Ready in minutes, this simple Instant Pot Cheesy Beef Taco Pasta has everything you love about tacos infused into a cheesy pasta dish the whole family will love! I’m working on building up the Instant Pot recipes on my site and this is going to be a new go-to!
My husband’s comment was “Wow! This tastes like Hamburger Helper, but way better!” Good job with that “way better” caveat you threw in, honey. The kids all gave it two thumbs up too! I even snuck in whole wheat pasta and no one noticed!
If you want this recipe to come together even quicker, you can use your favorite taco seasoning packet instead of using the seasonings I list in the recipe. I used a medium salsa because we like a hint of heat. It was a titch spicier than I thought it would be using that, but none of the kids complained. So that was great. 🙂 If you think your kids would be sensitive to any heat, make sure to use mild salsa.
I can’t wait for you to try this yummy dinner!
More Awesome Instant Pot Dinners
- The Best Instant Pot Macaroni and Cheese
- Instant Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff
- Instant Pot Macaroni and Tomatoes
- Lentils with Chicken and Sweet Potato
- Creamy Chicken Pasta with Asparagus and Mushrooms
Step by step pictures for how to make Instant pot Cheesy Beef Taco Pasta
Tips for making Instant Pot Cheesy Beef Taco Pasta
- Brown the hamburger using the sauté feature on the Instant Pot before adding the other ingredients.
- Instead of raw onion, you can use 2 tbsp of dried onion.
- Use pasta that can hold some of the cheesy-ness and the sauce. A Rotini or large shells work perfectly.
- Rule of thumb for cooking pasta: cut whatever time the box says for al dente noodles in half. So if the box says that pasta can cook for 8-10 minutes, use the lower number and cut it in half.
- Make sure to push the uncooked pasta as much under the water/liquid as you can before putting the lid on.
- Do a quick release to let the pressure out of the Instant Pot. I like to put a hand towel or washcloth over the nozzle to catch the steam and water droplets.
- Serve with green salad or vegetable of your choice.
Delicious Pasta Recipes
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp smoked paprika or regular paprika
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
- 16 ounces rotini pasta
- 16 ounces chunky salsa (I like Pace Picante.)
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups Mexican-blend shredded cheese
- Turn the Instant Pot on to sauté mode and sauté the ground beef and onion until beef is no longer pink.
- Add all other ingredients, except the cheese, and stir making sure to press the noodles down into the liquid before putting on the lid.
- Secure lid on Instant Pot and set to high for 4 minutes.
- Once Instant Pot is finished, do a quick release of the steam and pressure.
- When all of the pressure is out, remove the lid and stir in the 2 cups of cheese.
- Serve and enjoy!
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