Name: Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 4 min
Total time: 34 min
Ingredients: olive oil (optional, to sauté very lean ground beef); 1 lb lean ground beef or ground Italian sausage; ¼ teaspoon salt; a few turns freshly ground black pepper; 1 yellow onion, diced; 5 cloves garlic, minced; 3 cups chicken broth (can sub water and adjust salt to taste); 22 oz jar marinara sauce (650 ml / 2 ¾ cups); 1 15oz can diced tomatoes; 1 teaspoon dried basil; 1 teaspoon dried parsley; ½ teaspoon onion powder; ½ teaspoon oregano; ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional); 10-12 oz short Mafalda pasta (mini lasagna noodles); 1 cup ricotta cheese (can sub cottage cheese); 1 cup freshly grated mozzarella cheese; Garnish with fresh parsley and parmesan cheese (optional)

Say hello to the easiest lasagna ever with this Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna! Made with layers of meat, noodles, sauce, and two types of cheese, it’s a quick and easy one-pot meal!

This Lazy Lasagna recipe is adapted from our reader favourite Instant Pot Lasagna Soup. Be sure to check it out too!

Lazy Lasagna in an Instant Pot garnished with parsley, viewed from overhead.

My family absolutely loves my lasagna soup recipe, but sometimes we want a heartier version of it that eats more like a pasta dish than a soup. This Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna recipe satisfies that craving and is so delicious. It has all the flavour of lasagna, but with way less effort and you only need one pot to make it!

Ingredients and Variations

Below is an overview of the ingredients and steps to make pressure cooker lazy lasagna. See the recipe card below for all the details!

Lean ground beef or Italian sausage – really any type of ground meat will work! We often use ground turkey.
Onion and garlic – for flavour
Broth – to produce steam for pressure cooking and cook the pasta. You can sub water and adjust the added salt to taste.
Marinara sauce – or any tomato-based pasta sauce that you like
Diced tomatoes – adds volume to the sauce. We tried it without, but found the result too dry. If you don’t like diced tomatoes, I suggest adding a bit more sauce.
Seasonings – we use our own blend of seasoning, but you can also use a tablespoon of Italian seasoning instead of the suggested mix.
Short Mafalda pasta – these look like mini lasagna noodles and are so perfect for this dish, but if you can’t find them you can substitute 12 ounces of any short pasta. Simply follow the tips in the Notes section of the recipe card below to adjust the cook time.
Cheeses – we stir in ricotta and top with mozzarella. If you’re not a fan of ricotta, you can substitute cottage cheese.

How to make it

First, use the Sauté function to brown the meat. When it’s almost cooked, add the onion and garlic and continue to sauté until the onion is softened.

Process photos of how to make Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna, showing sautéing and layering steps before cooking.

Next, use a small amount of broth to deglaze the insert (scrape up any brown bits stuck to the bottom), then pour in the rest of the broth. Layer on the sauce, diced tomatoes, seasoning and pasta. Push the pasta into the liquid. It’s okay if it’s not fully submerged, it just needs to be an even layer.

Pressure cook on High for 4 minutes, then do a controlled quick release of the pressure. Give everything a stir, then mix in the ricotta cheese.

Process photos of how to make Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna, showing mixing in ricotta cheese and topping with mozzarella.

Top it with mozzarella and set the lid askew on the pot to melt it, then serve! You can also reserve the mozzarella and sprinkle it onto individual servings instead.

Tips for Success

Layer the ingredients and don’t stir. This will prevent a burn warning. You don’t want the tomato-based products or pasta at the bottom.

Choose your level of sauciness. Use 10 ounces of Mafalda if you prefer a saucier lasagna, or use 12 ounces to get the sauciness pictured in the photos. When we know we’ll have leftovers, we make the saucier version because the pasta will continue to absorb the sauce when it’s stored in the refrigerator.

Use short pasta. If you substitute a different pasta, I highly recommend using a short variety like rotini. Longer noodles like spaghetti require a bit of a different method and are more likely to stick together.

Substitute pasta by weight. You want to have 4 ounces of pasta for every cup of thin liquid (broth in this case). This is why I don’t give the pasta measurements in cups – different pasta shapes will result in different volume measures.

Don’t skip the seasonings. We need to bump up the flavour because Instant Pot pasta is cooked in a sealed environment. You don’t get a concentration of flavour from evaporation like you would on the stovetop.

Instant Pot Lazy Lasagna being scooped with a wooden spoon, showing the nicely melted mozzarella cheese.

How to reheat

Microwave: Reheat individual portions for 1-2 minutes, stirring partway for even heating.

Stovetop: Reheat in a saucepan over medium heat until warmed thoroughly. Gently stir for even heating and add a splash of broth as needed to reconstitute the sauce.

For both methods, it’s a good idea to check that the internal temperature reaches 165 °F for food safety.

Lazy Lasagna in a white pasta bowl garnished with fresh parsley.

More easy Instant Pot pasta recipes

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