Instant Pot Grandma’s Ground Beef Casserole–a ground beef and pasta dish with tomatoes, peppers, spinach and cheese.
Instant Pot Grandma’s Ground Beef Casserole
This is an easy recipe that uses a pound of ground beef. It’s got pasta, cheese and vegetables all in one dish. I love making this recipe in the Instant Pot instead of the traditional method. It’s got fewer steps, fewer dishes to clean and there is no draining of pasta water. We all loved this dinner and ate it until it was gone!
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Ground beef–or ground turkey
- Onion
- Garlic salt
- Black pepper
- Onion powder
- Italian seasoning
- Beef broth–or water and Better than Bouillon Beef Base
- Rotini pasta–or penne or macaroni
- Petite diced tomatoes–or crushed tomatoes
- Tomato sauce
- Tomato paste
- Sugar
- Bell pepper–red or green
- Spinach–fresh or frozen
- Mozzarella cheese
- Cheddar cheese
Steps
Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. When display says HOT add in the beef and break it up. Add in the onion. Brown beef for about 5 minutes. Drain off excess grease.
Stir in the garlic salt, pepper, onion powder and italian seasoning. Pour in the broth and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking.
Sprinkle in the pasta.
Dump in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, bell pepper and spinach.
Cover 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 move valve to venting and remove the lid.
Stir well. Sprinkle the cheeses on top and let melt (I used my air fryer lid).
Serve and enjoy.
Notes/Tips
- Serve with a simple green salad with a vinaigrette dressing or a tomato and cucumber salad with a balsamic dressing. You can also serve this with garlic bread, ciabatta, or focaccia bread.
- You can make this with any type of short cut pasta you like. Some of the pastas require less or more pressure cooking time than the rotini pasta. For example use 1 minute pressure cook time for egg noodles or a 4 minute pressure cooking time for penne pasta.
- If you prefer a spicier dish, you can add in a pinch of red pepper flakes.
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in an 8 quart pot.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Other recipes you can make with spinach are Instant Pot Spinach And Ravioli Lasagna and Instant Pot Creamy Tortellini, Spinach And Chicken Soup.
More Instant Pot Ground Beef and Pasta Casseroles
Instant Pot Rita’s Casserole
A delicious way to eat spinach! Ground beef, pasta, marinara sauce, spinach and mozzarella cheese are combined to make a quick and easy dinner.
Instant Pot Hamburger Hotdish
Egg noodles, seasoned ground beef, corn and diced green peppers in a marinara sauce and finished off with shredded cheddar cheese. An easy Instant Pot one pot meal.
Having Company Casserole
Having Company Casserole is a baked pasta casserole with cheeses, pasta, tomato sauce and ground beef. The Instant Pot will help you get this classic casserole ready faster than the stove.
Instant Pot Cowboy Spaghetti
Easy spaghetti recipe with bacon, ground beef, Rotel, barbecue sauce and cheese. A hearty pasta dish that comes together quickly with the help of your Instant Pot.
Instant Pot Poor Man Husband Casserole
A layered noodle casserole with ground beef, marinara sauce, cheddar cheese, cream cheese and sour cream.
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
Instant Pot Grandma’s Ground Beef Casserole
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 minutes
- Total Time: 23 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
A ground beef and pasta dish with tomatoes, peppers, spinach and cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp italian seasoning
- 2 cups beef broth
- 8 oz rotini pasta
- 1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
- 2 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 bell pepper, cored and diced
- 3 cups spinach
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. When display says HOT add in the beef and break it up. Add in the onion. Brown beef for about 5 minutes. Drain off excess grease.
- Stir in the garlic salt, pepper, onion powder and italian seasoning. Pour in the broth and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking.
- Sprinkle in the pasta. Dump in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, bell pepper and spinach.
- Cover 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 move valve to venting and remove the lid.
- Stir well. Sprinkle the cheeses on top and let melt (I used my air fryer lid). Serve and enjoy.
- Category: Beef
- Method: Instant Pot
*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.
Great dish! Easy to prepare and quick to cook. I used all ingredients as listed but did a 4 minute cook (vs 3–past experience preference for the pasta), stirred in the spinach and green peppers in as soon as the cook was done, and then let it sit for about 10 minutes. We prefer a little crunch to the peppers! Using the air fryer lid was a great recommendation for melting the cheese. Like the idea from a few other reviewers to use Italian sausage for a change. Thanks for another yummy recipe!
★★★★★
Good tip on the peppers! Thanks!
made this tonight but subbed the beef for Italian sausage and the spinach for baby Bella mushrooms. Came out great.
I love both of those ideas!
Made this tonight, super simple and didn’t take long. Instant hit in the house. Might try subbing in Italian sausage next time.
★★★★
oh yes, I would definitely try with Italian sausage. Will be perfect!