Vegetarian Instant Pot Baked Ziti Recipe

Author: Anvita

Vegetarian Instant Pot Baked Ziti - A quick & delicious pasta dish 'baked' in an Instant Pot. Ready in just 20 minutes. Makes a perfect weeknight meal minus all the precooking and layering. Instant Pot recipe + Stove Top recipe.

4.80 from 15 votes

Print Pin Save

Keyword: baked ziti no meat, instant pot baked ziti, meatless baked ziti, vegetarian baked ziti

Prep Time: 2

Cook Time: 8

Additional Time: 10

Total Time: 20

Servings:

4 servings

Calories:

Equipment

Ingredients

3 cups dried Pasta penne or any tubular pasta
2 cups Homemade Marinara Sauce or Tomato Sauce
1 medium onion chopped
3 Garlic cloves minced
2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon crushed Red pepper flakes
2 cups Mozzarella Cheese grated
2 cups Water or broth
1 teaspoon Salt
Fresh or dried parsley or chives to garnish
3 tablespoon oil

Instructions

Vegetarian Instant Pot Baked Ziti Recipe

Step 1 : Saute

Using the Saute function, heat oil in the inner pot. Once the oil if hot throw in the garlic, Italian herbs and onions. Stir and wait a couple minutes.
Add salt & water and to the pot and deglaze it, making sure no food is stuck at the bottom of the pot.
Add the pasta. Pour the homemade marinara sauce or any tomato sauce evenly covering all the pasta. Please do not stir.
Make sure all pasta is covered under the sauce. If not gently press the towards the bottom, just enough to be covered by the sauce.

Step 3 : Pressure Cook

Cover the lid, seal the vent and pressure for 8 minutes. It will take about 10-12 minutes for the pressure to build. Once the timer goes off quickly releasing the pressure.
Carefully open the lid and throw in the mozzarella cheese, folding it in gently.
Cover for a couple minutes and let the cheese melt and sauce thicken.
Garnish with parsley and Italian Herbs and serve warm.

Stove Top Baked Ziti Recipe.

Using a pot, follow step 1 and 2.
For Step 3 - cover the lid and cook for the pasta for the time given on the packaging instructions. For the Penne we used it was 12 minutes.
Throw in the cheese and gently fold it in. Cover for a couple minutes and let the cheese melt and sauce thicken.
Garnish with parsley and Italian Herbs and serve warm.

Video

Notes

Tips for making the best Baked Ziti in Instant Pot?

Always add water or broth first after sauteing the onions. The idea of the sauce not directly touching the bottom of the pot avoids the burns.

Always deglaze the pot after adding water by throughly scraping off any food stuck at the bottom of the pot. this also helps avoid burns

Make sure the pasta or noodles are submerged under the sauce but please do not stir the ingredients.

You don't want the Ziti to be dry so don't skimp on the sauce or water. Eventually the sauce will thicken up.

Using a vegetable broth over water will definitely enhance the taste.