Instant Pot Italian Sausage Rigatoni is an easy, flavorful meal for any night of the week. My family liked it so much I made it three times in a row!
This instant pot pasta recipe is easily adaptable to feed more people by increasing the pasta, sausage, and tomatoes. Even the pickiest eaters are going to love this recipe.
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Instant Pot Rigatoni
Rigatoni is a tube-shaped pasta that holds various types of the sauce well. It has a ridged surface to catch chunks of meat and vegetables, I love how well this pasta holds the sauce. If you want to try another recipe made with rigatoni, try my Baked Rigatoni with Meat Sauce.
Why I Love This Recipe
I really love this recipe because it’s an easy, flavorful meal that my family likes. You can never go wrong with pasta for dinner.
- Ready in under 40 minutes
- Easy to make
- Perfect for picky eaters
If you love Instant Pot pasta recipes check out this Instant Pot Tomato Feta Pasta recipe.
Ingredients
This ingredient list may seem long, but these ingredients are easy to find at your local grocery store, and you will be so glad that you made a trip to the store after one bite of this dish.
- chicken Italian sausage sliced
- rigatoni pasta
- yellow onion diced
- red pepper diced
- minced garlic
- olive oil
- crushed tomatoes
- chicken broth
- grated parmesan
- heavy cream
- salt
- pepper
- baby spinach
Substitutions
Pasta: Use whatever type of pasta that you have on hand. A ridged pasta works best.
Bell Pepper: You can use any color pepper that you already have on hand.
Equipment Needed / Helpful Tools
You only need a few kitchen tools to help you make this one-pot rigatoni recipe.
- Knife and cutting board
- Instant Pot
- Wooden spoon
How to Make Instant Pot Italian Sausage Rigatoni
This recipe comes together in just a few simple steps. Follow the steps below and you will have a creamy and delicious pasta meal.
Step 1: Saute the vegetables
Set instant pot to sautรฉ and add 1 tablespoon of oil and diced vegetables. Sautรฉ until onions are translucent.
Step 2: Cook the sausage
Add garlic and sliced sausage and continue to sautรฉ until sausage has a nice brown crust.
Step 3: Deglaze the bottom of the Instant Pot
Add broth to deglaze the bottom of the Instant pot and add crushed tomatoes.
Step 4: Add the pasta and spinach
Add pasta and spinach and seal the instant pot as well as the pressure valve.
Step 5: Pressure cooker the pasta
Cook on high pressure for seven minutes.
Step 6: Release the pressure
Quick-release manually when finished.
Step 7: Add the cheese and cream
Once finished remove the lid and add Parmesan and cream and stir for a few minutes. The sauce will thicken as it cools.
Variations / Options / Add-Ins
Want to change up this Instant Pot Rigatoni recipe? Here are my favorite tips for changing the flavors of this dish.
Beef: Not a fan of sausage? Ground beef also works well for this recipe.
Spicy: Are you a fan of spice? Add crushed red pepper flakes to your tomatoes before cooking.
Cheesy: Melt in some mozzarella cheese after cooking the pasta for additional cheesy goodness.
Serving Suggestions
Are you struggling to find a side dish for your Instant Pot Rigatoni? Here are a few of my favorite sides.
- side salad
- fresh veggies and ranch
- fresh fruit
- Italian bread
- Garlic Naan bread
- Broccoli
Tips
- Once you add your pasta and tomatoes, do not stir. Place the lid on and cook.
- Be sure that you scrape the bottom of your Instant Pot well after browning the meat, otherwise, you may get a burn notice.
- Add in your favorite vegetables like zucchini or mushrooms to bulk up this meal.
FAQs
Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are some common questions and answers.
You can store this meal in an airtight container, and it’s best to eat it within 3 days.
This meal is best reheated in the microwave for one to two minutes or until warm.
I do not recommend freezing this meal after it’s cooked. You can precook the sausage and add the broth and tomatoes to save time in the kitchen.
More Instant Pot Recipes
If you like Instant Pot recipes, give these recipes a try:
- Instant Pot Peach Cobbler
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan
- Instant Pot Turkey Burgers
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Bolognese
Ready to get cooking? Print off the recipe card below or toggle on Cook Mode to keep your screen from going dark while you follow along on your phone or tablet.
๐ Recipe
Instant Pot Sausage Rigatoni
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Equipment
- Knife and cutting board
- Instant Pot
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 12 oz chicken Italian sausage sliced sliced
- 12 oz rigatoni pasta
- 1/2 yellow onion diced
- 1/2 red pepper diced
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cup grated parmesan
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups baby spinach
Instructions
- Set instant pot to sautรฉ and add 1 tablespoon of oil and diced vegetables. Sautรฉ until onions are translucent.
- Add garlic and sliced sausage and continue to sautรฉ until sausage has a nice brown crust.
- Add broth to deglaze the bottom of the Instant pot and add crushed tomatoes.
- Add pasta and spinach and seal the instant pot as well as the pressure valve. Cook on high pressure for seven minutes and quick release manually when finished
- Once finished remove the lid and add Parmesan and cream and stir for a few minutes. Sauce will thicken.
Video
Nutrition
Need to run to the store for a few ingredients first? Don’t forget to pin this recipe so you can find it when you’re ready to cook!
This was very good! I followed the recipe steps exactly as written. The only issue is I had very large rigatoni and after the quick release, several of the pasta were not cooked enough. I did another 3min cycle in the pressure cooker and that did the trick. It was very delicious, thank you for sharing the recipe!
I’m glad you liked the recipe. Thanks for letting us know how you adjusted the cooking time when the pasta wasn’t done yet. That might help my other readers if they have a similar issue.