Instant Pot Firefighter’s Special–an easy 5-ingredient breakfast casserole recipe with fluffy eggs and sausage patties. Whip this hearty breakfast up in no time!
Note: the SLOW COOKER instructions are listed in the recipe card below
Instant Pot Firefighter’s Special
One thing that has been interesting for me this past year is to listen to Greg work from home. We share an office and are together almost 24/7 (it’s probably like 21/7). He works as a probation officer for the United States and puts out a lot of fires each day. A lot of the time he can’t really plan out his days because he is constantly reacting to the latest crisis. But he does prioritize his daily morning run (his mental therapy) and a hearty breakfast to keep him full and ready to react to the day’s work.
This protein heavy, low carb breakfast casserole has fluffy scrambled eggs and sausage patties. With only 5 ingredients and your Instant Pot you’ll be out the door and ready to put out any fires the day hands you! You’ll stay satisfied until at least a late lunch. Whether you’re an actual firefighter (bless you) or a figurative firefighter give this Instant Pot breakfast a try!
How to make Instant Pot Firefighter’s Special
If you love egg bites you’ll love this egg and sausage casserole. The eggs are mixed with cottage cheese (just like egg bites) which makes them so fluffy! You place chunks of sausage patties in the bottom of the pan with the egg mixture on top and then the sausages float up to the middle during cooking. To make this recipe you’ll need…
- A 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. You can also use an 8 quart pot.
- A pot-in-pot dish. I used a 7×3 inch* Fat Daddios cake pan
- A sling/trivet* to lower the pan into the Instant Pot and retrieve it.
- 8 eggs (large or you can use 10 medium eggs)
- ½ cup cottage cheese (I use full fat large curd)
- Pepper (I like freshly cracked pepper)
- ½ cup shredded cheddar (sharp or medium are both good)
- 4 fully cooked sausage patties (I buy these in the frozen section)
- 2 green onions, diced (for a bit of flavor and color)
- Optional: ¼ cup bacon crumbles (just because it’s bacon)
Instructions to make the recipe…
- In a mixing bowl whisk the eggs and the cottage cheese together until scrambled. Add in a pinch of pepper (I used fresh cracked pepper). Stir in the cheddar.
- Spray a 7×3 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Break up each of the patties into 4 pieces (mine were still frozen). Lay them in the bottom of the pan. Pour the egg mixture over the top.
- Pour 1 ½ cups water into bottom of Instant Pot. Place the pan on top of a trivet/sling and lower the pan into the Instant Pot.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 15 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid and remove the pan.
- If there is liquid on top, use a paper towel to carefully blot the top of the casserole.
- Sprinkle the green onions and bacon on top. Slice and serve.
More Instant Pot Breakfast Recipes…
- Instant Pot Egg Bites
- Instant Pot Mountain Mama Brunch
- Instant Pot Brunch Casserole
- Instant Pot Lumberjack Breakfast
- Pigs in a Blanket
- Instant Pot Sausage Gravy
Want More Tried And True Instant Pot Recipes?
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Instant Pot Firefighter’s Special
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes (plus 10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
An easy breakfast casserole recipe with eggs and sausage. Whip this hearty breakfast up in no time!
Ingredients
- 8 eggs
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese
- Pepper
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
- 4 fully cooked sausage patties (I buy these in the frozen section)
- 2 green onions, diced
- Optional: 1/4 cup bacon crumbles
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- In a mixing bowl whisk the eggs and the cottage cheese together. Add in a pinch of pepper (I used fresh cracked pepper). Stir in the cheddar.
- Spray a 7×3 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray. Break up each of the patties into 4 pieces (mine were still frozen). Lay them in the bottom of the pan. Pour the egg mixture over the top.
- Pour 1 ½ cups water into bottom of Instant Pot. Place the pan on top of a trivet/sling and lower the pan into the Instant Pot.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 15 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid and remove the pan.
- If there is liquid on top, use a paper towel to carefully blot the top of the casserole.
- Sprinkle the green onions and bacon on top. Slice and serve.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl whisk the eggs and the cottage cheese together. Add in a pinch of pepper (I used fresh cracked pepper). Stir in the cheddar.
- Break up each of the patties into 4 pieces (mine were still frozen). Lay them in the bottom of the slow cooker. Pour the egg mixture over the top.
- Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours (depending on how hot your slow cooker cooks).
- If there is liquid on top, use a paper towel to carefully blot the top of the casserole.
- Sprinkle the green onions and bacon on top. Slice and serve.
Notes
Equipment needed: I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. You can also use an 8 quart pot. You’ll also need a 7×3 inch* (or similar size) pan and a sling/trivet* to lower the pan into the Instant Pot and retrieve it.
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
*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.
I was out of green onions so minced up a red mini pepper and used that in its place. Added some onion powder to the egg mixture. Next time will also add some salt. I lightly tented the pan with foil to prevent excess moisture from getting in the casserole. It was very good and it was very filling.
★★★★★
Good tips! Thanks!
I’ve made this twice and it’s really great! I do want to know if there are meatless substitutes for the breakfast sausage patties. My wife is vegetarian and I think this would be an awesome dish if some of those Morningstar products could work.
★★★★★
I haven’t tried it myself but I imagine they would work!
I have a question I don’t own any pots for my IP can I not just make it in my IP without a pot.
You can’t, because it will burn. Here is why: https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/pot-in-pot-method-explained/
This sounds so delicious! We are dairy free though. Do you think you would have just as good of results without the cottage cheese? Anything I can sub it with?
It definitely won’t have the same results without the cottage cheese because that it was makes it so fluffy. I am not sure of a suitable substitution 🙁 Sorry I’m not more help!
I love these casseroles cold later in week. Being single and living alone this will give me breakfast on the go for a few days.
★★★★★
Yes! So nice to have a warm breakfast each morning without all the work!
Thanx for your quick reply. I do have the IP 3 qt pan. Do I use the same cooking time as written for the 7×3 pan? Can’t wait to serve this!
Yes the same time!
I am very brand new to this type of cooking and find all the different pots and accessories required to be very overwhelming. How do you know which type of pot to use with the pot in pot cooking? Why did you pick this cake pan instead of the 3 qt Instant Pot liner for this Firefighter recipe? Would the liner work? I want to make this recipe but don’t own the right pan or pot. It can sometimes feel like every recipe requires its own special pot, pan, or other accessory. The cost of this way of cooking is adding up really quickly.
On a completely different note, thanks for this website as it has been a wonderful place to get great beginner information.
Hi Cinzia, I would not worry too much. Your 3 quart IP liner will be perfect for most any pot in pot dish. It is so deep so will be good for most everything. For this particular recipe I used a shallower dish just so it would look nicer in the pictures and the casserole would look closer to the top. But if you’re not concerned about appearances the deeper pot will be wonderful.
Thank you very much Karen. Right now I am not worried about presentation; I’ll stress about that later. *smiles*
This looks delicious and easy. Would it work to double this recipe using the 6 qt instant pot? Would using the 7×3 pan and cook time remain the same? I’m serving a crowd. Thanx
It will be too much for one 7×3 inch pan. If you have a deeper pan (like the 3 quart IP liner inside the 6 quart IP) that would work better.
Thank you for creating a recipe that is low-carb…and for naming it what you did!! Last year the fires got close enough to our house to worry us. The evacuees were sent to our Fairgrounds, and that is where our fire fighters were “treated” to food and beverages, and I sure wish I had this recipe then. Looks and sounds wonderful!!!
★★★★★
Oh boy that sounds really scary. I’m glad your house is okay! Firefighters are heroes!
Thank you Karen! We feel blessed every day…and not just because we live up the street from a volunteer fire station. (I loved you cookbook so much I have purchased several now. They make great gifts!).
Retired firefighter from NYC with 30 years service. Thank you for your kind comment. I will certainly try out this recipe. I have to. It has firefighter in the title.
Thanks for your service Frank!
What do you think about using fully cooked, drained, and crumbled breakfast sausage instead of patties? Definitely requires more effort than the patties but sometimes that’s what I have on hand.
Yes! That would work perfect. I’d use about a half pound.
It never occurs to me to follow a recipe exactly, when I have a different type of the same ingredient. I would not hesitate to sub one type of sausage for another. Fully cooked is all you need to worry about. Thanks for bringing it up, since I have (frozen) fully cooked bulk sausage in my freezer too!