Keeper Project: Instant Pot Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

 

My family devoured this Instant Pot dinner not because it tasted like the pasta they had in Italy, but because it reminded them of their childhood and Hawai'i public school spaghetti. "Only better," my daughter-in-law was quick to point out. My son said he and his boys used to take the bread they gave and stuff the spaghetti in it. My daughter in law said that the boys used to do that at her school too. I'm not sure. It could just be a Hilo thing even if they went to different schools.

So this is not Italy spaghetti. This is Hilo spaghetti.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. lean ground beef 
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp. or to taste garlic salt (depends on the salt content of the other ingredients)
• 1 lb. spaghetti noodles
• 1 (24 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
• 1 (32 oz) box beef broth
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes (I like the fire roasted but I don't think it would be a significant difference)
• Parmesan (optional)

Instructions:

1. Set the Instant Pot (IP) to saute and add the ground beef and seasoning. Cook the meat until it's completely browned. Turn the IP off and drain any excess grease.
2. Break the spaghetti in half and place on top of the meat in IP. This is a lot of spaghetti so you may need to break it smaller.
3. Pour the spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes (don't drain) and broth. I use the broth to get all the spaghetti sauce out of my jar because that's how I was raised. Push the spaghetti down so that it is immersed in sauce.
4. Seal the IP and set it to manual, high pressure, 8 minutes cooking time. When the time is up, use manual quick release to open the IP. Stir the spaghetti well. 

Note: we did not use cheese, but you could. My older son also grows Italian parsley and basil which could also be chopped up and added to the plates, but for a mid week meal, this is the basic foundation.