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Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot is a fast and convenient way to thaw and cook a frozen block of ground beef. Use your pressure cooker to quickly cook frozen hamburger meat. Have cooked ground beef ready for your recipe!
Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot
There are several Instant Pot® hacks that I really like. This is one of them. If you have ever forgotten to thaw out your pound of hamburger meat, and had your dinner plans messed up, then this hack is for you!
This method of cooking ground beef from frozen works with up to 2 pounds of meat (that I have tested so far). Go ahead and try it with more if you need to, though it may overcook the edges as the cook time will be longer.
Helpful Tips for Cooking Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot
- Before you freeze the meat, remove the plastic pad thing on the bottom. They are a pain to take off while frozen!
- Use the trivet. Unless you want to boil the hamburger meat, set it on the trivet, up out of the water.
- Natural Release for a few minutes to help the meat retain more moisture.
Why Didn’t My Hamburger Cook Completely?
- Possible reasons why your ground beef may not be completely cooked through after using this method:
- How thick was the frozen meat? If thicker than what I show in the photos, add some cook time.
- More than 2 pounds – Add some cook time if you are cooking more than 2 pounds.
- High Pressure – Be sure to set your IP to High Pressure.
- Natural Release – Don’t skip the Natural Release time.
If your meat is still a little raw after cooking with this method, you can put the lid back on and cook a couple minutes more, or drain the water and add the meat back into the pot and sauté it for a few minutes, stirring and breaking up the meat.
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If you don’t already have a trivet with handles, here is a good one: Steamer Rack Trivet with Heat Resistant Silicone Handles (affiliate).
See my Instant Pot Accessories post for more ideas!
Does This Work With Frozen Ground Turkey?
Yes it does! It is important to check the internal temperature if you are not going to cook it further after using this method. It should be 165° F.
30+ Instant Pot Ground Beef Recipes
Instant Pot Korean Ground Beef
Instant Pot Lasagna
Instant Pot Taco Pie
Watch the video to see how easy it is to cook frozen ground beef in the Instant Pot!
Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 cup Water (6-qt pot, 2 cups for 8-qt)
- 1 - 2 lbs Frozen Ground Beef
Instructions
- Place the metal trivet /rack into the pot and add the water.
- Place the frozen block of ground beef on the trivet.
- Close the lid and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
- Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button or dial, then the +/- button or dial to select cook time in minutes. High Pressure. The pot will take several minutes to come to pressure.For 1 lb of meat, cook for 28 minutes, for 2 lbs cook for 32 minutes. SEE NOTES.
- When the cook cycle has finished, turn off the pot and let it sit undisturbed for 10 minutes (10 minute natural release). Then turn the steam release knob to the Venting position to release the remaining steam/pressure.
- When the pin in the lid drops back down, open the lid.
- Remove the trivet with the cooked meat on it and move the meat to a plate. The meat will stay in the shape of a block.
- Use a fork or chopper/stirrer utensil to break up the meat.
- Now you can use the meat in your recipe!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
would this work if I just put in in sauce w/o the rack?
I haven’t tried it, but if you are using a sauce and not water or broth, the pot could scorch on the bottom and not come to pressure.
I have frozen my 1 lb of ground beef in quarter lb portions. How long should I cook one of the portions in my 3 quart?
Try 10 minutes with a 10 minute natural release.
Such a great hack! I use this to cook my frozen solid blocks of local beef packed in plastic by my butcher. It always takes so long to defrost, and I frequently forget to take it out of the freezer ahead of time. This is a major timesaver!
I had a half beef processed so I have ground beef in 1 pound chubs. I put 3 of them on my trivet and chose 30 minutes high pressure with complete natural release. It was cooked through. Then I set out the trivet to the side while I drained the pot of water and grease. I dumped the meat back in, then used my hand mixer to break apart. Turned on the saute function, added taco seasoning and water and viola! Taco meat in one pot without heating up the kitchen. Love being able to cook from frozen.
It worked out well! Thank you for saving our dinner today
I’m cooking the hamburger for a soup recipe that also calls for onion. Can I put the uncooked onion in while the meat is cooking or would that overcook them?
It will depend on how large you cut the pieces. Larger, thicker pieces will hold up better than diced.
I like this method and used my food processor for a slightly more uniform texture. Thanks for posting!
Love your IP recipes. Will definitely look forward to seeing you and more of your recipes.
Can you cook hamburger that is not frozen like this if you form it into a meatloaf like shape. If you can, how long would it take to cook 2 – 3 pounds?
Yes, If you want to make a meatloaf, I have a recipe here: Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes. If you just want to cook the thawed meat, you can do that, though I haven’t. I would say for 2 lbs try the same time as the frozen. For 1 lb, cut the time by 10 minutes and see how that works. You can always ad more time if you need it.
I like this idea, but I think I would slightly under cook by a minute or two so I could brown the meat in a cast iron pan for that Maillard reaction tastiness and maybe throw in some spices. Beats thawing in the fridge or my usual: in the bag submerged in cold water (which takes about an hour or so but then you still have to cook the meat).
That’s a great idea, Chuck!
It really works! I love this. I made your taco pie recipe with the cooked meat. That was so good!
Isn’t this a great hack?! I’m happy it worked for you, and that you like my Taco Pie recipe!