½ cup diced jalapenos with liquid
- ½ teaspoon taco seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ cup milk
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- ¾ lb of White American Cheese**
- 1 cup chicken broth
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot to SAUTE and add the sausage.
- Brown and break the down sausage.
- Add the chicken broth and deglaze the pot once the sausage is cooked. Press CANCEL on the Instant Pot.
- Add the taco seasoning and the garlic powder.
- Add the diced jalapenos. If you want smaller bits of jalapenos, a few quick pulses in the blender are all you need.
- Close the lid and vent.
- Set to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK for 4 minutes.
- Carefully perform a controlled quick release to avoid spurts of liquid and steam from coming from the valve.
- Open the lid and set the Instant Pot to SAUTE.
- Add the White American Cheese to the pot and stir to melt.
- Combine the milk and cornstarch together to create a slurry.
- Add to the pot and stir to combine.
- Allow the dip to thicken and serve warm.
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
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!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.
I have this on my list to make for NYE! I love that you can make it in the instant pot - quick, simple, and easy to travel with!
Mmmm, looks amazing! Definitely one of my favorites although I have it sparingly 🙂
So.... wondering if I can substitute Sliced American Cheese (regular, yellow) or if the deli kind is magical and necessary. What do you think?
You can use the prepackaged sliced kind with no issues. I've made it with both the deli and the packaged variety. 🙂 The only difference is that it will have the flavor of the Yellow American cheese verses the White American cheese. I hope that helps!
This looks really good. Please send me the website.Thank you
Hi Christine - here is the link to the recipe https://mamaneedscake.com/instant-pot-white-queso-sausage-dip/