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This Instant Pot Cheesy Taco Pasta has only 6 ingredients, cooks in about 30 minutes, and is so delicious! This pressure cooker cheesy taco pasta is one of my most popular Instant Pot pasta recipes! This is a great beginner Instant Pot recipe.
Originally Published 9/1/2017
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Instant Pot Cheesy Taco Pasta
When you first get your Instant Pot, you are going to want something delicious and fairly simple to make in it.
This Instant Pot Taco Pasta recipe is a good one because it gets you familiar with the sauté function as well as the pressure cook function.
Every time I cook pasta in my Instant Pot electric pressure cooker, I am grateful that this wonderful appliance exists!
Pasta in a Pressure Cooker?
Yes! Pasta cooks up very well in the Instant Pot. The key is the liquid to pasta weight ratio. Since you don’t drain it, the liquid is absorbed by the pasta, so you need to use the correct amount.
The rule-of-thumb is 1 cup of liquid to 4-ounces of pasta. It is best to weigh it. Food Scales like this one are so useful.
It is great to cook the pasta in broth and have it soak up all of that liquid flavor. I love that you don’t have to drain it!
Creamy, cheesy Instant Pot Taco Pasta is my favorite of all of my Instant Pot pasta recipes.
Is Instant Pot Taco Pasta Spicy?
- Instant Pot Taco Pasta is so easy to make, and has so much flavor!
- The flavor for this pasta dish comes from salsa and my homemade Easy Taco Seasoning (or use the packet from the store).
- It will be as spicy as your salsa and your taco seasoning, which is normally mild to medium. Use a hotter version or add red pepper flakes while browning the meat for a spicier result.
Don’t Forget the Fixin’s
Garnish with Taco fixin’s, or serve as is. Either way it will be a hit with the family! Some favorite garnishes are:
• Avocado chunks
• Corn chips
• Extra shredded cheese
• Hot Sauce
• Finely diced onion
• Cilantro
• Sour Cream
Watch the Video for Instant Pot Cheesy Taco Pasta Recipe
Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
Instant Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni
Instant Pot Chili Mac
Instant Pot Pizza Pasta Casserole
Instant Pot Creamy Cajun Pasta with Sausage
If you make this pressure cooker Taco Pasta recipe let me know! Just leave a comment with a star rating below. I’d like to know how you liked it!
Instant Pot Cheesy Taco Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 lb Lean Ground Beef or Lean Ground Turkey (80%-93% lean)
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Taco Seasoning (see my recipe for homemade, or use 1 packet of store bought)
- 1 (16 oz) Container of Salsa
- 16 oz Pasta Shells*, medium (or use 16 oz rotini)
- 4 cups Broth, (low sodium beef or chicken)
- 2 cups Shredded Cheese (I use 1 cup Monterey Jack and 1 cup sharp Cheddar)
Instructions
Brown the Meat
- Turn pot on to Sauté mode.
- When display reads Hot, add the meat (use a little olive oil if using ground turkey). Cook until mostly done.
- Add the taco seasoning, stir and finish cooking meat.
- Add the salsa and broth. Stir with wooden spoon and scrape the bottom of the pot to get up all of the browned bits (deglaze).
- Put on a glass lid (or any lid that fits. If you use the pressure cooker lid, make sure it is on Venting). Let the broth heat up and start to simmer.
- Add the pasta and stir.
- Cancel the sauté mode.
- Put the pressure cooker lid on and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
Pressure Cook
- Press the Manual (or Pressure Cook) button and use the +/- button to select 5 minutes for softer pasta, 4 minutes for more al dente (or half the time on the pasta package directions).
- When cooking cycle ends, turn off the pressure cooker.
- Do a controlled Quick Release of the pressure/steam. I like to start it in smaller bursts until I am sure no sauce will be spewing from the steam release knob. Then I turn the knob all the way to Venting, and let it release the remaining steam/pressure.
- When the pin in the lid drops, and it is safe to open it, do so with the lid facing away from your face.
- Give the pasta a good stir, add the cheese, stir again, and serve.
Garnish with any of these, if desired:
- Avocado, Jalapeño, Sour Cream, Tortilla Chips, Cilantro
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Resources to Make This Pressure Cooker Taco Pasta Recipe
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Made this for the first time tonight and it was a hit!!!! I didnt have any salsa so used a can of diced tomatoes with green chilies in it. Was amazing. Thanks for a great recipe will def be a hit again. <3
Wanting to use leftover turkey after Christmas I diced the turkey wry fine and used turkey broth I had made from the bones. It was delicious
Thanks for a fun, easy, and delicious recipe! And a special shout out for providing your own make-at-home taco seasoning mix…so nice to avoid the high sodium levels found in many store-bought options.
Question: We’d like to add some frozen corn to our next batch to make the recipe even more festive. As an IP newbie, I’m wondering if the corn might turn to mush in the IP. Any suggestions? We could always microwave it and then stir it into the finished dish.
I would just add it in after pressure cooking. You can thaw it a little in the microwave to get the excess water out of it. Keep some of that crunch! Yum!
Hi! I am soooo excited to make this! So did you use 12 oz or 16 oz of shell pasta? because in the video I believe you say it’s 12oz but in the recipe it says 16 oz pasta shells. Hoping to make this tonight =)
12 oz with 3 cups broth, or 16 oz and 4 cups broth.
If you don’t have any pasta shells or the other pasta
Can you use any kind of pasta like macaroni
Yes. Macaroni is a 4 minute cook time.
I need to know the sodium content per serving. My mom is on a low salt diet and can’t have much salt . If I make it without cheese would this make a difference?
It will depend on the type of taco seasoning you use, and the kind of cheese, etc. It can vary widely. You don’t have to add cheese if you don’t want to.
Flavors were great but mine was real soupy. The cheese did not melt on pasta. It all stuck to the bottom of the instant pot, what happened?
Did you stir the cheese in?
I made this dish gluten free and vegetarian by using Barilla gluten free rotini noodles and soy crumbles and my family loved it. My husband said we should make it a weekly menu item, yay! It’s so simple and so tasty!
I admit that I was a bit skeptical about this recipe. But I have a picky eater who will try anything that has a Mexican flair. This was beyond delicious. I used a full packet of McCormick mild taco seasoning and Costco medium jarred salsa. It had a bit of a kick, just perfect. Topped it with avocado and everyone was happy! 5 stars!
Can I make this with frozen ground beef?
If you mean frozen cooked ground beef, then yes. If you mean raw, then no, as the cook time will be too long and the pasta will be overcooked. If you have the time, cook the frozen ground beef first. Here’s a method for doing that in the IP: Cooking Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot.