Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti is saucy, cheesy and delicious. 20 minutes is all you need to make this creamy red sauce pasta dish!
Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti is a favorite at my house! I’ll be honest, it totally reminds me of Olive Garden’s Five Cheese Ziti dish. AKA the only thing I ever get while visiting Olive Garden.
I think I can count on one hand the amount of times I’ve actually gone to Olive Garden though.. and most of those occasions were for the end of season formal dinner for the high school tennis team. (I was totally JV. All 3 years. ?)
There are two reasons why we hardly ever choose to go out to eat at Olive Garden. 1. I am cheap. 2. I can make the exact same thing, just as good without having to get dressed. I’d call that a win win.
Also, every single person in my family enjoys this for dinner. That right there is a miracle, people. If you have kids, were a kid a some point or haven’t been living under a rock you’ll know that is nearly impossible.
How to Make Creamy Ziti
‘Dump and Start’ are a funny combination of words to be on my favorite word list.. but it’s there alright. This dish is so easy! Dump and Start easy.
Broth, cream, garlic, s&p and pasta go into the Instant Pot. Make sure that the pasta is covered with liquid.
Pressure cook for 6 minutes, NPR for 6 minutes and then QR the rest of the pressure. The sauce will be very liquidy, totally normal.
Turn the Instant Pot onto sauté, then in goes some red pasta sauce.
Slowly add in the parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. This will thicken the sauce nicely for you. Once the sauce has thickened, turn the Instant Pot off and serve immediately.
See, I told you it was easy.
Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? HAVE NO FEAR!! One Pot Creamy Ziti Recipe is here!! Check it out!
Try out these other Dump and Start Recipes!
Instant Pot Cashew Chicken and Noodles
Dump and Start Instant Pot Alfredo
Pulled Teriyaki Chicken Sliders
I LOVE seeing my recipes come to life in YOUR kitchen! Snap a picture & share on social media! Don’t forget to tag me!
Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp minced garlic, dried
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 oz dry ziti pasta
- 1 cup red pasta sauce
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Add the broth, cream, garlic, salt, pepper and noodles to the instant pot in that order. DO NOT STIR, but make sure all noodles are covered. If you need to move some noodles around, thats okay.
- Set your Instant Pot to Manual for 6 minutes. Let it naturally release its pressure for an additional 6 minutes then quick release.
- Add the red pasta sauce to the Instant Pot and give it a stir.
- SLOWLY add in the cheese while stirring. The cheese will melt and thicken the sauce. The sauce will also thicken as it cools.
- Enjoy!
Notes
This is a very saucy dish- If you like yours with less sauce, just cut back on the red pasta sauce at the end.
Don't love the heavy cream? Check out my SKINNY CREAMY ZITI recipe!
Recommended Products
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Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1 Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Sauté, Yogurt Maker and Warmer -
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Pyrex 4-Piece Glass Measuring Cup Set with Large 8 Cup Measuring Cup
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving:Calories: 435 Total Fat: 34g Saturated Fat: 20g Trans Fat: 1g Unsaturated Fat: 11g Cholesterol: 106mg Sodium: 1310mg Carbohydrates: 17g Fiber: 2g Sugar: 7g Protein: 17g
Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti
(Printable recipe below)
Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti is saucy, cheesy and delicious. 20 minutes is all you need to make this creamy red sauce pasta dish!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 tsp minced garlic dried
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 oz dry ziti pasta
- 1 cup red pasta sauce
- 1 cup parmesan cheese shredded
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
- Add the broth, cream, garlic, salt, pepper and noodles to the instant pot in that order. DO NOT STIR, but make sure all noodles are covered. If you need to move some noodles around, thats okay.
- Set your Instant Pot to Manual for 6 minutes. Let it naturally release its pressure for an additional 6 minutes then quick release.
- Add the red pasta sauce to the Instant Pot and give it a stir.
- SLOWLY add in the cheese while stirring. The cheese will melt and thicken the sauce. The sauce will also thicken as it cools.
- Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
This is a very saucy dish- If you like yours with less sauce, just cut back on the red pasta sauce at the end.
Serve alongside some Oven Roasted Broccoli!
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Amanda says
What is red paste sauce?
karlibitner says
Just like Spaghetti Sauce. 😊
Jamie says
So, I have made this twice already, and my family loves it! I hope you don’t mind that I also veganized it, lol…I used vegetable broth, and for the heavy cream, I used 3/4 cup of almond milk with 1/4 cup of melted Earth Balance. I omitted the parmesan cheese, and used vegan mozzarella shreds. It worked! Came so good. Still followed your recipe exactly, and it all came together. So for anyone who can’t have dairy but still would like delicious recipes like this, it can be done! Thank you for sharing this! It’s an awesome comfort food in our home. Love it! Adding to the my collection of recipes. 😉
karlibitner says
I LOVE that you veganized it! In my opinion, my recipes are great base recipes that are meant to be tweaked to your family’s liking. ❤️ so glad you enjoy this one!
Angie says
This sounds amazing! Is it possible to cook this with chicken as well? If so do you recommend adding the chicken and cooking it all together? Would I still cook it for the 6 minutes?
karlibitner says
Yes! You can just toss frozen chicken tenders on top of the pasta. Cooks for the same time. 🙂
Jay says
IP newbie here. What do you think about adding frozen meatballs instead of chicken tenders? Small/cocktail size. Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
karlibitner says
That would work perfectly! Hope you enjoy!
Jennifer A says
I might try this tonight, but I’ll have to double this. Sounds yummy
Dana says
This looks so yummy! We don’t have a pressurized pot. Can I make it in a regular pot?
karlibitner says
Yes, there are stovetop directions here: https://cookingwithkarli.com/one-pot-creamy-ziti-pasta/
Ashley says
I’ve made this multiple times & my whole family inhales it! If I double it, would I need to double the cook time, or keep it the same?
karlibitner says
Just double the ingredients, cook time stays the same. 🙂
Amanda says
Can you double this in the same size pot?
karlibitner says
Yes! That will work just fine.
Belle says
If I want to add frozen meatballs to this, at which step do I add them? Just on the top? Or with the noodles?
karlibitner says
I would add the meatballs on top of the pasta, before cooking. I hope you enjoy!
Trish says
Thanks for the recipe. My partner is a picky eater and I thought he would like it. He didn’t. What surprised me is that he loved it completely, no suggestions! The recipe was so simple, especially since I’m new to the multi cooker thing. I’m just so pleased that the recipe was fast and easy and it got rave reviews. Thank you : )
Lana says
Total newbie here do you leave it on keep warm cycle when your cooking? Thanks can’t wait to try founds amazing!!
karlibitner says
Yes, leave it on the keep warm cycle! Hope you love it!
Nancy says
Can you freeze this ?
karlibitner says
I wouldn’t suggest freezing this.
Jennifer Williams says
Hi Karli! I was curious if you ever doubled the recipe, and if so, would it need a longer cooking time?
karlibitner says
Cook time will stay the same! I have doubled this on many occasions. 🙂 Hope you love it!
Olfamily says
Made this tonight and family absolutely loved this. Super fast and easy. This will definitely be a go to recipe. It was the 3rd recipe I’ve tried with my IP.
Tami Spellman says
Going to try this soon. Just wondering, have you tried adding the sauce with all other wet ingredients in order to skip the saute step? Just wondering if it would turn out the same.
karlibitner says
I personally haven’t, others have and said it has worked fine. I just worry about the acidity of the pasta sauce and the cream playing well together under pressure. Hope you enjoy!
Corinna says
My family has made this dozens of times and it’s always delicious. I love how simple it is and how flexible it can be. I use Penne instead of Ziti because that’s what I had on hand the first time and it worked perfectly.
Heather says
Just wanted to tell you that I LOVE this recipe! It’s my go-to comfort food. Very easy. Probably my favorite IP recipe yet.
karlibitner says
Thank you, Heather!! I am so glad it is a favorite of yours! ❤️
Nicol Phillips says
I’m surprised the cream doesn’t curdle? I’m going to try it tonight.
karlibitner says
As long as you are using full fat heavy whipping cream (or 35% if you are in Canada) it will not curdle. The fat content is high enough to stabilize the cream while cooking under pressure. Hope you love it!