Pasta Bolognese IP

Tips for One Pot Pressure Cooker Pasta Bolognese

1. Evenly Cooked Pasta: ensure all Penne Rigate Pasta are completely submerged in the sauce before pressure cooking.

2. Dump-and-Go Option: dump all the ingredients into the pot for a fast and easy one pot meal. Flavors will definitely take a hit. Ensure to add the Penne pasta and tomato paste last and start the cooking cycle immediately.

3. Extra Pinch of Salt: sometimes you’re just a pinch of salt away from awesomeness! Salt won’t reduce the sourness, but will bring out other flavors to balance the dish. Try it for yourself!

Ingredients
½ pound (227 grams) ground beef
1 pound (454g) penne rigate
12 white mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 celery, chopped
1 small onion, sliced
A dash of sherry wine
A pinch of dried oregano
A pinch of dried basil
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Olive oil
Pasta Sauce:
1 cup unsalted chicken stock + 2 cups water
5.5 fl oz can (156 ml) tomato paste
2 tablespoons light soy sauce (not low sodium soy sauce)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

DireCTIONS

1. Prepare Pressure Cooker: Heat up your pressure cooker (Tatung: press Meat/Chicken button or Instant Pot: press Sauté button and click the adjust button to go to Sauté More function). Make sure your pot is as hot as it can be before placing any ingredient in the pot (Instant Pot: wait until indicator says HOT).
2. (Flavor Enhancement Step) Brown Ground Beef: Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the pressure cooker. Ensure to coat the oil over the whole bottom of the pot. Add in ½ pound of ground beef and season with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Moisture begins to come out of ground beef. Let the moisture evaporate. Browning begins due to maillard reaction. Remove & set aside.
3. (Flavor Enhancement Step) Sauté the Onion, Garlic, Celery and Mushrooms: Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the pot. Add sliced onion, sauté. Add a pinch of kosher salt and ground black pepper to season. Stir occasionally until slightly browned. Then, add minced garlic and stir for roughly 30 seconds until fragrant. Add sliced mushrooms, chopped celery, a pinch of dried oregano, and dried basil. Cook for another minute. Taste seasoning and adjust with more kosher salt and ground black pepper if necessary.
4. Deglaze and Create Pasta Sauce: Pour in a dash of sherry wine and deglaze the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. Add browned ground beef, 1 cup of unsalted chicken stock, 2 cups of water, 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, and 1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. Mix everything together.
5. Pressure Cook Pasta: Pour 450 g of Penne pasta into the sauce. Place 156 ml tomato paste on top of the pasta. Mixing 156 ml tomato paste with 3 cups of liquid should be completely safe. However, avoid mixing the tomato paste if you are afraid of scorching. Taste and adjust with more kosher salt and ground black pepper if necessary, as it is harder to adjust the seasoning after. 
   Ensure all the Penne pasta are completely submerged into the sauce. Close lid and pressure cook at High Pressure for 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and wait 5 minutes before doing a Quick Release. Open the lid carefully.
6. Serve: Give it a quick stir and everything should blend together. Taste one of the Penne pasta. If you find the texture too hard (ours came out al dente), close the lid and let the leftover heat cook them until desired doneness. Sprinkle some freshly grated Parmesan cheese to kick it up a notch. Serve immediately. Enjoy! 🙂

NOTES

Dump-and-Go Option: Dump all ingredients into the pot for a fast and easy one pot meal. Be mindful that the flavor will take a hit. Ensure to add the penne pasta and tomato paste last. Also, start the cooking cycle immediately.

Scorching: Mixing 156 ml tomato paste with 3 cups of liquid should be completely safe. But if you're afraid of scorching, avoid mixing the tomato paste, just place it on top of the pasta.