This Old Gal

Homemade recipes for Pressure Cookers and Air Fryers.

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese [Instant Pot]

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Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese is everyone’s favorite comfort food pasta recipe. Cheesy and creamy, it’s the best Instant Pot Mac and Cheese around.

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese with Crispy Bacon Topping

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese with Crispy Bacon Topping

Everybody loves Macaroni and Cheese. From young to old, from far and wide and from East and West. Okay, you get the drift, we all love Mac & Cheese.

You will be amazed at how deasy and delicious it is to make Instant Pot Mac and Cheese in your Instant Pot, Mealthy MultiPot or Pressure Cooker.

If you want to take it up another notice, my Crispy Bacon Garlic Breadcrumb Topping is fantastic.

 

Cast of Ingredients for Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese

Cast of Ingredients for Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients for Instant Pot Mac and Cheese

  • Macaroni – I love using Cavatappia, because the cheese oozes in each bite. Elbow macaroni does the same thing, so try one of those two types of pasta.
  • Cheese – Use a combination. Sharp Cheddar and a melting cheese like Oaxaca, Monterey Jack, Gruyère or Gouda. This evens out the cheese to make it creamy, without being gummy or stringy.
  • Hot Sauce – don’t panic, this does not add heat. It adds amazing flavor without adding any spice.
  • Dry Mustard – again, like the hot sauce, another lever of flavor is added without tasting any heat.
  • Milk – heavy cream is best. Homemade Greek Yogurt and Heavy Cream work well, but days when there is no Heavy Cream in the fridge, the canned milk will suffice.

 

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How cute is Cavatappi pasta? I love the curly whirly of this pasta and I love that the cheese gets stuck inside and when you take a bite, you get a little squirt of cheese sauce in your mouth.

I can’t always find it in my area, so I order in bulk from Amazon.

 

Add Butter and Seasonings

Add Butter and Seasonings

So simple, just add in everything but the cheese into your Instant Pot, Mealthy MultiPot or Pressure Cooker cooking pot.

Three minutes for Cavatappi pasta is perfect. If you use a heavier/thicker pasta (rule of thumb is Pressure Cook 1/2 the lesser time is says on the box of pasta and subtract 2 minutes), you might need an extra minute.

Perfection, perfectly cooked pasta in just three minutes! So cute! The Cavatappi are so inviting and make you feel like a kid again.

 

Slowly Mix in Cheese

Slowly Mix in Cheese

You will want to turn your Pressure Cooker to the Sauté or Browning setting and then add in the evaporated milk and mix to combine. Add the cheese in three stages. Make sure the cheese is completely melted before adding in another handful.

I like to buy blocks of cheese and grate them myself. The cheese is so much fresher tasting. I’ve heard that store bought shredded cheese has fillers to keep the cheese from sticking together, so not only is it cheaper to buy a block and shred yourself, but it tastes better.

For a Mexican twist, try my Creamy Mexican Mac & Cheese or for an “adult” Mac & Cheese, you may enjoy my Buffalo Chicken Macaroni and Cheese, which is so creamy and delicious!

The pasta will be soupy at first, but don’t fret. The pasta will continue to absorb the liquid, so don’t allow all the liquid to evaporate.

I make a mean  Pan de Yucca in the Air Fryer (and in the oven) with Oaxaca cheese, so if you can get your hands on some, do it!

 

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Tada!!!! You can eat the Cavatappi and Cheese as is, which is how I like it, or you can add a Crispy Bacon Garlic Breadcrumb Topping, which my husband absolutely loves.

Ed loves a nice Crispy Breadcrumb Topping.

 

Crispy Bacon Garlic Breadcrumb Topping

Crispy Bacon Garlic Breadcrumb Topping

The beauty of this Bacon Garlic Breadcrumb Topping is that you can prepare it while your Macaroni and Cheese is in the Pressure Cooker, cooking and then just put on the topping when you are ready to serve.

Some people like to transfer their macaroni and cheese to the oven (with or without topping) and allow it to brown.

More Instant Pot Macaroni Recipes to Make:

Kitchen Equipment and Essentials

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Here’s the handy printable recipe.

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese, Fully Loaded

5 from 15 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Instant Pot Mac and Cheese, Mac and Cheese, Macaroni and Cheese
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Pressure Release: 5 minutes
Total Time: 8 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 573kcal
Author: Jill Selkowitz

Ingredients

Macaroni and Cheese

Topping

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Add pasta, butter, mustard, hot pepper sauce, heavy cream,* salt and water to Pressure Cooker cooking pot.
  • Lock on lid and close Pressure Valve.  Cook at High Pressure for 2 minutes.  When Beep is heard, wait 5 minutes and then release the rest of the pressure.
  • Turn off Pressure Cooker and then select Saute or Browning and mix in the cheese in three parts, mixing well before adding more. When desired thickness is achieved, turn off Pressure Cooker.
  • Top with Crispy Bacon Topping, if desired.

Notes

You won't taste the hot sauce; it adds a layer of depth, so don't leave it out!
Amount of cheese is a personal preference, so start with the lower amount and add more, until desired amount is achieved.
Use any of your favorite kinds of cheese and be creative.
Any pasta shells will work. Rule of thumb is to cook pasta for 1/2 the lesser cook time stated on package and then subtract 2 minutes.
*If using anything other than heavy cream, add it in AFTER pressure release, as opposed to adding it in with the dry pasta and change cook time to 3 minutes.
Tried this recipe?Mention @ThisOldGalCooks or tag #thisoldgalcooks!

Nutrition

Calories: 573kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Cholesterol: 98mg | Sodium: 913mg | Potassium: 179mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 18.5% | Vitamin C: 0.3% | Calcium: 21.2% | Iron: 4.9%

PIN this Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese, Fully Loaded!

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese, Fully Loaded

Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese, Fully Loaded

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  2. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! I LOVE that you can make it without processed cheese and that it is so creamy and not gritty in the slightest! I really appreciate that you explained WHY from-scratch cheese sauces and macaroni ‘n cheese often are gritty. I consider myself a very experienced cook, but I did not know that it has to do with the hardness of the cheese and how cheddar will cause more grit the sharper it is. That is really good to know! I used some sharp cheddar, and some mozarella and mild gauda and it was superb!! I was afraid to use so much mustard powder, so I used 1 tsp and that seemed perfect. My whole family loved it! Thanks so much, 5 STARS!!

    Reply

    • Hi Terese~

      Thank you so much for the lovely compliments. Glad you liked my ramblings. 🙂 I do tend to go on and on. Hehehehehe. I am very glad your family loved this recipe.

      Jill

      Reply

      • Oh not at all Jill, there was no “on and on” that I could detect, only very useful information! Well done! And I like your pictures, too!

        Reply

  3. Soooo good! I used 1.5 c mild white cheddar and 6 sliced of Trader Joe’s organic American Cheese. While tit was in the “thickening” phase I added in some chopped fresh spinach to add at least a little healthy aspect to it. Started it 30 minutes ago and am eating for lunch as we speak. Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply

  4. This was really good! I halved the recipe and used whole milk. Adding the Siracha really did kick the flavor up a notch!

    Reply

  5. I haven’t tried this yet. So many on the Facebook IP group are saying what a mess it makes doing the QR, and I am just not up for that.
    Do you think if you reduced the cooking time to 2 minutrs, then did a 2 minute NPR before the QR, it would help with that?
    PS. Your Pork Chops w/ Mushroom Gravy is to die for!

    Reply

    • Hi Kathleen~

      I’ve never had a problem with a mess. Just slowly, turn the pressure valve back and forth to let a little pressure out at a time. I often will throw a towel over the valve to collect the steam during a quick release. Just a light towel, not a heavy one as you don’t want to block anything, just catch the steam.

      Thanks re the pork chops. 🙂

      Jill

      Reply

  6. This is so yummy!!!! And I haven’t even finished making the topping yet to add. Just eating out of the pot! Thank you for a keeper recipe!!

    Reply

  9. So I doubled the recipe. I have never experienced that “mess” people have mentioned with QR and starches, but this time I did. But I was prepared since I knew it would be full to the top, so I held a paper towel over the vent and let it catch the starchy steam. When it was too saturated, I threw it away and got second one, but I only used two. Really, it wasn’t bad at all. Very quickly the steam became clear. Then I made the recipe exactly as is except that at the end I added a bag of frozen corn and 16 oz. of green chile. (It was for a potluck and I live in New Mexico…everything has green chile.) It was popular.

    So the answer is that it can quite easily be doubled, but be prepared to “catch” the starchy steam the first couple of minutes of venting. I would post a picture but I don’t see a way to do that.

    Reply

    • Hi Beth~

      Thanks for sharing your story. I usually toss a kitchen towel over the vent when I do a quick release. You additions sound wonderful. 🙂

      Jill

      Reply

  10. Wow, I made this recipe tonight with the crispy topping. It was fast and delicious and the directions were easy to follow. Thank you Jill, I want to try more of your recipes!!

    Reply

  13. Jill- This recipe and a couple of others mention using Oaxaca cheese. I love Oaxaca cheese but the 2 of us can’t eat the whole thing in just a couple of days. I’ve tried every way I can think of to keep it from molding so fast but so far nothing works. Can you please share any tips you have found to keep it from molding? Looking forward to trying this recipe soon!

    Side note… Just got my first IP and used your directions for easy hard boiled eggs. It was PERFECT and so easy. This alone justified the purchase price as I try to avoid recipes with hard boiled eggs as it always took so much time to peel the eggs. Never again!
    Thanks
    CC

    Reply

    • Hi CC~

      I know what you mean about the eggs. I do a dozen at a time without worry.

      We cut up the Oaxaca cheese and freeze into portions. It freezes nicely.

      Jill

      Reply

  15. Hello, I don;t have milk or evap, milk..I was going to use half and half mixed with water- Do you think that will be ok?

    Reply

  18. I have made homemade mac n cheese for years. Now have instant pot and got brave enough to try this recipe. I had low expectations. All I can say is Yum! I used lactaid 2% milk and cooked it down a bit on saute portion to make it evaporated. For us it was too salty but then again I used a stick of aged sharp cracker barrel cheddar and about 1/4 of a block of parmesan. Sooooo creamy and rich. Baked off with bread crumbs in oven after. Will definitely make again!

    Reply

  19. I’m known for having awesome Mac n cheese. Since I’ve been doing the whole30 I haven’t made it. Tonight was a perfect night to try this recipe in my ‘received for Christmas IP’. My son didn’t want to share with my husband and my husband just said he knew what he was having for breakfast! We add nutmeg to our Mac n cheese so we added that and my son used his special hot sauce. Thank you for sharing. Looks like this will be a keeper.

    Reply

  20. I like the idea of adding spinach, but wonder, did it turn the mac n cheese green? I’m not sure the kids would go for that.

    Reply

  21. I made this for my family tonight with medium pasta shells (2 mins cook time, 5 min NPR) and the pasta was perfect and the taste was good. I used cheddar and chihuahua cheeses.

    Reply

  22. I was so apprehensive about making Mac n Cheese in my pressure cooker. It would only be my 2nd time ever using one. I have a love affair/ slight addiction to this cheesy pasta dish!!! Any Hoo– it turned out amazing.. creamy cheesy perfectly cooked noodles !!! Yum yum !
    Love your recipe .. it’s a keeper for me ! ❤️

    Reply

  23. Thank you for the recipe. My youngest daughter is very picky about her mac and cheese, and she approved. I do have a question, though. I took this to a potluck dinner and kept it on warm. The cheese started clumping instead of the creamy texture right after cooking it. Should I have taken it off the heat?

    Reply

  24. tried this recipe tonight and was pleased. my kids love the boxed stuff, so trying to get them to try and like real mac and cheese is a battle. This was really good, we had to add milk at the end as it was too thick for our likings and my son kept asking why it was spicy. I liked the bite the Siracha gave it, but guess next time it will have to be a bit less.

    Reply

  25. I made this as written – absolutely outstanding! I used mild cheddar and mozzarella and it was wonderful. Thank-you so much for this recipe.

    Reply
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