This is the EASIEST and TASTIEST Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe for sure! It's pretty much fail-proof too, which makes it a perfect recipe for the beginner Ninja Foodi operator.
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Spaghetti in the pressure cooker is supposed to be an easy, delicious, quick meal and this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe is just that!I really wasn't sold on Spaghetti in a pressure cooker. How can you develop flavors in such a short time? Won't the noodles be soggy? I was so afraid it would taste like canned spaghetti and we don't like canned spaghetti in our house at all. Still, I wanted to give it a try. If it turned out right and tasted good, this would be such a time saver!
I made a few different pressure cooker recipes from reputable recipe creators and was quite shocked at how dry the spaghetti was (like no sauce) or it was so watery, it had no flavor. That is not how I like to eat spaghetti and my guess is, that's true for you too. I wanted it to taste just like I cooked the sauce on the stove and boiled the noodles separately. You know, traditional spaghetti; just in a fraction of the time!
So, I set out to create the easiest and best tasting Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe using a few simple ingredients and here it is!
Tips for making this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe
While this recipe is a dump and cook spaghetti recipe, the order in which you dump the ingredients does matter.
Cooking under pressure: Whenever you are cooking under pressure, you have to have a thin liquid in order for the pressure cooker to be able to build up pressure. Tomato, cream, and cheese based sauces are too thick to use as the liquid alone. To add flavor to any recipe, I suggest using a broth or stock instead of water. That is what we are going to do in this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe and it's delicious!
Avoiding the burn notice: Not only have I had the dreaded burn notice, but I've had friends calling me in a panic when it popped up for them. You can sometimes fix it by just adding in more of a thin liquid; like broth or water. Other times your food has already burned on the bottom and that can be hard to salvage. It is much easier to avoid the notice than fix it and that is what this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti recipe does.
Don't skimp on the thin liquid: My first reaction when reading an Instant Pot Spaghetti Recipe was: I'm not using all that water! I think the recipe called for 6 cups of water and I was convinced my spaghetti would be a watery mess. It wasn't watery, but it was very much lacking in flavor. This Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe calls for 4 cups of beef broth (or you could use chicken or vegetable broth) and you need that much, I promise.
Don't overcook the noodles: I've seen an array of cook times for pasta and they are always overcooked for my liking. Spaghetti noodles should be al dente or have just a bit of a bite to them, not overly bloated and mushy. We don't want them to fall apart in the sauce. This Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe calls for 3 minutes of pressure cooking and you might be tempted to increase the time, but keep in mind that the noodles start to cook while the Ninja Foodi is coming up to pressure
Layer the ingredients as shown: Layering the ingredients is an important part of pressure cooking (for some recipes) and this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe is an example of that. If we reversed the order of the layers, or stirred everything together like you would on the stove, there is a very good chance that you will end up with the dreaded burn notice.
Criss cross the noodles: When using spaghetti noodles in the pressure cooker, you want to layer them in a criss cross fashion to avoid clumping and to have them cook evenly. You can watch how I do this below or see the whole video on my YouTube video: Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Video.
Let's get to making this Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe
First of all, go ahead and gather your ingredients and dice or chop up the veggies you are going to use. I recommend using an onion for flavor and the rest is your personal choice. If you haven't roasted your garlic yet, go ahead and do that now.
How to Roast Garlic in the Ninja Foodi: Cut the top off of the garlic bulb and drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil. Put it on the Ninja Foodi rack on the low setting and set the bake to 325° F for 35 minutes.
You might be tempted to skip this step, but I really urge you to give it a go. The roasted garlic infuses so much flavor into the spaghetti, I know you will love it! if you have an aversion to garlic; by all means, skip it.
Place 1lb of ground beef or ground turkey along with the seasonings in the inner pot of the Ninja Foodi. Set the Sauté to high and add onions. Break up the meat with a non-stick friendly utensil. My favorite thing to use is this Mix N Chop from Pampered Chef. Sauté the meat until it is almost cooked through.
Add in green pepper or any veggies you are using. Add in roasted bulb of garlic. A simple tip to get the cloves out of a bulb of roasted garlic is to squeeze from the bottom and the cloves will just pop out.
Don't stir from here on out. For the rest of the ingredients we will not be stirring. Add the can of tomatoes and 3 cups of the beef stock.
Pour in the jar of spaghetti sauce. Pour the remaining cup of broth into the jar of spaghetti sauce, put the lid on and shake. Pour into pot. Remember, resist the urge to stir. I know, it's so hard. It goes against all we have ever done, but it is important.
Criss Cross and layer the spaghetti noodles. For ½ box (½lb) of spaghetti noodles, I usually make at least 4 layers.
Gently press the noodles down into the liquid.
Add the 6 oz can of tomato paste right on top. Don't stir.
Put the pressure lid on the Ninja Foodi and set the pressure to high and the time for 3 minutes.
After the 3 minutes of pressure cooking are complete. Allow the spaghetti to sit and natural release for another 3 minutes. Make sure the keep warm function is off.
Natural Release for 3 minutes and then manually release the remaining pressure. Open the lid and stir to combine the tomato paste into the sauce. Don't freak out, I know it looks watery. Please don't worry, it will thicken up and become a glorious sauce that looks and tastes like you cooked it all day on the stove. Turn the Ninja Foodi off.
Put down the Tender Crisp lid and let the spaghetti sit for about 5 minutes. This will allow it to thicken even more. Top with cheese if you like.
Serve & Enjoy!
If you are interested in joining either (or both) of our Ninja Foodi Facebook Groups, just click the links below:
Ninja Foodi 101: A Facebook Group for those seeking basic knowledge and recipes for the Ninja Foodi.
Ninja Foodi Fresh & Healthy Meals: A Facebook Group for people who want to cook healthier meals in the Ninja Foodi
Ninja Foodi Spaghetti Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1 ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tsp basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup green peppers diced
- 1 bulb garlic roasted- see recipe below
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ⅛-1/4 tsp red pepper flakes optional
- 14.5 ounces fire roasted tomatoes
- 4 cups beef stock divided
- 24 ounce spaghetti sauce your favorite kind
- ½ pound spaghetti noodles broken in half and stacked
- 6 ounces tomato paste
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Instructions
- Set the saute function on the Ninja Foodi to high Add 1 pound of ground beef, 11/2 teaspoon fine grind sea salt, 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning & 1 cup of diced onion to the Inner pot.
- Break up meat with a non metal utensil (I use the Mix and Chop)and stir until the meat is almost cooked through.
- Add 1 cup of diced green pepper or whatever other veggies you like. Add 1 whole bulb of roasted garlic (or 3 cloves of minced garlic)and 1 teaspoon of white sugar (optional).
- When the ground beef is cooked through, add in one 14.5 oz can of fired roasted diced tomatoes, 3 cups of beef broth (you will use a total of 4). Do not stir.
- Pour in a 24 oz jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce. Pour the remaining 1 cup of beef stock into the jar and put the lid back on. Shake to remove all the sauce from the sides and pour into pot. Add in ¼-1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (optional)
- Break ½ pound (½ box) of spaghetti noodles, broken in half and layered in a criss cross fashion. Gently push down the noodles until they are covered with liquid. See post or video below for details.
- Add in a 6oz can of tomato paste right on top and don't stir.
- Pressure cook on High for 3 minutes. Allow to natural release for 3 minutes. when the 3 minutes is up, move the pressure valve to vent and release any remaining pressure. Open lid and stir well.
- Close the Tender Crisp Lid (the pot is off) and let sit for 5 minutes. Top with cheese if you like. Serve and Enjoy!
Roasting Garlic in the Foodi
- Cut the top off of the garlic bulb and drizzle with olive oil, wrap in foil. Put it on the Ninja Foodi rack on the low setting and set the bake to 325° F for 35 minutes.
Nutrition
Here are a few more of my favorite Ninja Foodi Recipes if you would like to check them out.
salliemae says
if I half the recipe, do I adjust the time cooked?
Louise says
No, you would cook the same amount of time.
Amber says
I am excited to try this but nervous as I have to use gluten free pasta for my husband’s allergy. Do you think it will work the same? I usually book for 10 minutes until al dents.
Louise says
When you say you cook for 10 minutes, is that on the stove? One of my friends made a gluten free version of another pasta recipe of mine and she decreased the time. I would start off with decreasing the pressure cook time by 1-2 minutes. You can always use the sear/saute to simmer longer if needed. Let me know how it works out!
Ann says
This recipe was so tasty! My husband and I loved it. It does make a lot of spaghetti, but not enough for our upcoming vacation where I need to cook for 9. I would love to make a double batch. Do you think I can double everything and not exceed the capacity of the 6.5 quart Foodi? Would the time need to change? If not, can I make it in advance and freeze or refrigerate it? It looks like a gentleman on the Ninja Foodi 101 FB group did it with about a 1/2" to spare. When I looked at it yesterday, I thought it may be too close to chance it.
Louise says
I know people have doubled the noodles without changing anything else and it's been fine. Of course the sauce to noodle ratio is reduced. I think you could probably add another jar of sauce on top and be fine with double noodles. You can't double everything because you will probably get over the max fill line. You can make it ahead of time and freeze or refrigerate it. The best way to reheat without overcooking the noodles is with the steam function, but re-heating for a large crowd would be hard. I think I would make it with double noodles, but no extra sauce and undercook the noodles by 1 minute. Then add the extra sauce when reheating and do that in the Ninja Foodi on a low sear/saute. I think that would work well! Enjoy your vacation!
Ann says
Thank you Louise! I'll go the route of adding extra spaghetti and a jar of sauce with no other additions and make it the day we eat it. Awesome!
Michelle says
I have an 8 quart, do you think I am safe in doubling all ingredients?
Louise says
You can double the spaghetti noodles without any problem and don't have to double anything else so I've been told. The sauce to noodle ratio is different though. I would probably not double the entire recipe in the 8qt, but you could double the noodles and 1 1/2 the other ingredients. I think that would work. Let me know what you end up doing!
Maria Segovia says
My Ninja Foodi came a month ago. It sat in my closet until tonight. I was very nervous about using it, but tonight I made your spaghetti. I can't believe I waited so long! Our spaghetti dinner was absolutely delicious! I watched your video, and followed all the steps. Everyone loved it!
Louise says
I'm so happy to hear this! You are going to LOVE the Ninja Foodi!
Cindy says
I really love Italian sausage in my spaghetti. Could I also add 1/2 pound on Italian sausage or would that change the consistency?
Louise says
Absolutely you can add it! I love sausage in my spaghetti, too!
Vickie says
Love this recipe !!!!
Hey Girl I have to say that I have had my ninja foodi a few months and have not cooked much in it until I ran across your videos. I was searching you tube for foodi recipes and found you and have been very inspired by you . You make it so easy to cook with this foodi !
Thank you for such great easy ways to cook in the ninja foodi😜
Louise says
Thank you so much for you kind comment! I'm so glad you are cooking again with the Ninja Foodi, you are going to LOVE it!
Lisa says
How can I change this to make MEATBALLS instead of Meat sauce
Louise says
I have a recipe for homemade meatballs coming out soon. If you use already cooked (even frozen) meatballs, just follow the recipe and add the meatballs before the pasta and it should turn out just fine. I did this the other day with my homemade meatballs and it was delcious.