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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!
Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? StoveTop Creamy Ziti Recipe is here!! Check it out!
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.
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.
I love how this pasta dish pairs nicely with all sorts of sides to make it a meal, you could do a garden salad, garlic bread or even a crisp Fruit and Vegetable Salad. Whatever you serve it up with, your family will love it!
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. If you like dump and start recipes as much as I do, check out Top 25 Instant Pot Dump and Start Recipes.
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!
Looking for a lighter version?? Try my SKINNY CREAMY ZITI!
Try out these other Recipes!
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Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti
Equipment
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!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti
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!
Can you make in the crockpot?
I wouldn’t suggest making this in the Crockpot. I do have a stovetop version if that is something you are interested in!
I fry some sausage(pork sausage) and the fry mushrooms as well and add it to the sauce. It is delicious. Ive also added ham and peas one time to it also delicious.
Can you post the stove top version as I don’t have an instant pot
Hi Ashley- you can find the stovetop directions in this post. Hope you enjoy! https://cookingwithkarli.com/one-pot-creamy-ziti-pasta/
This was great! It was so fast and easy, yet delicious! I will definitely make this again. Thank you!
What red sauce do you use?
I usually use Hunt’s 4 Cheese Pasta sauce. Hope you enjoy!
What is the red pasta sauce? Is it like the traditional spaghetti sauce or is there something that’s just called red pasta sauce?
Spaghetti Sauce will work great! At my grocery store, it is called Pasta Sauce. 🙂
This looks great! To double the recipe, should I double all the ingredients? Do I need to change the cooking time?
Just double the ingredients, no need to change cook time. 🙂 Enjoy!
Can you double the recipe?
Yes- Double the ingredients, the cook time will stay the same. 🙂
Do you double the chicken broth?
Hi Patti, if you are wanting to double the recipe you will want to double the chicken broth as well as all of the other ingredients.
Hi this recipe sounds yummy
.but Idont have that pot canI use crock pot.thanks carolann
Hi Carolann! I have a stovetop version of this recipe you might like! Here is the link for you.. hope you have a great day! https://cookingwithkarli.com/one-pot-creamy-ziti-pasta/
My family loves this so I have many it many times. Last time I wasn’t paying attention and added the pasta sauce before cooking and it turned out fine. Just FYI. Thanks for the easy recipe.
Is it normal for the milk/ cream to look curdled after it’s done cooking? I stirred it and added the cheese and the cheese kinda looked that way also. Taste fine! Love how easy it is. Thanks
Hi Shannon- The cream shouldn’t looked curdled at all as long as heavy cream was used (35% if you are in Canada). Lower fat content in half & half, evaporated milk or regular milk will cause those to curdle under pressure. Hope this helps! Glad it still was delicious!
I do not put my dairy in until after cooking. I use light cream.
It definitely looks kind of WEIRD though not exactly curdled. If it smells delicious you’re doing fine.
Is a 6-quart IP big enough to double this?
Yes, Just stay near the pot when you are releasing the pressure. Starchy foods, like pasta, tend to bubble and foam out of the vent when releasing the pressure. This has a greater chance of happening when the recipe is doubled. If liquid starts coming out of the vent, just close the vent and wait another minute before trying again. Hope you love it!
I loved it when I made it!!! There just wasn’t enough!! thank you!