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Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce

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With this Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce recipe, you can now enjoy your favourite sauce quicker, thanks to the reduced cooking time allowed by the pressure cooker.

I love a good stew or casserole simmering away on the stove, filling the kitchen with delicious aromas. But let's face it, life is busy, and I don't always have the time to dedicate hours at a time in the kitchen preparing dinner. So, thank goodness for the Instant Pot, the electric pressure cooker that has saved me on many an occasion and enabled me to serve dishes that would normally require hours of cooking, in just a fraction of the time.

If time is your friend and you love delicious aromas filling your kitchen, then making Bolognese Sauce conventionally, on the stove top, is the way forwards. But if you're trying to squeeze in time to make dinner amongst your hectic day, then this Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce recipe is the one you want. And you'll be pleased to hear that none of the flavour is sacrificed.

Bolognese sauce is widely loved in our family for its ease and versatility. It's quickest to serve it over freshly cooked pasta, but I'll usually try to use the leftovers to make lasagne, which always pleases the children.

Here's what you'll need to make this Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce:
(Click here to jump straight to the recipe)

Oil for cooking
100g diced pancetta [1]
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1kg beef mince [2]
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
70g (4 Tbsp) tomato paste
1 large bay leaf
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan to serve

And here's what you'll need to do:

• Prepare the onions garlic, carrots and celery.

• Heat some oil in the Instant Pot using the Saute (Normal) function. Add the pancetta, and cook for a few minutes until they release some of their oil.

• Add the onion to the pot, and cook for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Then add the garlic, and cook for a further minute.

• Then add the celery and carrot, and continue cooking for several more minutes until they begin to release some of their moisture, stirring occasionally.

• Add the beef mince to the vegetables, breaking it down into small chunks with a spatula. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until the meat is mostly brown, stirring frequently.

• Then add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste, and stir to combine. Tuck in the bay leaf, and close and lock the lid. Cook on High Pressure for 25 minutes with natural release.

• When the pin has dropped, open the lid carefully. Remove the bay leaf, and give the Bolognese sauce a stir. You can thicken the sauce by reducing it slightly - boil with the lid open for about 10 minutes using the Saute (Normal) function.

• Serve over freshly cooked pasta.
  

• Keep leftovers for a future meal or to make lasagne later in the week.

Notes

1. If you can't find pancetta, you could used unsmoked bacon lardons, or omit altogether.
2. Feel free to use pork or lamb, or any combination of meats, depending on what the sauce is being used for.
   
   

Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce

By Wendy | Serves 4

This Instant Pot Bolognese sauce recipe allows you to enjoy your favourite pasta sauce in a fraction of the traditional cooking time.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes plus natural release
Serves: 8
Course: Main, Sauce
Cuisine: Modern European
Tags: Pasta Sauce, Meat Sauce, Beef

Ingredients

Oil for cooking
100g diced pancetta [1]
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
2 large carrots, peeled and finely chopped
1kg beef mince [2]
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
70g (4 Tbsp) tomato paste
1 large bay leaf
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan to serve

Method

1. Prepare the onions garlic, carrots and celery.
2. Heat some oil in the Instant Pot using the Saute (Normal) function. Add the pancetta, and cook for a few minutes until they release some of their oil.
3. Add the onion to the pot, and cook for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Then add the garlic, and cook for a further minute.
4. Then add the celery and carrot, and continue cooking for several more minutes until they begin to release some of their moisture, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the beef mince to the vegetables, breaking it down into small chunks with a spatula. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until the meat is mostly brown, stirring frequently.
6. Then add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste, and stir to combine. Tuck in the bay leaf, and close and lock the lid. Cook on High Pressure for 25 minutes with natural release.
7. When the pin has dropped, open the lid carefully. Remove the bay leaf, and give the Bolognese sauce a stir. You can thicken the sauce by reducing it slightly - boil with the lid open for about 10 minutes using the Saute (Normal) function.
8. Serve over freshly cooked pasta.
9. Keep leftovers for a future meal or to make lasagne later in the week.

Notes

1. If you can't find pancetta, you could used unsmoked bacon lardons, or omit altogether.
2. Feel free to use pork or lamb, or any combination of meats, depending on what the sauce is being used for.

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