Learn how to make an adaptation Instant Pot Cacio e Pepe, one of Rome's most popular pasta dishes famously featured in Anthony Bourdain's show 'No Reservations' and cooked for Bradly Cooper in a movie Burnt. For such a delicious, comforting spaghetti dish, it is ridiculously easy to make and we will show you how.
What Is Cacio e Pepe?
In Italian, the name means 'cheese and pepper' and that is exactly what this pasta dish is made with. It's the original version of mac and cheese traditionally made with al dente spaghetti, lots of black pepper and even more cheese, usually Pecorino Romano but sometimes Parmesan when the other isn't available.
The magic of Cacio e Pepe is that you can make it drunk at 1 am when you have impromptu guests or having a super late supper, when you are broke and waiting for payday, or when you are just learning to cook. It’s fabulously easy and every time you make it you will marvel at how you turned the last things in your cupboard and fridge into pure luxury.
In his TV show, late chef Anthony Bourdain went so far as to say the dish "could be the greatest thing in the history of the world" and many visitors to Rome seek out this special pasta experience.
Today, we will show you how to make Instant Pot cacio e pepe pasta with very little time and effort. It will impress your date, dinner guests or the family.
How To Make Instant Pot Cacio e Pepe In Instant Pot
Here is a handy video showing you how to make this adapted Instant Pot spaghetti dish. We used #3 spaghetti but you could use something a little thinner or thicker. For a less authentic version, feel free to use another type of pasta.
Other ingredients include butter, ground black pepper and grated Parmesan cheese. If you can get Pecorino cheese, this will be more authentic but you just use Parmesan cheese.
Butter is not always used but it helps to toast the pepper slightly to release its aromas before adding the pasta and cheese. The bulk of the sauce will come from the cooking pasta liquid, so make sure you don't discard all of it. The liquid will be a little salty and have some of the pasta starch which is perfect for the sauce base.
This dish is quite peppery but not too spicy. If you want to reduce the spice, feel free to reduce the amount as you can always add more when serving.
MORE INSTANT POT ITALIAN RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
- Spinach Lemon & Parmesan Orzo
- 10-Vegetable Tomato Sauce
- Italian Mac & Cheese
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Italian Pork Stew With Beans & Tomatoes
Rate This Recipe
Instant Pot Cacio e Pepe Inspired Spaghetti
Ingredients
Part 1
- 250 g spaghetti
- 4 cups water
- ⅔ teaspoon salt
Part 2
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup pasta cooking liquid
- 3.5 oz Pecorino cheese or Parmesan cheese, grated (100 g / 1 cup)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground is best
- Extra cheese to grate on top
Instructions
- Break the dry spaghetti in half and add to the pot. Pour in 4 cups of water and make sure all pasta is submerged. Add the salt. Stir it with your hands gently to make sure the water goes between all the spaghetti strands.
- Pop the lid on, lock and make sure to top valve is pointing to Sealing. Set to Manual/Pressure Cook, HIGH pressure for 3 minutes. Often, pasta recipes will call for 4-5 minutes cooking time in the Instant Pot but we are reducing it to 3 minutes and allowing some natural pressure release instead. This helps to settle the foam that forms during pressure cooking so that when you release the steam, it doesn't spurt as much.
- Once the timer is done, allow 7-8 for natural pressure release but not much longer than that or the pasta will overcook. Point the top valve to Venting to do the quick release. You may get some foam squirting out which happens after cooking pasta, but don't worry - it is normal.
- Open the lid and stir the pasta through. Scoop out about ½ cup of the cooking liquid and strain out the rest.
- Return the empty pot to the base and press the Saute function key. Add the butter and pepper and stir through until melted and starting to bubble. Press Cancel to stop the Satue function.
- Add the reserved ½ cup of cooking pasta liquid and the strained spaghetti. Add the grated Parmesan cheese and stir through the pasta until melted and incorporated into the sauce.
- As soon the cheese has melted and the pasta is well coated in the sauce, transfer all of it to a serving bowl and fill the empty pot with hot water to make it easier to clean.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
SAVE CACIO E PEPE PASTA RECIPE TO PINTEREST
Jane
What would the timing be on this for gluten free pasta?
Ann Fabrizio
Hey Jane, we have a great article on gluten free pasta. https://instantpoteats.com/gluten-free-pasta-instant-pot-recipe/#recipe But to quickly answer your question: Adjust the time to 1 minute depending on the type. Once the timer stops, allow 10 minutes for natural release. This will give you al dente pasta. For a softer result, you can let it sit for 2-3 more minutes.Then Quick Release to let off the rest of the pressure.
Brent
Made this tonight and found the pasta to be slightly overcooked despite following the timing directly. It was very tasty and had everyone enjoying it, but next time I think I'd vent the pot at 6 minutes instead of waiting for 7 to 8.
Instant Pot Eats
Hey Brent, glad you enjoyed it. The timing does depend on the size of the pasta as some spaghetti are a little thinner than others. It is a bit of a trial and error with pasta shapes. Hope it works even better next time 🙂
Pierre de Villers
Made this Today and will definitely be making it again! Yum. Thanks Instantpoteats for another great recipe. I served it with rice fried with onions and mushrooms.
Pierre de Villers
Actually, wrong recipe :). I made the coconut cabbage
Lisa Murphy
How much is 250 g dry spaghetti in terms of cups or pounds?
instantpoteats
250 g = 0.5 lb (usually a pack comes as 500 g or 1 lb) so around half of that.