This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Safeway. All opinions are 100% mine.

Master the art of quick and delicious homemade meatballs with your Instant Pot! This recipe delivers rich, flavorful meatballs and marinara sauce in a fraction of the traditional cooking time. Perfect for busy weeknights, these pressure cooker meatballs are incredibly versatile, making them ideal for spaghetti night, hearty sandwiches, or even elegant appetizers.

Effortless Instant Pot Meatballs: Your New Weeknight Favorite

There’s something uniquely comforting and satisfying about homemade meatballs, simmered to perfection in a rich, robust marinara sauce. Historically, achieving that deeply flavorful, tender texture required hours of patient cooking—first frying the meatballs on the stovetop, then allowing them to slow-simmer in sauce for what felt like an eternity. But what if you could capture that classic, slow-cooked taste in just minutes? Enter the Instant Pot, your culinary superpower for crafting the easiest and fastest meatballs imaginable.

Our Instant Pot Meatballs recipe revolutionizes your dinner routine, transforming a time-consuming classic into an accessible weeknight staple. By harnessing the power of pressure cooking, you’ll achieve perfectly tender meatballs infused with incredible flavor, all while drastically cutting down on active cooking time. Whether you’re aiming for a comforting spaghetti dinner, preparing savory meatball sliders, or need a quick appetizer for game day, these Instant Pot meatballs are guaranteed to impress with minimal effort.

Why Choose the Instant Pot for Meatballs?

The Instant Pot isn’t just a kitchen gadget; it’s a game-changer, especially for dishes like meatballs that traditionally demand a significant time commitment. Here’s why it’s the ultimate tool for this recipe:

• Unmatched Speed: Forget hours of simmering. The Instant Pot cooks meatballs quickly under high pressure, drastically reducing your cooking time without compromising flavor or texture.
• Superior Flavor Infusion: Pressure cooking forces moisture and flavor into the meatballs, resulting in incredibly juicy and tender results. The marinara sauce also benefits, becoming richer and more deeply flavored in less time.
• Convenience and Simplicity: This is a true “set it and forget it” recipe once the meatballs are formed. No constant stirring, no worrying about splatters from frying. Just add your ingredients, seal the lid, and let the Instant Pot do the work.
• One-Pot Wonder: Everything cooks together in one pot – the meatballs and the sauce. This means fewer dishes to wash and a streamlined cooking process.

Beyond the immediate benefits, making a large batch of these Instant Pot meatballs is perfect for meal prepping. You can freeze leftovers for future meals, ensuring you always have a quick, delicious, and homemade option ready to go on those extra busy days.

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High-Quality Ingredients for Exceptional Flavor

The secret to truly delicious meatballs lies not just in the cooking method, but also in the quality of your ingredients. This recipe shines when made with fresh, flavorful components. This year, infuse your weeknight dinners with a fresh flare using nutritious, delicious, and affordable products available at Safeway Exclusive Brands.

By choosing high-quality items from O Organics®, Open Nature®, and Signature Brands (Signature SELECT™, Signature Farms®, and Signature Cafe®), you can craft easy meals that everyone in your family will adore. Here’s a closer look at the key ingredients:

• Lean Ground Beef: We recommend O Organics 85% lean 15% fat grass-fed ground beef for a rich flavor and ideal fat content. If you’re looking to lighten things up or prefer poultry, feel free to substitute with ground chicken or turkey. Our baked turkey meatballs recipe offers a great alternative for those options.
• Italian Sausage: This ingredient adds a fantastic depth of flavor and moisture. You can select either mild or hot varieties based on your preference for a little kick. The blend of ground beef and Italian sausage creates a truly authentic meatball taste.
• Grated Cheese (No Breadcrumbs!): Instead of traditional breadcrumbs, we use a blend of Signature SELECT Parmesan and Romano cheeses. This not only binds the meatballs beautifully but also infuses them with savory, umami notes. This clever substitution makes these Instant Pot meatballs a fantastic keto-friendly recipe when paired with a low-carb marinara sauce.
• Fresh Herbs and Dried Spices: A robust herb and spice blend is crucial for authentic Italian flavor. Look for a wide variety of fresh herbs in the produce section. Our recipe calls for O Organics basil and Italian parsley, complemented by dried onion powder, garlic powder, and salt. Fresh herbs truly elevate the aroma and taste profile.
• Eggs: Eggs act as an essential binder, holding the meatballs together and preventing them from crumbling during cooking. We always keep a dozen O Organics Grade A brown eggs on hand for their consistent quality.
• Marinara Sauce: The foundation of your meatballs’ flavor! You can choose your favorite jarred variety for ultimate convenience or prepare your own homemade marinara. For simplicity and quality, we opted for a jar of O Organics Marinara, ensuring a delicious and wholesome base.

You can find all these affordable, high-quality products at the Albertsons Companies family of stores. This includes Albertsons, Safeway, ACME Markets, Jewel-Osco, Randalls, Shaw’s Supermarket, Star Market, Tom Thumb, and Vons. I personally shopped at Safeway, where I also take advantage of their convenient Grocery Delivery and DriveUp & Go™ services. Ordering online and having my groceries loaded directly into my trunk has become my absolute favorite way to shop!

New to using an Instant Pot? Make sure you read our beginner’s guide on “How to Use an Instant Pot” to get started!

Simple Step-by-Step Instructions

Making delicious, tender Instant Pot meatballs is remarkably straightforward. Follow these steps for perfect results every time:

1. Prepare the Spice and Cheese Mix: In a small bowl, combine the finely grated Parmesan and Romano cheeses, chopped fresh basil, chopped fresh Italian parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt. Mix these ingredients thoroughly until well incorporated. This ensures an even distribution of flavor throughout your meatballs.
2. Create the Meat Mixture: In a large mixing bowl, gently work together the ground beef and Italian sausage until they are well combined. Avoid overmixing, as this can lead to tough meatballs. Once the meats are blended, add the prepared cheese and spice mixture from the small bowl, along with the eggs. Continue to mix everything just until all ingredients are evenly distributed.
3. Form the Meatballs: Using your hands, form the meat mixture into large, approximately 2-ounce balls. For consistency, which helps ensure even cooking, you can use a measuring spoon or a scoop. This recipe typically yields about 22 meatballs.
4. Warm the Sauce in the Instant Pot: Pour your chosen marinara sauce and 1/2 cup of water into the inner pot of your Instant Pot. Select the SAUTE function and allow the sauce to warm up. This step is crucial for bringing the sauce to temperature before adding the meatballs, which helps the Instant Pot come to pressure more efficiently.



5. Cook under Pressure: Once the sauce is warm and gently simmering, carefully add the formed meatballs to the pot. Unlike methods like air frying, it’s perfectly fine for the meatballs to touch. You can even gently stack them, but try to minimize pressure on the lower layers to maintain their shape. Secure the lid in place, ensuring the sealing valve is set to the SEALING position. Cook on HIGH pressure for 8 minutes.
6. Release Pressure and Serve: When the cooking cycle is complete, press CANCEL. Allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, carefully turn the valve to VENTING to quick release any remaining pressure. Once the float valve drops, you can safely remove the lid. Your perfectly cooked, tender, and flavorful meatballs are now ready to be served!

Serve these delectable meatballs over your favorite pasta, a healthier spaghetti squash, creamy polenta, or transform them into tasty Meatball Sliders for a fun meal.

Freezing and Reheating for Future Meals

These Instant Pot meatballs are excellent for meal prep and freezing, ensuring you always have a delicious, home-cooked meal within reach. Follow these simple steps for successful freezing and reheating:

How to Freeze Cooked Meatballs:

1. Cool Completely: After cooking, separate the meatballs from the marinara sauce and allow both to cool completely to room temperature. This is crucial to prevent ice crystals and maintain quality.
2. Package Separately: Place the cooled meatballs in a freezer-safe airtight container or a heavy-duty freezer bag. For best results, freeze the sauce separately in its own container. This allows for more versatile reheating and prevents the meatballs from becoming mushy.
3. Label and Freeze: Clearly label your containers with the date. Meatballs and sauce can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Cooking from Frozen:

You can easily cook frozen homemade meatballs, or even store-bought frozen meatballs, directly in your Instant Pot:

1. Combine Ingredients: Add approximately 22 frozen meatballs (or the equivalent of one batch) to the Instant Pot. Pour in 32 ounces of marinara sauce and 1/2 cup of water. If you are using frozen sauce, ensure it is thawed and gently heated before adding it to the pot to promote even cooking and pressure build-up.
2. Pressure Cook: Lock the lid in place, set the valve to SEALING, and cook on HIGH pressure for 8 minutes.
3. Release Pressure: Once cooking is complete, perform a natural release for 5 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure by turning the valve to VENTING.

This method ensures your frozen meatballs emerge perfectly tender and coated in flavorful sauce, ready to serve in no time. You can also make our Air Fryer Meatballs and freeze them using the same method.

More Easy Instant Pot Recipes to Explore

If you love the convenience and efficiency of your Instant Pot, you’ll be thrilled to discover a world of other quick and delicious meals you can create. Expand your culinary repertoire with these fantastic Instant Pot recipes:

• Instant Pot Navy Bean Soup
• Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes – Pot-in-Pot (PIP) Recipe
• Instant Pot Oatmeal
• Instant Pot Spaghetti Sauce
• Keto Instant Pot Cabbage Rolls
• Explore more Instant Pot recipes…

These recipes highlight the versatility of the Instant Pot, proving it can handle everything from hearty soups and main courses to breakfast staples, all with the same promise of speed and ease.

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Servings: 7 servings

Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 25 mins

Total Time: 35 mins

Instant Pot Meatballs

Created By: Kat Jeter & Melinda Machado

Instant Pot meatballs are the easiest and fastest way to make meatballs and marinara sauce. Perfect for spaghetti night, sandwiches or quick and easy appetizers.

Print Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 pound Lean Ground Beef
• 1 pound Italian Sausage
• 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese, finely grated
• 1/4 cup Romano Cheese, finely grated
• 2 tablespoons Fresh Basil, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons Fresh Italian Parsley, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons Salt
• 1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
• 1 tablespoon Onion Powder
• 2 Large Eggs
• 32 ounces Marinara Sauce
• ½ cup Water

Instructions

1. Mix cheeses, basil, parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, and salt in a small bowl.
2. In a large bowl place the ground beef and Italian sausage and work them together gently until well mixed.
3. Add the cheese and spice mixture from the small bowl and the eggs to the meat mixture.
4. Work everything together until it is thoroughly mixed.
5. Form the meat into large balls, approximately 2 ounces each. This recipe typically yields about 22 meatballs.
6. Pour the marinara sauce and 1/2 cup of water into the Instant Pot inner pot and set it to SAUTE to heat the sauce until warm.
7. Once the sauce is warm, carefully add the meatballs to the pot. The meatballs can touch and stack on one another, but try to stack them as gently as possible to avoid flattening the ones below.
8. Lock the lid in place and turn the valve to SEALING. Set the Instant Pot to HIGH pressure for 8 minutes.
9. When the timer goes off, press CANCEL and then allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes.
10. Finally, turn the valve to VENTING to release any remaining steam. Once the float valve drops, remove the lid and serve your delicious meatballs.

Nutrition

Serving: 3 meatballs, Calories: 414kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 31g, Fat: 28g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Cholesterol: 151mg, Sodium: 2040mg, Potassium: 873mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 835IU, Vitamin C: 12mg, Calcium: 170mg, Iron: 4mg

Nutrition Disclaimer: We are not certified nutritionists. Nutrition facts are an estimate and are provided as a courtesy. They are generated by an online API which recognizes ingredient names and amounts and makes calculations based on the serving size. Results may vary.

Course: Main

Cuisine: Italian