Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo
This Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo is the easiest cheesiest one pot dinner. It takes less than 20 minutes from start to finish and requires minimal effort. It has the most luscious sauce, has no heavy cream, and is loaded with garlic and shallot. You can easily add a protein on top or serve as is.
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 653kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 shallot diced finely
- 6 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock*
- 2 cups half and half
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces fettuccine broken in half*
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 4 ounces cream cheese cut into large pieces, room temperature
- ½ lemon juiced
- fresh cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Review all recipe notes and instructions before beginning.
- Select the “Sauté” mode on the Instant Pot. Add the butter, shallot, and garlic to the pot. Sauté for 2-3 minutes or until they begin to brown.
- Deglaze the pot with the chicken broth, scraping any brown bits off the bottom of the pot.
- Add the half and half, salt, and fettuccine. Be sure the pasta is submerged.
- Select “Pressure Cook” and “High Pressure” and set the timer for 4 minutes. Quick release immediately after the timer goes off.
- Select the “Keep Warm” mode on the Instant Pot. Stir in the cream cheese, parmesan, lemon juice, and cracked pepper until the cheese is melted. Turn the pot off so the pasta does not continue to cook and serve immediately.
Notes
Chicken Stock: Swap for an equal amount of vegetable broth. I do not recommend using water.
Fettuccine: I know it is a sin to break pasta, but we have to make an exception. Try to break the fettuccine into even pieces. This is the only way for it to fit and be fully covered in liquid in the pot. See the variations section below about using different pasta shapes.
Cream Cheese: Cut the cream cheese up first and let it sit out while you prepare the other ingredients and cook the pasta.
Refrigerator: Store leftover Instant Pot fettuccine alfredo in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. It will thicken when stored so add a splash of broth to thin out the sauce if needed when reheating.
Freezer: I do not recommend freezing leftovers. The sauce will not have the correct texture when reheated and the pasta will be overcooked.
You might notice some clumps after pressure cooking. You can see in the process shot above (right after you remove the lid), there are some clumps in the sauce. This is totally fine and does not affect the taste of the texture of the sauce. Just be sure to give the sauce a good stir. After adding the cheeses, these will go away.
The pasta may stick together. When making this with fettuccine specifically, I noticed some of the pasta stuck together. Stirring the pasta continuously after adding the cheese helps. You can also avoid this by using a short cut pasta.
Swap the pasta shape: I have tested this recipe with penne and it takes 5 minutes on high pressure. The general rule for cooking pasta in the instant pot is to divide the shortest cook time on the package by 2 and subtract 1 minute for a softer pasta or subtract 2 minutes for very al dente pasta.
Nutrition
Calories: 653kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 151mg | Sodium: 1324mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g