Name: Instant Pot Bolognese
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp olive oil; 2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped; 1 medium onion, finely chopped; 2 celery ribs, finely chopped; 3 sprigs fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 1/2 tsp dried); 6 fresh basil leaves, chopped; 1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tsp salt; 1 pound ground beef; 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes; 2 Tbsp tomato paste; 1/4 cup red wine (can sub beef broth); 2 bay leaves; 12 oz dried pasta

Jump to Recipe

Instant Pot Bolognese – make Italian style bolognese sauce in the Instant Pot. So rich and delicious and ready in a fraction of the traditional recipe!

A few years ago we took a trip to Italy and spent a majority of our time in the Bolgna area. I took a cooking class and learned how to make traditional bolognese from a real Italian chef. It was an an amazing experience, and I have made the sauce at home a few times since. The problem is classic bolognese takes at least half a day to make!

Plate of pasta with meat sauce topped with parmesan cheese

Well, we have fixed that with this Instant Pot version! It is ready in under and hour from start to finish, and is so delicious and rich and perfect with a big bowl of comforting pasta.

This recipe comes from the Weeknight Gourmet Dinners cookbook from my friend Meseidy, over at The Noshery. She is a trained chef who shows you how to make restaurant quality meals at home. And not only just at home, but quickly too. I mean, a 30 minute Instant Pot meal is great for weeknights!

weeknight gourmet dinners cookbook cover

What’s The Difference Between Ragu and Bolognese

Ragu is usually a meatier sauce. In addition to beef it often includes pancetta. Also at the end of cooking a ragu sauce usually has a little heavy cream mixed in. Bolognese has meat in the sauce, but it is more of a tomato based sauce. They are similar, but in Italian cooking they are looked at quite differently.

pasta with bolognese sauce on white plate

How To Make Instant Pot Bolognese

In the base of the Instant Pot carrots, celery and onion are sauteed in olive oil until soft and tender.
Then you add in the garlic with the herbs and cook them for about a minute, until you can start to smell them.
Add in the ground beef and cook for about 5 minutes. You want to break it up and cook until is is lightly browned.
Finally add in the liquid. This is the tomato paste, tomato sauce, and wine (you can also use beef broth). Stir in the bay leaf as well and once it is combined put the lid on.
Cook with the lid locked in place under high pressure for 30 minutes. Once it is done cooking let it naturally release for 10 minutes before venting.
If you are serving over pasta start cooking your pasta when there is about 10 minutes left of cook time, this way everything will be ready about the same time.

Instant Pot Bolognese - make Italian style bolognese sauce in the Instant Pot. So rich and delicious and ready in a fraction of the traditional recipe!

What to Serve with Spaghetti Bolognese

This easy bolognese recipe is a great weeknight recipe that your whole family will love. And there are so many other recipes like Instant Pot Carbonara Risotto, Bloody Mary Bacon Wrapped Chicken, and Creamy Brown Butter Tortellini from this new Weeknight Gourmet Dinners cookbook I can’t wait to try!

pasta with italian meat sauce on a plate with fork

More Instant Pot Recipes

Yield: 6

Instant Pot Bolognese

$Instant Pot Bolognese - make Italian style bolognese sauce in the Instant Pot. So rich and delicious and ready in a fraction of the traditional recipe!$

Instant Pot Bolognese - make Italian style bolognese sauce in the Instant Pot. So rich and delicious and ready in a fraction of the traditional recipe!

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Additional Time 20 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil
2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 celery ribs, finely chopped
3 sprigs fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 1/2 tsp dried)
6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1 pound ground beef
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup red wine (can sub beef broth)
2 bay leaves
12 oz dried pasta

Instructions

Set your Instant Pot on Saute. Add olive oil and carrots and cook until the carrots very lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
Add in onion and celery and cook for 3 minutes, until the onions are translucent.
Stir in oregano, basil, parsley, garlic, and salt. Cook for about 1 minute until fragrant.
Add ground beef and cook for 5 minutes, breaking apart until lightly browned.
Mix in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, and bay leaves. Lock the lid in place and cook for 30 minutes under high pressure.
When there is about 10 minutes left of cook time, start to cook pasta according to the package instructions.
Let the Instant Pot naturally release pressure for 10 minutes before venting.
Serve over cooked pasta

Nutrition Information

Yield

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 374Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 10gCholesterol 67mgSodium 520mgCarbohydrates 25gFiber 3gSugar 4gProtein 25g

Nutrition Disclaimer: All information presented on this site is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information shared on dinnersdishesanddesserts.com should only be used as a general guideline.

I created a fun group on Facebook,and I would love for you to join us! It’s a place where you can
share YOUR favorite recipes, ask questions, and see what’s new at Dinners, Dishes and Desserts (so that you never miss a new recipe)!

Be sure to follow me on Instagram and
tag #dinnersdishes so I can see all the wonderful DINNERS, DISHES, AND DESSERTS
recipes YOU make!

Be sure to follow me on my social media, so you
never miss a post!

Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Did you know there is a Dinners,
Dishes, and Desserts SHOP? Lots of different E-Books for sale. Or you can buy me a
coffee to say thanks!

Author
Recent Posts

Follow me

Erin S

Welcome to Dinners, Dishes, & Desserts where my love of food meets my busy life. My name is Erin and I’m a casual home cook who loves to feed people. On this blog, you’ll find hundreds of quick and easy recipes made mostly from scratch. My days are spent in the kitchen, creating new recipes to share with family and friends.

Follow me

OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE:

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Maritza

Monday 8th of November 2021

Would I be able to make it on a crockpot?

Yes, just do all of the sautéing in a skillet on the stove. Once the ground beef and vegetables are cooked, add everything to your crock pot and cook on low for a few hours for all the flavors to come together.

Casey

Tuesday 5th of January 2021

Is the pasta counted in the calories?

Yes, a 2 oz serving of dried pasta is included in the nutrition information. Everything is just an estimation, if you are watching calories closely, you will want to double check with the products to make sure it is close.

Kevin

Tuesday 22nd of September 2020

Oh my! I do love a good instant pot recipe like this!

Suzy

Tuesday 15th of September 2020

The best sauce! So tasty and loved how hands off it was!

Debbie Tortorigi

Bolognese traditionally HAS DAIRY added. And no garlic. This is simply a ragu. And not terrible. But bolognese couldn’t be made to the finish in an instant pot.

When we visited Bologna Italy, where Bolognese is said to have originated, I took a cooking classes with trained chefs. All of them said classic Bolognese DOES NOT contain dairy. They put a ton of Parmesan cheese on top, but that is the only dairy at all.