Broccoli Pasta Casserole
Servings: 4 people
Broccoli pasta casserole or baked broccoli pasta is a delicious meal. It is loaded with broccoli and mixed with white sauce. Pasta is cooked in the Instant Pot in an easy way. This is a perfect vegetarian dish for parties, potlucks, holidays, and special occasions!
Equipment
- Instant Pot 6 qt or 3 qt.
- Convection Oven
Ingredients
Cooking pasta in instant pot
- 3 cups Penne Pasta (12 oz)
- 3 cups Water
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil extra virgin
White sauce
- 2 tablespoon All-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoon Unsalted butter
- ½ cup Cheddar cheese grated
- 2 cups Milk
- Salt to taste
For baked broccoli pasta
- 3 cups Broccoli florets
- ½ teaspoon Italian Seasoning optional
- ½ cup Pepper Jack cheese grated
- ½ teaspoon Red chili flakes optional
- Pepper for sprinkling, optional
Instructions
Cooking Pasta in Instant Pot
- Add pasta, water, and salt to the instant pot container.
- Select high "Pressure" mode for 0 minutes. (keep warm setting "on")
- Once complete, let the pressure release naturally for 6 minutes and then do a quick release intermittently over next 3 minutes.
- Toss the pasta with some oil and keep aside.
Steaming the Broccoli florets
- While pasta is getting cooked in Instant pot, steam the florets on cook top for about 3 minutes or until tender.
Preheat the oven
- Preheat oven at 350°F.
Making white sauce
- Heat a saucepan on medium heat or use the instant pot on the "Saute" mode on high temperature, once hot add the butter.
- Let the butter melt and then add the all-purpose flour and mix well until well cooked (about a minute).
- Add the milk and cook it well and let it boil for about a minute, stirring occasionally.
- Mix in the cheese and salt.
Baking the pasta
- Mix the pasta, white sauce, and broccoli in a casserole dish.
- Sprinkle cheese, pepper, Italian seasoning, and bake it in the preheated oven at 350 °F for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and serve it while it is hot.
Notes
- Fresh broccoli can also be steamed in an instant pot for 0 minutes on "Pressure" and then a quick release. For frozen broccoli florets, only thawing is enough.
- While releasing pressure for pasta perform controlled pressure release. If the starch starts coming out then shift the knob to the sealing position and then retry after about 30 seconds. Continue until all the pressure is released.
- To ensure the pasta does not stick after cooking, toss some olive oil over it once cooked.
- You can also use store-bought white sauce in case you want to make the dish quicker.
- Instead of using the instant pot, you can cook the pasta on the stove top based on the package directions.
Nutrition
Calories: 375kcal (19%) | Carbohydrates: 33g (11%) | Protein: 17g (34%) | Fat: 20g (31%) | Saturated Fat: 12g (75%) | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 55mg (18%) | Sodium: 271mg (12%) | Potassium: 437mg (12%) | Fiber: 3g (13%) | Sugar: 8g (9%) | Vitamin A: 1056IU (21%) | Vitamin C: 61mg (74%) | Calcium: 385mg (39%) | Iron: 2mg (11%)
