If lasagna is a dish you avoid unless you have several hours to devote to it, then this easy Instant Pot Lasagna recipe will change your mind!
Any questions you might have about how to make this dish are answered below.
A few days ago, I asked the girls what they’d like for dinner, but it had to be something I could make in my Instant Pot. Katie insisted she’d been craving lasagna, so what’s a mom to do except make the girl some Instant Pot lasagna? The best part was that I didn’t even have to run to the store for ingredients.
(If you haven’t jumped on the Instant Pot bandwagon yet, I highly encourage you to try it! I never thought I’d love it as much as I do. It’s an impressive appliance and a real workhorse in the kitchen.)
I actually love it enough that I wrote a cookbook filled with easy Instant Pot recipes! (Update: I’ve now published four cookbooks, three for the Instant Pot, see the link for details) • (Update 2: Make that five cookbooks!)
What is an Instant Pot?
The answer to that on the official Instant Pot website is “Instant Pot® is the Smart Multi-Use, Programmable Pressure Cooker
designed by Canadians with the objective of being Convenient, Dependable & Safe.”
In layman’s terms, it’s a pressure cooker that speeds up cooking yet turns meats into tender, fall-apart bites that will melt in your mouth! You can make just about anything in it (even an Instant Pot Cheesecake!) as well as use it for a slow cooker, rice cooker and to make yogurt.
I’ve personally tried all the Instant Pot settings and they all do their job well. But perhaps what I love about it most is that you can sauté right in the pot, then set it to pressure cook, reducing dirty dishes (hallelujah).
Which Instant Pot to Buy
I’m often asked which Instant Pot to buy. There are so many to choose from and it can seem like a daunting task, especially if you’ve never cooked with an Instant Pot before.
I typically recommend a 6-quart Instant Pot as that’s what I use most often (I also own a 5-quart). It’s big enough for a family of 4-6 yet isn’t as huge as the 8-quart. There are other 6-quart models with more bells and whistles, so take a look through the different models before you commit.
There are so many reasons I love this easy Instant Pot lasagna recipe.
First, because it uses ingredients that I can just throw together anytime, it’s incredibly simple. And the size of this Instant Pot lasagna recipe is perfect for us (it fed four people with no leftovers).
I had a jar of good pasta sauce on hand, Italian sausage, and even the ricotta cheese. Since it’s summer, I also have fresh basil growing everywhere! I figured this Instant Pot lasagna would be pretty good with a jarred sauce, or at least it would do in a pinch.
I use a whole pound of Italian sausage despite the size being smaller, and I highly recommend using the full pound for maximum flavor. Some mushrooms and onions sautéed with the sausage would be a good twist. I also love adding small pieces of cream cheese to my lasagna, too (I’d use about 4 oz. and add a layer right in the middle with pinched off pieces spread throughout the layer).
If you do choose to add additional ingredients, keep in mind that there’s not a lot of room in the lasagna pan. A few extra, small ingredients should be fine, just don’t overload the pan.
It turned out SO well. We all devoured it, then a friend stopped by after dinner and I offered him a piece, too. Every few bites, he’d murmur about how good it was.
I own two Instant Pots so next time I plan on making two lasagnas at a time and freezing one. Nothing better than not being in the mood to make dinner and remembering you have a frozen lasagna ready to be tossed in the oven, am I right? 🙂
What size springform pan fits in the Instant Pot?
Any springform pan up to 7 inches will fit since you need to account for the snap button (is that what it’s called?) on its side. I don’t use a springform for this recipe, instead, I use the Fat Daddio Cheesecake Pan, which works really well. It’s what I use to make all of my Instant Pot cheesecakes, too.
Can you put foil in the Instant Pot?
You can and, in many cases, you should use foil to make a “sling”. Especially when making lasagna, cheesecake or any other recipe using the pot-in-pot method (you can watch the video below for details on the pot-in-pot method; they’re making rice but the method is the same).
The purpose of using foil when using the pot-in-pot method is to easily lift your lasagna out from the Instant Pot when it’s finished cooking. If you use a pan with plenty of room between the sides of the pan and the pot, you won’t need a foil sling. The Instant Pot lasagna recipe at the bottom of this post includes directions for how to do this.
Can you put Pyrex in the Instant Pot?
Pyrex is safe to use in the Instant Pot, as well as any other oven-safe bowls. I have one from Pampered Chef that I bought years ago that I use. Although I haven’t used a Pyrex dish to make this lasagna, a reader commented on this post that she used an oven-safe glass dish and it worked well in this recipe.
What’s the difference between no-boil lasagna noodles and regular?
This Instant Pot lasagna recipe uses no-boil noodles to ensure the lasagna noodles are cooked enough, without the need to par-boil them. The difference between no-boil lasagna noodles and regular is that the no-boil noodles are slightly cooked before packing.
Should I soak no-boil lasagna noodles?
There’s no need to soak no-boil noodles in hot water before using them. The point of using no-boil noodles is that you don’t have to prepare them in any way before using them. It’s important to note that you should make sure a sauce is coating them as you layer your lasagna, as they need that liquid to bake properly.
I know these pictures are terrible. I just cannot shoot a lasagna to save my life! But I wanted to show you the delicious layers and how it looks just out of the pot. It’s so much prettier than how lasagna is normally served, don’t you think?
This week I’m making a homemade pasta sauce with our garden tomatoes so of course, I’ll have to make this Instant Pot lasagna recipe again!
Instant Pot Lasagna
This is the easiest Instant Pot lasagna recipe yet it has wonderful flavor! Imagine making lasagna on a weeknight!
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 package oven-ready lasagna noodles
- 1 25- oz jar high-quality marinara or spaghetti sauce
- 2 cups shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese
- 2 T chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Press “Sauté” to preheat your Instant Pot. When the word “hot” appears on the display, add the sausage until browned and crumbled. Turn off IP and remove sausage with a slotted spoon (discard grease).
- In a small bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, egg, parmesan, salt, and pepper until smooth.
- Grease a round 7-inch baking pan. Place a thin layer of sauce onto the bottom of the pan. Top with one layer each of lasagna noodles, ricotta mixture, sausage then shredded cheese. Every time you add a layer of noodles, gently press down so lasagna compresses slightly. Continue layering twice more (sauce, noodles, ricotta, sausage, cheese), ending with a final layer of just sauce and cheese (I like to make my top layer of cheese the thickest).
- Pour 1 1/2 cups of water into the bottom of the Instant Pot, then place the trivet inside. Make a foil sling out of tinfoil (a long piece of tinfoil folded twice lengthwise) and place baking pan on top. Cover baking pan with additional foil (spray it with a little cooking spray so cheese doesn't stick), then, using the sling, carefully set the pan onto the trivet, folding down any tinfoil so that it doesn’t interfere with closing the lid.
- Close the lid, press “Manual” and immediately adjust the timer to 20 minutes. Check that the cooking pressure is on “high” and that the release valve is set to “Sealing”.
- When time is up, allow to IP to naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then open the IP using “Quick Pressure Release”. Using the foil sling as “handles”, carefully remove lasagna from IP. Remove foil, and pop under the broiler a few minutes to brown cheese. Allow to rest for 10 minutes, then serve. Top with freshly chopped basil, if desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 874Total Fat: 59gSaturated Fat: 26gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 34gCholesterol: 193mgSodium: 2681mgCarbohydrates: 32gNet Carbohydrates: 27gFiber: 5gSugar: 15gProtein: 52g
This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix.
More delicious Instant Pot recipes:
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Instant Pot Pork Chops with a Dijon-Butter Sauce
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana Soup
- Easy Instant Pot Potato Soup
- Instant Pot Mississippi Pot Roast
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Rebecca
Thursday 3rd of February 2022
Hello! Love my Instant Pot. I love this recipe for Lasagna, a keeper for sure. Instructions very clear and results were a hit! BUT, can you convert this to a White Chicken Lasagna? Thanks.
Kristy Bernardo
Friday 4th of February 2022
Hi Rebecca! So happy you like the recipe! I'll add a white chicken lasagna to my list of recipes to develop. I'll warn you now, it's a long list but I'll get to it as soon as I can. It sounds delicious so it's definitely one I know I'd like to make!
Gail Rosenberg
Monday 21st of September 2020
The first two times I made this recipe, they came out great! The last two times not so much. I wrapped the pan in foil so it wouldn’t leak but when it was time to remove the lasagna, it was runny and not very hot. What was my problem?
Kristy Bernardo
Tuesday 22nd of September 2020
Hi Gail! Since we're figuring this out over email, I'll just post our findings once this is figured out. Thanks!
Kristi Wheeler
Wednesday 30th of October 2019
This recipe is super simple compared to others. Which is great, for busy moms! The recipe was super tasty, the whole family loved it!
Kristy
Monday 4th of November 2019
I'm so glad, Kristi! Thanks!
Lynda OBryan
Wednesday 7th of August 2019
I mixed the sausage and marinara sauce together. I added a few chopped onions and a little garlic. came out great will be adding this to my recipes for our RVing
Kristy
Tuesday 13th of August 2019
Great idea! Glad you enjoyed it :)
Deb
Sunday 4th of August 2019
How to reheat in instant if frozen(after cooking 1st-then frozen