It takes just 20 minutes to cook perfect Tortellini in the Instant Pot. This Creamy Tortellini is a perfect one-pot weeknight dinner that the whole family will love!
Making pasta in the instant pot is my go-to for a quick meal. And this five cheese tortellini is even better.
You can cook it in the instant pot from frozen. Just put all the ingredients to the instant pot, and pressure cook, then mix in the cream and you have a wonderful cozy meal ready to be served.
With little kids at home, I like to add spinach to this tortellini for added nutrition. You can add any veggies of your liking. You can also add pre-cooked roasted chicken to this tortellini!
Pair this tortellini with some roasted veggies, such as Asparagus, Broccoli or Brussels sprouts.
If you are a fan of pasta in the instant pot, check out my collection of 10+ Instant Pot Pasta Recipes.
Why make Tortellini in Instant Pot?
What I like about making this in the instant pot is the flavors of the sauce completely infused in the pasta. We are cooking the pasta along with the sauce and veggies, so the tortellini can completely soak in the sauce. For this recipe, I use the frozen tortellini. With the dry cheese tortellini, the cooking time will vary.
How to make Instant Pot Tortellini?
This is one of the easiest pasta recipes where you need basic ingredients.
Tortellini - I used Five Cheese Tortellini that I got from Costco. You can use refrigerated or frozen tortellini in this recipe.
Marinara Sauce - I used store bough Rao's Marinara sauce.
Spinach - This is optional. I like to add it for extra nutrition.
Heavy Cream - I like to add some heavy cream at the end for a creamy sauce. It is completely optional, but my kids preferred pasta sauce.
It takes less than 20 minutes to make this delicious pasta. It is mostly a dump-and-go recipe, which makes it perfect to put together on a busy weeknight!
- To the instant pot steel insert, add tortellini, garlic, marinara and broth, in that order. Close lid with vent in sealing position.
- Change the setting to pressure cook mode at high pressure for 2 minute. When the instant pot beeps, quick release the pressure manually. Open the lid.
- Add the spinach, and heavy cream.
Mix well and the tortellini is ready!
Serve the tortellini is a bowl. Top with freshly grated parmesan, basil leaves and red chili flakes (optional).
Tips for Perfect Tortellini
- When preparing Tortellini in Instant Pot or another Pressure Cooker, the main thing to remember is less is more (time). So keep it for just enough time, in this case for frozen tortellini just 2 minutes on pressure cook and quick release the pressure. You don't want mushy pasta.
- Leave the tortellini frozen and it will cook perfectly.
- This tortellini soaks up all the liquid as it is stored. So if reheating, you can add more sauce to your taste.
Enjoy this quick Instant Pot Tortellini. It can be paired with the Roasted Carrot and Bell Pepper Soup.
Instant Pot Tortellini in 20 Minutes
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Cheese Tortellini 1 bag frozen
- 4 cloves Garlic minced
- 2 cup Marinara Sauce
- 1 cup Water or Broth
- 1 cup Baby Spinach packed and chopped
- ¼ cup Heavy cream
- Basil leaves to garnish
- Parmesan cheese freshly grated, to garnish
- Crushed Red Chili Flakes optional
Instructions
- To the instant pot steel insert, add tortellini, garlic, marinara and broth, in that order. Close lid with vent in sealing position.
- Change the setting to pressure cook mode at high pressure for 2 minute. When the instant pot beeps, quick release the pressure manually. Open the lid.
- Add the spinach, and heavy cream. Mix well.
- Cheese Tortellini is ready to be served. Top with freshly grated parmesan, basil leaves and red chili flakes (optional)
Video
Notes
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
Radha Sitaraman says
Will this recipe work if i make a curry / korma sauce with the tortellini?
Meeta Arora says
Hi Radha - I have not tried it, But have tried Indian tikka masala sauce with spaghetti in case you want to check that out - https://pipingpotcurry.com/chicken-tikka-masala-pasta/
France says
I wonder how, if you put the cooking at 2 minutes, but in your title you mention 20 minutes! what is true ???
I have an instant pot (3 quarts) for 1 person what would be the exact quantity ???
Thank you !
Meeta Arora says
Hi France - Usually the instant pot takes time to come to pressure and release pressure. Hence even though the pressure cooking time is just 2 minutes, the overall process will take about 20 minutes. This recipe does about 4-5 servings. Please do adjust the quantity to your needs. Hope you enjoy the tortellini!
April says
Oops sorry I didn't see your answer before I posted. 😁
April says
I am wondering the same thing. Maybe it's a typo and the 0 was left off?
Meeta Arora says
Hi April - No worries. I hope you enjoyed the tortellini.
Laura says
This is such a great recipe for beginners! Tastes great and very simple to succeed in making a hardy meal in one pot. I added fully cooked Italian sausage and it was delicious.
Piping Pot Curry says
Hi - So happy to hear that. Thank you for sharing your experience 🙂
Crystal says
This was awesome!!! We loved it and shared it with the neighbors and they loved it too. Definitely making again. Would be great with chicken in it. Thanks for sharing this.
Piping Pot Curry says
Hi - So good to hear that. Thank you for sharing back 🙂
Amy Fields says
Turned out delicious
Joe says
What if tortellini are refrigerated not frozen? Still two minutes?
Meeta Arora says
Hi Joe - I have not tried, but my guess is that the same cooking time will work well.
Pam says
I am concerned that adding water will dilute the marinara sauce. ??
Meeta Arora says
Hi Pam - I mainly add the water so the instant pot will not give a burn when cooking the tortellini. Only marinara sauce has a lot of tomatoes, which can give a burn.
Sherri Edman says
Do you use high or low pressure for this recipe?
Meeta Arora says
Hello Sherri - I used the default high pressure setting.
Devin Rivero says
How would I adjust the cooking time if I were to double the recipe?
Piping Pot Curry says
Hey Devin - the cooking time remains the same even if you double the quantity. Hope you enjoy it!
Ruthie says
Dear Meeta! I just made this tortellini dish. Amazing! I am an Instant Pot newbie and also a vegetarian. I am always looking for recipes to try. So far, this one takes first place! I did add a cup of small pieces of fresh green beans and a little extra marinara. Thanks so much for helping a newbie be successful!
Piping Pot Curry says
Yay...Thanks for sharing your success, Ruthie! Let me know if you try other vegetarian dishes on the blog.