If you’re looking for delicious one-pot Instant Pot chicken pasta recipes, I’ve got a great one for you today: Instant Pot Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta! This recipe is cheesy, creamy, and family-friendly, plus this Instant Pot chicken broccoli pasta is hands-off and easy to make in your pressure cooker. Make sure to save this Instant Pot cheesy chicken pasta recipe to your list of easy weeknight meals!
More one-pot pressure cooker pasta recipes like this Instant Pot chicken pasta:
- Instant Pot Cheesy Chicken Spaghetti
- Instant Pot Lemon Chicken Pasta
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Pasta
- Instant Pot Chicken Pesto Pasta
- Instant Pot Mushroom Prosciutto Pasta
- Instant Pot Bacon, Chicken, and Ranch Pasta
- Instant Pot Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Spaghetti
- Instant Pot Penne al Pomodoro
- Instant Pot Taco Pasta (easy taco mac and cheese)
- Creamy Instant Pot Chicken Primavera Pasta
- Instant Pot Sausage Rigatoni
- Instant Pot Creamy Cajun Pasta with Sausage
- Instant Pot Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta
- Creamy Instant Pot Bacon Mac and Cheese
- Instant Pot Hearty Beef and Bean Pasta
- Creamy Instant Pot Chicken and Mushroom Pasta
- Instant Pot Tuscan-Inspired Sausage Fettuccine
- Creamy Instant Pot Chicken and Mushroom Florentine
How to make this Instant Pot chicken broccoli pasta
This Instant Pot chicken pasta recipe starts with using the Sauté function on a multi-function electric pressure cooker (such as an Instant Pot). Melt some butter or margarine in the pot, then add chicken (cut into bite-size pieces) and minced garlic and sauté until the chicken is just starting to brown, about 4 minutes. Push Cancel to end Sauté function, and remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and set it aside.
Add 3 cups of chicken stock to the pot and stir with a wooden or plastic spoon, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Mix salt, pepper, mustard powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and cayenne into the chicken stock.
Add 12 ounces of penne pasta to the pot, making sure the noodles are evenly submerged in the liquid, but do not stir.
Using the penne as the foundation of this Instant Pot cheesy chicken pasta, we’re now going to layer up the next few ingredients before we start pressure cooking. First, place the reserved chicken over the top of the pasta. Don’t stir it; just lay it out on top of the pasta.
The next layer in this cheesy chicken and broccoli pasta is an 8-ounce pack of cream cheese cut into cubes. Lay the cream cheese cubes on top of the chicken, but again, do not stir. Close and lock the pressure cooker lid, make sure the pressure/steam release switch is set to sealing, and set the cooking time to 5 minutes at high/normal pressure. It will take about 12 minutes for the pot to reach pressure before the cooking time begins.
After the pressure cooking time ends for your Instant Pot chicken broccoli pasta, carefully release the pressure using the manufacturer’s quick release method. Open the lid and press Cancel to turn off the pot. Add shredded Cheddar cheese to the pot, stirring until the cream cheese and Cheddar cheese have completely blended into the pasta sauce and any noodles that were stuck together have broken up.
Time for the broccoli! You might have noticed that we haven’t added the broccoli to the cheesy chicken and broccoli pasta yet. It wasn’t forgotten; since broccoli cooks incredibly fast in the pressure cooker (it needs 0-1 minutes of pressure cooking time when making it as a side dish), we are adding it here at the very end. Stir broccoli florets into the pasta then cover the pot and let the pasta sit until the sauce is thickened and the broccoli is bright green (this will take about 3 minutes). Note that we didn’t start the pressure cooker; we are just letting the broccoli sit in the hot steamy pot with the pasta for a few minutes for it to become crisp-tender. The Instant Pot chicken broccoli pasta is best when served hot, so divide the Instant Pot chicken pasta into bowls and enjoy!
Here’s the Instant Pot Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta recipe! It’s so easy and so good. If you enjoy it, you’ll love our other easy Instant Pot pasta recipes, so check them out and please leave a rating on the recipe card below. Bon appetit!
Instant Pot Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta
This recipe is cheesy, creamy, and family-friendly, plus this Instant Pot chicken broccoli pasta is hands-off and easy to make in your pressure cooker. Make sure to save this Instant Pot cheesy chicken pasta recipe to your list of easy weeknight meals!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter or margarine
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- Pinch of cayenne
- 12 ounces penne pasta
- 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, cubed
- 2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1 head of broccoli, cut into small florets
Instructions
- Select the Sauté function on a multi-function electric pressure cooker (such as an Instant Pot). Melt the butter in the pot. Add the chicken and minced garlic to the pot and sauté until the chicken is just starting to brown, about 4 minutes. Push Cancel to end Sauté function, and remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the chicken stock to the pot and stir with a wooden or plastic spoon, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Stir in the salt, pepper, mustard powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and cayenne.
- Add the pasta to the pot, making sure the noodles are evenly submerged in the liquid, but do not stir. Place the reserved chicken over the top of the pasta, followed by the cream cheese cubes, but do not stir.
- Close and lock the pressure cooker lid, make sure the pressure/steam release switch is set to sealing, and set the cooking time to 5 minutes at high/normal pressure. It will take about 12 minutes for the pot to reach pressure before the cooking time begins. After the pressure cooking time ends, carefully release the pressure using the manufacturer’s quick release method.
- Open the lid and press Cancel to turn off the pot. Add the Cheddar cheese to the pot, stirring until the cream cheese and Cheddar cheese have completely blended into the pasta sauce and any noodles that were stuck together have broken up. Stir in the broccoli, then cover the pot and let the pasta sit until the sauce is thickened and the broccoli is bright green (about 3 minutes).
Amie says
Would you recommending freezing the leftovers?
Ramona Cruz-Peters says
Hi Amie! I have not tried freezing leftovers, and not sure how it would turn out given that it’s so cheesy and creamy. I have kept leftovers in the fridge for a few days to reheat, and that has worked out well.
Heather Guest says
This is exactly what I have been looking for!!
However, what would you change (in regards to timing) in order to double, or even triple this recipe?
(I am soo new to the Instant Pot)!!
Thank you!
Ramona Cruz-Peters says
I’m glad you found this recipe! Cooking time doesn’t usually change when you scale a recipe in the Instant Pot, but that is not the case for pasta recipes. That being said, there are a few things I would note:
1) You want to be careful not to overfill your pot, so given the amount of this recipe, I’m not sure tripling it would work (just quantity in the pot-wise).
2) When doubling an Instant Pot recipe, there is more that’s in the pot. The more that’s in the pot, the longer it takes to reach pressure. Therefore, technically the pasta would be sitting in the liquid for longer for the increase in time for everything to boil and reach full pressure. Therefore, you should decrease the pressure cooking time so you don’t end up with mushy pasta. For this recipe I suggest reducing the pressure cook time to 3 minutes (instead of 5) if doubling. Though, I’ve not tested it with the decreased time myself, so that’s just an educated guess!
Rita says
This was delicious!! I had more chicken and more broth, plus extra seasoning. Will definitely make again!
Ramona Cruz-Peters says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing.