Instant Pot Pasta
The recipe Linguine with Clam Sauce is an instant pot pasta, but I wanted to expand on it a little.
Rule of thumb for Instant Pot pasta is 4 cups liquid to 1 pound of pasta. Liquid could be water, but why? Much better for it to be flavorful, so broth, wine, can juices, etc.
You can add meat, faux meat, or no meat. You can add veggies, olives, capers, nuts, or pesto. Any substantial pasta would work such as Penne, Fettuccini, Buccatini, etc.
This recipe is just a pattern. You can adjust the ingredients to your liking or you cupboard contents. The only constant is 4 cups of liquid per pound of pasta. I usually make ½ lb of pasta with 2 cups of liquid. This makes two plentiful meals and one lunch. You can add a side salad, but there are lots of veggies options to put right in the pasta.
Yield: 2-3 meals
Time: 30-45 minutes
Special equipment: Instant Pot
Ingredients:
1 pkg Morningstar farms Sausage Crumbles
1 tbsp olive oil
½ med onion, diced
6 garlic cloves, minced
4-6 mushrooms, sliced
½ cup bell pepper, diced (I usually take a face off a two different color peppers and dice)
2 tbsp capers, drained
1 ½ cup veggie broth
½ cup white wine
1 tbsp Italian Herbs or Herbs de Provence
Salt and pepper to taste
½ lb cavatappi (this is my favorite, but you could use any substantial pasta)
1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
½ cup shredded Asiago
Put the olive oil in the Instant Pot and turn it on Saute. Add the onions and garlic and let them sizzle for about 2 minutes. Then add the mushrooms for another 2 minutes. Finally add the bell peppers.
Mix the broth, wine and herbs together. Taste the broth blend. Adjust the salt and pepper, remembering that it will be cooking the pasta and needs to be a little more seasoned that you would normally think.
Pour the broth blend over the veggies and add the pasta on top. Done stir, but press gently on the pasta so the top is under the liquid.
Lid up and set the pressure to high. The time should be set using the package time range. Halve the lower number in the time range, then add 2 minutes.
When the timer goes off give it 2 more minutes then release the pressure. The pasta might be a little soupy, but don’t worry. Add the spinach and the cheese. Give it a good toss. Make sure the pasta is separated and the cheese has disolved into the liquid. Leave it on the Keep Warm function for about 10 minutes.