The BEST Instant Pot Meatballs

With both pork and beef, these Instant Pot meatballs are so flavorful! In less than 30 minutes you can have the most delicious dish on the table.

Cooking meatballs in the sauce makes them extra moist and perfect for serving on hoagie buns for a meatball sub or over pasta.

I love creating Instant Pot recipes because they are just so darn easy. These meatballs are no exception. Simple, tasty and QUICK. We also have a recipe for gluten free meatballs although you can make these GF as well.

If this is your first time making homemade meatballs, don’t fret, they really couldn’t be easier and since we put them into the sauce, you don’t even have to do the extra step of browning them first.

The combination of meat, we chose beef and pork, really give these so much flavor. I have had just beef meatballs in the past and they lacked that flavor and quite honestly, fat, that I think good Italian meatballs have. Unlike our tacos which taste fantastic with just beef.

Similar to our Mississippi chicken instant pot style, instant pot lasagna and creamy Italian chicken, this is a recipe that you just dump in the ingredients and start. Not many extra steps which is great if you are short on time.

If you have a bit of extra beef after this recipe, be sure to save it for our Instant Pot hamburger soup and BEST Instant Pot spaghetti. Both are so delicious and filling for a cold winter day! And you can top them with our Instant Pot bacon for extra flavor! Or serve them with our instant pot broccoli cheddar soup on the side.

This Instant Pot chicken pasta is another quick and delicious Instant Pot dish. It has quickly become a family favorite.

What you need

There are just a few key ingredients needed to make these tasty and tender meatballs. One of them is bread crumbs of course. Since I am gluten-free, I chose the best store bought GF bread, Canyon Bakehouse. The country white loaf is most versatile and great in this recipe.

I love how easy this bread is to use in everything from gluten-free French toast bites and cinnamon roll French toast casserole (also made in the Instant Pot!) to gluten-free stuffing. Whether you are gluten-free or not, it is a great option.

So here is what you need. Simple ingredients that you likely already have in your kitchen…

• Ground pork
• Ground beef (save some extra for healthy sloppy joes as well)
• Breadcrumbs we use Canyon Bakehouse gluten-free bread to make ours
• Parmesan
• Eggs
• Dried onion
• Garlic, minced
• Worcestershire sauce
• Dried basil
• Dried oregano
• Teaspoon salt
• Little bit black pepper

How to make Instant Pot meatballs

To make these meatballs simply follow these six steps. You can serve them hot or use them as a delicious meal prep recipe to have later.

• Start by crumbling 5 pieces of bread onto a baking sheet then bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes or until toasted to a crisp and golden in color
• Mix the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and add freshly grated parmesan cheese
• Add the toasted breadcrumbs and combine really well

• Add the tomato sauce bottom of the pot
• Using a small cookie scoop, spoon our rounds of meat mixture and roll between your hands
• Add the meatballs to the pressure cooker one at a time on top of the sauce and cook on high pressure for a cooking time of 8 minutes
• Do a quick release, remove the lid and enjoy!

Pro tip: If you get a burn notice warning on your Instant Pot, open the lid and give it a good stir, scraping the bottom and start again

Can you use freeze the meatballs?

Yes, if you aren’t quite ready to eat them yet, you can flash freeze the raw meat balls for 30 minutes on a baking sheet. After a flash freeze, add the meatballs to a gallon ziplock bag and freeze for later.

Simply add them to the sauce and cook for 10 minutes from frozen instead of 8 like we do in this recipe with fresh meatballs.

If you have extra ground beef, be sure to cook it up for our Big Mac salad or tater tot casserole.

Do you have to use marinara sauce?

I love this recipe with marinara because it is just so delicious! I recommend a high quality sauce like Rao’s marinara sauce to bring out the flavor even more.

However, if you prefer to make this Instant Pot meatballs recipe without pasta sauce, use the sauté function to brown your meatballs just slightly (1 minute turning them to get all sides). Next, add 1 C beef broth to the Instant Pot and cook meatballs on a trivet for 8 minutes on high pressure.

Once the meatballs are cooked you can drain the beef broth and serve them as is or toss them with some bbq sauce or grape jelly.

Other common substitutions

• Ground turkey or ground chicken can be used in place of beef
• If you don’t care about using gluten-free bread, you can certainly use panko breadcrumbs as well
• Feel free to add any other dried herbs that you personally like

What do you serve these with?

I love serving these Instant Pot meatballs all on their own with a little flaky sea salt. However, they are also great as meatball subs with a drizzle of olive oil.

Of course you can also go classic and serve them over your favorite gluten-free (or regular) pasta. If you want something a bit healthier, zucchini noodles are also great.

How do you store leftovers?

If you have any leftovers, they can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. They will just as delicious next time you enjoy them!

More Instant Pot Recipes…

• Instant Pot Apple Crisp
• Instant Pot Artichoke Dip
• 50 Gluten-Free Instant Pot Recipes
• Instant Pot Country Style Ribs
• Instant Pot Pork Chops and Apples
• Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

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The BEST Instant Pot Meatballs

4.93 from 14 votes

With both pork and beef, these Instant Pot meatballs are so flavorful! In less than 30 minutes you can have the most delicious dish on the table. They are also gluten-free and easy to make!

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Course: Instant Pot

Cuisine: Italian/American

Keyword: Instant Pot, meatballs

Servings: 18 meatballs

Calories: 187kcal

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 pound ground pork
• ▢ 1 pound ground beef
• ▢ 1 cup breadcrumbs we use Canyon Bakehouse gluten-free bread to make ours
• ▢ 1 cup parmesan
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ 2 tablespoon dried onion
• ▢ 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried basil
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ 28 ounces marinara sauce

Instructions

• Start by crumbling 5 pieces of bread onto a baking sheet then bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes or until toasted to a crisp and golden in color
  
• Mix the remaining ingredients, minus the marinara sauce, in a large bowl and add freshly grated parmesan cheese
  
• Add the toasted breadcrumbs and combine really well
  
• Add the marinara sauce to the bottom of the pot 
  
• Using a small cookie scoop, spoon our rounds of meat mixture and roll between your hands
  
• Add the meatballs to the pressure cooker one at a time on top of the sauce and cook on high pressure for a cooking time of 8 minutes
  
• Do a quick release, remove the lid and enjoy!

Notes

Pro tip: If you get a burn notice warning on your Instant Pot, open the lid and give it a good stir, scraping the bottom and start again. If your sauce is too thick, try adding a bit of water as well to thin it out

if you aren’t quite ready to eat them yet, you can flash freeze the raw meat balls for 30 minutes on a baking sheet. After a flash freeze, add the meatballs to a gallon ziplock bag and freeze for later.

If you prefer to make this Instant Pot meatballs recipe without pasta sauce, use the sauté function to brown your meatballs just slightly (1 minute turning them to get all sides). Next, add 1 C beef broth to the Instant Pot and cook meatballs on a trivet for 8 minutes on high pressure.

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1meatball | Calories: 187kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 310mg | Potassium: 186mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 75IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 1mg