Instant Pot Firefighter’s Spaghetti

Instant Pot Firefighter’s Spaghetti–an all-in-one pot chicken spaghetti casserole with a creamy, cheese sauce.

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Instant Pot Firefighter’s Spaghetti

I made my own version of a recipe called firefighter’s chicken spaghetti that I found on Taste of Home. The original author says, “I’m always in the kitchen making dishes for my family, neighbors or the local fire department to try. My husband is a firefighter in our town, and this chicken spaghetti recipe is a favorite there.” The original recipe requires boiling pasta on the stovetop, it uses pre-cooked chicken, calls for cream of chicken and mushroom soup and is baked in the oven. My version requires one pot, your Instant Pot. You can use pre-cooked or uncooked chicken. And I make my own creamy sauce with sour cream, seasonings and cream. I’m sure both versions are great! But I guess it just depends on what you like and how you like to cook. I prefer the Instant Pot for easy clean up and easy hands off cooking.

What ingredients you need to make Instant Pot Firefighter’s Spaghetti:

• ¼ cup butter for sautéing the veggies and for the cornflake topping
• 1 cup diced onion for flavor
• 2 ribs of celery, sliced for crunch and flavor
• 8 oz mushrooms, sliced for texture and bulking up the dish
• 1 tsp garlic powder for flavor
• 1 tsp kosher salt for flavor
• 1 tsp black pepper for flavor
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning for flavor
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning for flavor
• 1 ½ cups chicken broth for boiling the spaghetti noodles and bringing the pot to pressure
• 8 oz spaghetti you can use angel hair, thin noodles or normal spaghetti. Whole wheat or white both work.
• 1 to 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs or you can use cooked rotisserie chicken
• 1 cup sour cream for the creamy sauce
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch so the sour cream won’t separate
• ⅓ cup heavy cream for the creamy sauce
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella for the creamy cheesy sauce
• ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese for flavor
• Optional: 1 cup cornflakes,  crushed for a crunchy topping

How to make Instant Pot chicken spaghetti:

1. Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT add in 3 Tbsp of the butter and let melt. Add in the onion, celery and mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes. Add in half of the garlic powder, kosher salt, pepper, poultry seasoning and Italian seasoning. Stir well.
2. Pour in the broth and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking (to prevent burn message). Turn off Instant Pot. 
3. Break the spaghetti in half and lay it in a criss-cross pattern on top of the veggies and broth. (This will prevent the spaghetti from clumping up while cooking).
4. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces (scroll down to see the best way to do that) and lay it evenly on top of the spaghetti. Sprinkle the chicken with the other half of the seasonings. (I used chicken breasts but thighs would bring lots of flavor. Another choice is to use already cooked rotisserie chicken–don’t change the cooking time.)
5. Cover the Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 3 minutes. When time is up let the pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move the valve to venting. Remove the lid. 
6. Combine the sour cream and cornstarch together and stir well. Stir the mixture and the heavy cream into the Instant Pot. Stir the mozzarella and parmesan into the pot. Taste test and add salt and pepper to taste. 
7. If desired, make a cornflake crunchy topping. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter and stir it together with the crushed cornflakes. Sprinkle the cornflakes over the top of the spaghetti. Use an air fryer lid at 400° F for 2 minutes to crisp up the topping. If you don’t have an air fryer lid you can bake the cornflakes separately in the oven on a baking sheet under the broiler for 3-4 minutes. Then toss them on top of the finished pasta.

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• You can double this recipe. Simply double all ingredients but do keep the same cooking time. You will need a 6 or 8 quart pot in order to double the recipe. To halve the recipe cut all ingredients in half and keep the same cooking time.
• How to store the leftovers: store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
• Try using another type of pasta for this recipe. To find out the correct cooking time take the cooking time listed on the back of the package (ie 12 minutes) and divide by 2 and subtract 1. 12 minutes/2 = 6 minutes-1 minute = 5 minute pressure cook time. Use a 5-10 minute natural pressure release with pasta so that it doesn’t foam all over.
• Tip for getting tender chicken bites: When you cut the chicken breasts make sure to slice across the grain. Then cut each of those wider strips crosswise into bite size cubes. All muscle has a grain to it. The placement of your knife to this grain will determine the length of the muscle fibers in an individual slice of meat, which in turn will have a profound effect on how tender or tough that meat is. I love using this little paring knife* for cutting fresh chicken breasts.

More Amazing Instant Pot Pasta Recipes…

Instant Pot Family Delight

Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken Pasta

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Primavera

Instant Pot Chicken Stroganoff

Instant Pot Chicken Florentine Pasta

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*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.