If you have been looking for the most decadent, rich, delicious pasta recipe, look no further. Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo. With chicken and spinach, or without (but with is so much better!). This is a pressure cooker Tortellini Alfredo that you will want to make often. Serve this to your guests, and they will love it!
Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo
I have a girlfriend who likes pasta as much as I do. We love going out to dinner and talking ‘girl talk’ over a great meal. Often times there is pasta involved. At our annual Holiday Party I like to make a main dish for the gang. One year I threw together a creamy, garlicky, chicken Alfredo. She loved it, and I was required to make it every year for her!
When I decided to make an Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo, I hadn’t thought about that recipe I used to make. Then it occurred to me I could use that recipe and add some spinach and really have a one pot meal! This version is more homemade, and I think the flavor is even better. My BFF is going to love this one!
I’ve had people ask me why I would make this in the pressure cooker. My answer is the one-pot aspect of it. I don’t have to boil water in a separate pot, and the tortellini soaks up all of the great flavors of the garlic, cream, and chicken broth. It really is better, in my opinion. Give Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo a try and let me know how you like it!
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Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo with chicken and spinach is so amazingly flavorful and rich. This is a tasty Instant Pot one-pot pasta meal. Make this pressure cooker Tortellini Alfredo when you want the best comfort food!
- 3 slices Bacon, chopped
- 1/2 small Sweet Onion (or 1 lrg shallot), diced
- 4 cloves Garlic, pressed or minced (or 1-2 tsp garlic powder)
- 1 1/2 cups Chicken Broth, low sodium
- 3/4 cup Heavy Cream
- 1/4 tsp Coarse Salt (more to taste)
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 20 oz Tortellini, pesto or cheese is good (refrigerated)
- 4 oz Cream Cheese, cut in small pieces
- 2 Chicken Breasts (boneless/skinless) cut in thirds
- 3 cups Fresh Baby Spinach
- 1 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
Turn on the pot's sauté setting. Add the bacon and cook until about halfway done, stirring occasionally.
Add the onion and cook a few minutes, until translucent.
Add the garlic and stir.
Stir in the broth, scraping the bottom of the pot to get up all of the browned bits (deglaze).
Stir in the heavy cream, salt, pepper, and the tortellini.
Place the chicken on top of the pasta.
Place the lid on the pot and lock in place. Turn the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
Cancel the sauté setting. Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button (or dial), then the +/- button (or dial) to select 4 minutes (3 minutes for a firmer tortellini).
When the cook cycle ends, do a controlled Quick Release of the pressure (controlled QR is when you release the steam in short bursts so the force of the escaping pressure doesn't bring the sauce out with the steam. Keep doing short bursts until you are sure no sauce will spew out with the steam, then turn the knob fully).
When the pin in the lid drops down, open the lid. Add the cream cheese and stir gently and allow the cheese to melt.
Add the spinach and gently stir. Let it start to wilt, then gently stir in the parmesan.
Serve.
It will have a fair amount of sauce, and will thicken as it cools.
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The recipe says refrigerated tortilini… meaning its already cooked??
Diane, I don’t think it is cooked, it is “fresh” and has been refrigerated. You can also find frozen and dried. The dried will require a longer cook time, which will overcook the chicken unless you cut larger pieces. The frozen should still be 4 minutes.
Extremely soupy. Is that normal? Followed directions exactly.
Hi Becky, no, it is not normal for it to be extremely soupy. There is sauce, of course, and it will thicken up as it cools. The one thing I can say is that I measure my pasta carefully, and if by chance you didn’t use enough, it will be more soupy. Hope that helps!
Very good! The sauce was creamy and very flavorful. Loved the chunks of chicken, too!
Hi Brenda, I’m glad you liked it! Thank you for your review!
Can you sub half and half instead of heavy cream?
Hi Diane, I haven’t tried it. You can get away with pressure cooking heavy cream and it won’t curdle (I believe it is due to the fat content). Half and half may work as well. I just haven’t tested it.
Half and half works. The heavy cream had too many calories in it for my liking. Substituted half and half and turned out amazing! Recipe is very good!
Oh that’s great, Nichole! Thank you so much for your feedback! It’s good to know we can cut some calories!
This was really good! So rich and yummy! We loved it!
Thanks Adain! I’m glad you liked it.
JUST MADE THIS WONDERFUL RECEPI CHICKEN ALFREDO TORTELLINI, ONLY THING I DID DIFFERENT I ADDED BABY PORTABELLA MUSHROOMS, TO ALL OF THE OTHER INGREDIENTS,AND USED 5 SLICES CUT UP MICROWAVE BACON, SO I ADDED JUST A TINY BIT OF OLIVE OIL, IT WAS THICK, IT WAS SO GOOD, THANK YOU SO MUCH , I WILL MAKE THIS ONE AGAIN,IT WAS EASY PEASY TO MAKE, THAT IS A GOOD THING
SUSAN
Hi Susan, I’m so glad you liked it, and made it your own! Thank you for the nice review!
Hi Sandy! I am interested in making this recipe but I only have dried tortellini. The cook time on that says 16-18 minutes. How long do you think I should put it on manual?
Hi Sruti, for dry pasta my rule of thumb is half the time the package directions call for. I would try the shortest time first, so 8 minutes. If you decide to add chicken breasts, leave them in large pieces so they don’t overcook. Maybe just cut them in half. Let me know how it works please, as I’m sure others will want to know!
I made this vegetarian by adding mushrooms and the cook time of 8 minutes worked out great. Thanks for your help!
That’s great, Sruti! Thank you for letting me know!
I made those yesterday. Delicious!!!!! So so creamy. I forgot to put chicken pieces but it turned out yummy anyway)) Awesome recipe. Will do it again for sure
That’s great, Oksana! I’m so glad you liked it! Thank you for your review!
I would like to make this for dinner, but it’s just my husband and I. If I cut everything in half, will the cook time still remain the same?
Hi Morgan, yes, the cook time will be the same.
Tonight I made the Instant Pot Tortellini Alfredo. Came out delicious….and I’ll be making more of this in the future! I made exactly to your recipe. The two others in my family love it.
Thanks, Bob! I appreciate your review!
If I double the recipe, same cook time? Also, would I double the chicken breasts.
Hi Rebecca, the cook time will stay the same. Double the chicken only if you like more meat in the dish.
This dish reminds me of an expensive dish in a restaurant. So delicious and easy to make. I will be making this again. So rich and creamy. I used half cream and half half and half. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Patty, I’m so glad you liked this recipe! I just made a batch a few days ago! Thank you for your review!
Totally bummed!! Smelled great, but chicken was still pink, tortellini way over cooked and very soupy. Very disappointed ?
Oh no Jennie! Did you cut the chicken in bite sized pieces (cubed)? How long did you cook it. I give two times, and 3 minutes for a firmer tortellini works well.
I have some leftover cooked chicken. Thinking of making this again, but using the leftover chicken instead of raw chicken. Should I adjust the time?
Just add it in after cooking and let it heat through. The pasta needs the time to cook so keep it the same.
I’m not sure what I did wrong, but mine was borderline dry when I opened the pot. No worries– I just added a combo of milk and cream until I got it to the right consistency. But had I not added more liquid, by the time the cream cheese melted–and certainly before adding the parmesan–i would have hardly been able to turn the spoon for it’s thickness! I’m scratching my head trying to figure out how other folks had a “soupy” problem.
But most importantly, it was delicious!!! I used a package of diced pancetta for the bacon (it’s what I had on hand), and I added some salt and pepper on top of the chicken before closing the lid to cook. Those were my only changes, aside from the necessary milk addition, to the recipe. I will certainly make again. I may add mushrooms or sundried tomatoes to a future batch. Rich and filling and creamy and delicious–everything one would want from an Alfredo pasta.
Ho Katie, I’m glad you liked it. I think the soupy or not soupy is due to not weighing the pasta. I’m not sure though. I weigh mine and it works every time!
Tried this tonight for dinner and my husband really liked it ! The recipe was easy to follow and it was not too soupy or too dry it was just right ! He did say the bacon flavor did “overwhelm” the dish a little so if your not the biggest fan of bacon this might not be the recipe for you! But all in all he enjoyed it and everything was cooked perfectly!!
That’s good to know. Though he may be the first man in the world to say there is too much bacon, lol! Thank you for your review!
Delicious recipe. This is my second time fixing it and it always comes out perfect, I even doubled it this time for extra. Everyone loves it.
That’s great, Trudy! I’m happy you liked it. Thank you for your review!
I made this dish last night and it was very good. I wish the sauce was a little bit thicker, but overall a good dish.
How long of a cook time for frozen chicken breast and this same recipe?
Since you won’t be able to slice it up, It may not cook in the 4 minute cook time. If you can run the chicken under cold water and thaw it enough to cut it crossways into 3 pieces, it should cook in the 4 minutes. The tortellini can’t cook longer than that as they will get too soft.
Very yummy turned out great !!
I did 3 min with a slow gradual release timer was at 7 min when I opened it
i am out of onion! and shallots – can I use anything else or just continue to make it without it?
Onion powder would work, or just leave it out this time.
Did you make this in a 6qt?
I’ve got a 3qt so I would halve it?
I did make it in the 6 qt. You might be able to just reduce it by 1/3.
This has become a standby favorite for me and my boys. To quote Peter Sagal, “Everything is better with bacon” (ok, maybe that’s a paraphrase). The only thing I do differently is to use thin-sliced chicken breasts and lay them down whole on top before pressure-cooking. I then take them out and dice them while wilting the spinach and then put them back in.
Absolutely every time I’ve tried an Instant Pot recipe which calls for diced white meat it always comes out dry and tough. So I just thin-slice, cook, then dice afterward. So much better.
That’s great! Thank you for your review!
Made this last night. My grocery store had a sale on tortellini but the packages were only 9oz each. This worried me because I thought it would come out soupy. It didn’t. In fact, I thought it was lacking liquid. I was wrong. It was the perfect amount of liquid. The chicken was good too. I added about 1.5 cup more of parm cheese because my friend who’s a Wisconsin native was over. The pot was empty by the end of the night. My son made it a point to tell me how much he liked it before going to sleep and asked me to make it more often. Going to add mushrooms next time. Thanks for this fabulous and easy recipe!
That’s so sweet! I’m glad you and your son enjoyed this recipe!
Making this tonight but would love to add broccoli. Should I steam the broccoli in a separate pot or do you think it would be fine to put in the instant pot with the rest?
Hi Toni, I would steam it first and add it after cooking. It’s possible that frozen broccoli, if the florets aren’t too large, can go in and cook in the residual heat (rinse it in hot water first). It will be al dente.
This is hands down my family’s favorite Instant Pot recipe. I am so appreciative of those who have taken the time to publish recipes like this. I am not a cook but I am a fan of eating so all the work that someone does to make these recipes is very much appreciated! We have made this recipe several times and it comes out perfect always!
Thank you, Sue! I’m so happy you like this recipe.