Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo (with Chicken). A one-pot meal of Instant Pot chicken fettuccine Alfredo, ready in minutes thanks to pressure cooking
My kids kept asking for Fettuccine Alfredo. I pictured a fancy Italian recipe, but then I looked into homemade alfredo sauce. I realized it's an Italian variation on my mac and cheese recipe, where I cook pasta in my Instant Pot and substitute evaporated milk for the flour-based heavy cream sauce. (It may be a different pasta and cheese, but the basic technique is the same.)
If you're looking for other Instant Pot pasta recipes, try my Pressure Cooker Penne with Sausage and Peppers, Instant Pot Chickpea Puttanesca with Orecchiette, or Instant Pot Pasta con Ceci (Pasta with Chickpeas).
A digression about spelling
The first trick I had to figure out was how to spell fettuccine. It's one of those words that I can't spell correctly. Spell check keeps underlining all my attempts. I can never get the correct number of t's (two), c's (two), or n's (one). I think I have them all fixed, but I apologize for any spelling slip-ups.
Ingredients
- Fettuccine Egg Noodle Nests
- Red pepper flakes
- Butter
- Chicken broth
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts ("Stir Fry" cut or tenders)
- Evaporated milk
- Shredded Parmesan cheese
- Dried Italian seasoning
- Fresh parsley (optional, for garnish)
See the recipe card for quantities.
How to make Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo
Noodles, Broth, and Chicken in the Pot: Put the fettuccine nests in an Instant Pot. Sprinkle with the red pepper flakes, add the butter, and pour in the chicken broth. Break up the fettuccine nests to help them settle in the water, then set the chicken breast strips on top.
Pressure Cook for 1 Minute With a 5 Minute Natural Release: Lock the lid on the Instant Pot and pressure cook for 1 minute at high pressure. Let the pressure come down naturally for 5 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.
Stir in the Evaporated Milk and Cheese: Open the lid, pour in the evaporated milk, then stir in the cheese, breaking up any clumps of chicken or noodles that are stuck together. Sprinkle with the Italian seasoning, and keep stirring until the cheese melts. Serve.
Top Tip: Fettuccine Egg Noodle Nests
Fitting a long pasta, like fettuccine, into my Instant Pot is a trick. I get around this by buying fettuccine nests, egg noodles pre-rolled into neat bundles that are easy to fit in the pot.
Now, fettuccine egg noodles cook very quickly. I get the best results with 1 minute at high pressure, then a 5 minute rest for the pressure to come down naturally, then a quick release. (Instant Pot fettuccine does not lend itself to al dente pasta, but it's not overcooked either.) That doesn't leave much time for the chicken to cook, so I cheat and buy thin-sliced packs of "stir fry chicken" from my grocery store. The chicken is already cut into roughly ½-inch thick strips for me. (If I have to cut it myself, I do.)
Can I use regular Fettuccine noodles in this recipe?
Yes, but it changes things a little bit. You must break the noodles to fit them in the pot and keep them in the liquid while cooking. (Breaking them in half is enough to get them to fit). Also, regular fettuccine noodles are thicker than the egg noodle version, so they take longer. Cook on high pressure for 4 minutes, with a 5 minute natural release. These noodles will also stick together more, so I have to work a bit at pulling them apart before stirring in the cheese.
Substitutions
Skip the chicken
Are you looking for a vegetarian version? Skip the chicken and use vegetable broth; everything else cooks the same.
Cut the heat
I like a hint of heat in this recipe, so I add some red pepper flakes, then pass more at the table. If you don't want the heat, go ahead and skip them.
Fresh Herbs
If you have fresh basil, rosemary, and/or thyme, mince them up and swap them for the dried Italian seasoning.
Different pasta
If you don't want to use fettuccine pasta, you can substitute penne pasta. Increase the cooking time to 4 minutes at high pressure, with the same 5 minute natural release before quick releasing the rest of the pressure.
Equipment
A 6-quart pressure cooker
Scaling
This recipe doubles easily, but you need an 8-quart pressure cooker for it to fit. Cut all the ingredients in half, and this recipe will fit in a 3-quart pressure cooker. The cooking time does not change; it takes the same time to cook each piece of pasta and chicken, no matter how many pieces you have in the pot.
Serving Suggestions
This is a one-pot meal, so it doesn't need much else. I serve Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo with a loaf of crusty bread and a salad.
Storing Leftovers
Leftovers last for a couple of days in the refrigerator. Or, package the fettuccine alfredo in 2-cup containers and freeze for a few months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use store-bought Alfredo sauce for instant pot fettuccine Alfredo?
Not with this recipe; store-bought sauce doesn't work in this recipe. We're building Alfredo sauce from evaporated milk and parmesan cheese, plus the starchy liquid left over in the pot from cooking the pasta. Store-bought Alfredo sauce is too thin to use in this recipe.
Can I use low-fat milk or cream in instant pot fettuccine alfredo?
No, you need thick evaporated milk for this recipe; regular milk and cream won't work. Like the Alfredo sauce question above, milk and cream are too thin to use in this recipe. But, if you are watching your calories, you can use low fat evaporated milk.
Can I add vegetables to instant pot fettuccine alfredo?
Most vegetables will overcook if you add them for the pressure cooking, but won't cook long enough if you add them afterwards, while you're stirring in the cheese. So, if you really need broccoli mixed in to make your fettuccine Alfredo complete, cook it on the side and mix it in. My shortcut method is microwave-in-the-bag broccoli, which I stir in after the cheese is mixed in to the noodles.
Can I use any type of pasta?
Now, you can't use *any* type of pasta, but you can substitute any short pasta into this recipe; just increase the cooking time to 4 minutes at high pressure with a 5 minute natural release, because short pastas tend to be thicker than fettuccine. Penne is my favorite substitution - if I can't find nests of pasta, it works better than regular fettuccine, and I don't have to break it in half. Other good choices are farfalle (bowtie), rigatoni, and ziti. Think short shapes with tubes to catch the sauce in.
Print
Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo with Chicken Recipe
Total Time: 30 minutes
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Instant Pot Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo - creamy chicken pasta, a one-pot meal from my pressure cooker.
Ingredients
- 2 (8.8-ounce) packages fettuccine nests
- A shake or two of red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth (Or 4 cups water + 2 teaspoons table salt)
- 1¼ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into ½-inch thick strips (“Stir Fry” cut at my local grocery store)
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
- 12 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning (or 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley or basil)
Instructions
- Noodles into the pot: Put the fettuccine nests in the pot, sprinkle with the red pepper flakes, and add the butter. Pour the chicken broth into the pot, breaking up the fettuccine nests to help them settle in the water. (It’s OK if they poke out a bit - they’ll relax into the liquid once the pot starts to steam.) Set the chicken breast strips on top of everything.
- Pressure Cook for 1 minute with a 5 minute Natural Release: Lock the lid on the cooker and pressure cook for 1 minute at high pressure. (“Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot.) Let the pressure come down naturally for 5 minutes, then quick-release any remaining pressure.
- Stir in the evaporated milk and cheese, and serve: Unlock the lid and open, tilting the lid away from you to avoid the hot steam. Leave the pot in “keep warm” mode and pour in the evaporated milk. Stir in half the cheese, and keep stirring gently until the cheese melts, and break up any stuck-together pieces of chicken you see. Add the remaining cheese and the Italian seasoning, and stir until the cheese melts. Serve, sprinkling each serving with extra parmesan, and red pepper flakes if you like a bit of heat. Enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now →Notes
If you can't find fettuccine nests, you can still make this recipe with 1 pound of regular fettuccine noodles. Break the bundle noodles in half (or more) to make them fit in the pot, and increase the pressure cooking time to 4 minutes at high pressure.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
Category: Weeknight Dinner
Method: Pressure Cooker
Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: Instant Pot Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo, Pressure Cooker Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Macaroni and Cheese
Pressure Cooker Penne with Sausage and Peppers
Pressure Cooker Baked Ziti - DadCooksDinner
Instant Pot Pastalaya (Cajun Jambalaya with Pasta)
My other Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes
Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share this post with your friends. Want to contribute directly? Donate to my Tip Jar, or buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site. Thank you.
The post Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo appeared first on DadCooksDinner.
from DadCooksDinner https://ift.tt/76ed4yl
via IFTTT