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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!

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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 and 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.

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!

Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti is saucy, cheesy and delicious. 20 minutes is all you need to make this creamy red sauce and pasta dish!

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.

Instant Pot pasta in the liquid before it is pressure cooked.

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.

Instant Pot pasta after it is pressure cooked.

Turn the Instant Pot onto sauté, then in goes some red pasta sauce.

red pasta sauce is added to the cooked pasta.

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.

the cheese thickens the sauce for this instant pot pasta dish.

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! 

Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti is saucy, cheesy and delicious. 20 minutes is all you need to make this creamy red sauce and pasta dish! - Cooking with Karli - #instantpot #pasta #dinner #fast #easy #recipe

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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 and pasta dish!
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4.69 from 543 votes

Dump and Start Instant Pot Creamy Ziti

By: Karli Bitner
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!
Cook Time: 6 minutes
14 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4 servings

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

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!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 435kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 106mg | Sodium: 1310mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g
Like this recipe? Rate and comment below!

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

  1. 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.
  2. Set your Instant Pot to Manual for 6 minutes. Let it naturally release its pressure for an additional 6 minutes then quick release.
  3. Add the red pasta sauce to the Instant Pot and give it a stir.
  4. SLOWLY add in the cheese while stirring. The cheese will melt and thicken the sauce. The sauce will also thicken as it cools.
  5. 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!

About Karli Bitner

This blog is a little glimpse into my kitchen, family & life. I hope you’ll giggle the days away with me and enjoy the craziness that goes on at my house. If you are Cookie obsessed like I am, check out my Sister Site, Cookies for Days.

Read More About Me

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4.69 from 543 votes (384 ratings without comment)

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621 Comments

      1. Hi Jordyn- did you use heavy, full fat, whipping cream? all other creams will curdle under pressure.

  2. This is AMAZING!! I love saucy meals and this is comfort food at it’s finest! And so quick and easy to make! Thank you! This is going into my weekly dinner rotation (and I will be making it for myself for lunch sometimes when my 5 kids are in school :)).

    Reply

  3. Excited to try this tonight! If I double the recipe, do I alter the cooking time at all or still cook for 6 minutes?

    Thanks!

    Reply

  4. Made this for lunch today and it was sooo delicious and soooo easy!!! My kids totally devoured it. This recipe is definitely a keeper. Thank you so much.
    Regards
    Arti Arora

    Reply

  5. Oh my goodness this is amazing. Came together so quickly and my 2 year old ate it right up. This is definitely going into the rotation

    Reply

    1. 2 year olds are the toughest critics!! I am so glad this recipe got the stamp of approval from yours! 🙂 Have a happy thanksgiving!

      Reply

    1. If you substitute water, you will need to add more salt to the dish but you should be able to substitute if in a bind. 🙂

      Reply

  8. Thank you for this recipe! It is a hit with my family and apart of our dinner rotation too. Where can I find more of your instant pot recipes?

    Reply

    1. Hi Cynthia! If you have an 8qt you should be able to triple just fine. 🙂 Triple all ingredients, no need to change cook time!

      Reply