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white bowl of bolognese and pasta

Instant pot bolognese sauce

Sarah
My Bolognese recipe is all about speed and ease. This Instant-pot Bolognese sauce comes together in just 45 minutes because we've got to get dinner on the table on Wednesday nights, too.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Dinner
Cuisine Mediterranean
Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 1 large onion finely chopped
  • 1 large carrot finely chopped or grated
  • 1 large stick of celery finely chopped
  • 1 lb beef minced
  • 1 ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning*
  • 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs*
  • 1 dried bay leaves
  • 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
  • ½ teaspoon chilli flake optional
  • 1 large can 28oz of San Marzano whole tomatoes
  • 1 cup passata sauce
  • ½ cup water or stock
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions
 

  • Sautè the onions, carrots, and celery. Set Instant Pot to SAUTE–MEDIUM MODE. Add olive oil, onions, carrots, and celery, and cook until softened, about 3-5 minutes. 
  • Brown the ground beef. Add ground beef with salt and freshly ground pepper. Sauté for 5-6 minutes, breaking up meat with a wooden spoon, until most of the meat lightly-browned with just a little pink remaining.
  • Season, then add whole tomatoes, paasta sauce. Add the Italian seasoning, Italian dried herbs and garlic to the beef mixture. Stir to combine. Pour in crushed tomatoes, then break up the tomatoes into large pieces with the back of a wooden spoon. Then pour in the passata sauce. Stir everything together.
  • Cover and pressure cook on LOW. Put the lid on the Instant pot, seal, and set the unit to PRESSURE COOK MODE – LOW for 15 minutes.
  • Quick-release the pressure and simmer. Release the pressure. Cancel the setting on the instant pot and reset to the SAUTE MODE – LOW. Simmer the sauce uncovered, for 5 minutes, stirring frequently until the sauce has thickened to your desired consistency. (The sauce will slightly thicken as it cools)
  • Pour in the creme and serve. fold in the heavy cream or omit for a dairy-free sauce. Serve in your favourite pasta bowl of cooked pasta with plenty of freshly-grated Parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of parsley.
  • Buon appetito!

Notes

Select the highest quality tomatoes you can afford

  • choosing good tomatoes will help you avoid having an overly acid tasting sauce and reduce the need of adding extra sugar.

How to avoid the Burn message

  • It's important to use the LOW setting on things like a meaty tomato sauce, it's the only way to ensure you don't burn your sauce.

The Italian seasoning and dried herbs