Italian sausage and veggies all cook together in marinara sauce in your pressure cooker. It's one of our favorite easy Instant Pot meals for busy weeknights!
- Prep Time 15 mins
- Cook Time 2 mins
- Pressurize 20 mins
- Total Time 37 mins
Amount Per Serving
- Calories: 325kcal
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Protein: 17g
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Cholesterol: 46mg
- Sodium: 1104mg
- Potassium: 444mg
- Fiber: 6g
- Sugar: 7g
- Vitamin C: 49mg
- Calcium: 70mg
- Iron: 2mg
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound Italian chicken sausage
- 1 small onion (chopped)
- 2 bell peppers (chopped)
- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- 12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta (about 4 ½ cups dry)
- 25 ounce jar marinara sauce
- 3 cups fresh spinach (coarsely chopped)
- 2 ounces (½ cup) mozzarella cheese (shredded)
INGREDIENTS
INSTRUCTIONS
Turn on saute mode on the Instant Pot and add the olive oil to the pot.
- If using sausage that is already cooked, slice it and add it to the Instant Pot. If using uncooked sausage, remove it from the casings and add it to the pot.
- Add the onion to the pot and saute the onion and sausage for 2-3 minutes, or until sausage is browned (for uncooked sausage, break it up into smaller pieces as it cooks). Press cancel to turn off saute mode.
- Add the bell peppers, water, Italian seasoning and 1 cup of the marinara sauce. Stir, scraping up any bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Add the penne pasta to the pot and do not stir. Press the pasta down into an even layer. Pour the remaining sauce evenly over the top of the pasta; do not stir.
- Close the Instant Pot lid and turn the steam release valve to the sealing position. Set the cook time to 2 minutes at high pressure. (This 2 minute cook time is for whole wheat penne pasta with a stovetop package cook time of 9 minutes for al dente. You can adjust your pasta cook time as needed, see my tips in the post above.)
- The Instant Pot will take about 18 minutes to reach pressure and then the cook time will begin counting down. As soon as the cook time ends, do a controlled quick release of the pressure by turning the steam release valve towards the venting position, a little bit at a time. I like to use the handle of a long spoon to carefully move the valve. When all of the steam has escaped and the pin drops down, carefully open the Instant Pot lid. You may see a little bit of extra liquid in the pasta, but this will be absorbed as the pasta rests.
- Stir the pasta and then stir in the spinach, followed by the shredded mozzarella cheese. Serve.