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Home » Recipes » Pressure Cooker Recipes » Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Posted January 2, 2019 Last Updated December 1, 2020 by Jennifer // 11 Comments**This post may contain affiliate links**

Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Filed Under: Pressure Cooker Recipes

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Wish your kids would eat more veggies? Why not combine them with their favorite meal? This Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese uses a homemade cheese sauce with sneaky veggies and cooks in 3 minutes!

Mac and cheese in a gray bowl topped with parsley

Whether you want to let your family in on the secret ingredient here or not I will leave up to you, but either way, I think you’ll feel awesome about serving up this Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese for dinner. Now that I’ve learned the key to making mac and cheese in the Instant Pot, I’m not sure I will ever make it any other way. It’s just about the easiest meal, so easy in fact that I would throw this together for a weekend lunch for the kids because it would be faster and easier than grabbing something from a drive though. Plus… extra veggies!!

butternut squash Mac and cheese in instant pot with spoon to stir

Can you really make mac and cheese in a pressure cooker?

Yes! Why deal with boiling water and messing with the stove just to make the boxed stuff? Simply toss everything in your pressure cooker, set it, and walk away. I’m all about dinners that are hands off.

If you wanted to go the extra mile you could put the finished Mac and cheese in a casserole dish and top with breadcrumbs or crushed potato chips and bake for a few minutes, but for the most part my family could care less about that part. What’s important to them is the delicious cheese.

butternut squash Mac and cheese in instant pot with spoon to stir

How do you make homemade mac and cheese?

There’s a few important component of making homemade mac and cheese that are key to getting delicious results. It may sound daunting, but once you see how simple it is you will throw away those little powdered cheese packets for good.

  • cheese shredded fresh from the block (not pre-shredded cheese). This is better because it does not have anti-caking agents so it will melt so much smoother. To make shredding easier, I love to use my salad shooter with the shredding attachment.
  • evaporated milk – easy to have on hand and lends a nice rich flavor and creaminess
  •  don’t overcook the noodles – I learned this though trial and error but it’s better if the noodles have a little bite to them. It helps them hold up so much better to the rich cheese sauce.Mac and cheese in a gray bowl topped with parsley
Mac and cheese in a gray bowl topped with parsley

Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Wish your kids would eat more veggies? Why not combine them with their favorite meal? This Instant Pot Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese uses a homemade cheese sauce with sneaky veggies and cooks in 3 minutes!
4.88 from 8 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Pressure: 15 minutes
Total Time: 18 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 574kcal
Author: Jennifer Draper

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 small onion (diced)
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 16 oz elbow noodles
  • 24 oz frozen cubed butternut squash
  • 3 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 12 oz canned evaporated milk
  • 6 oz shredded mild cheese blend

Instructions

  • Heat olive oil and butter in Instant Pot on sauté
  • Add onion, garlic and thyme and cook until onion starts to brown
  • Turn off Instant Pot
  • Add noodles, squash and broth and cover and seal
  • Set to 3 minutes high pressure
  • Perform quick release and stir in milk and cheese until melted and smooth

Nutrition

Calories: 574kcal | Carbohydrates: 78g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 325mg | Potassium: 895mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 12435IU | Vitamin C: 25.9mg | Calcium: 415mg | Iron: 2.4mg
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jass D says

    October 15, 2020 at 9:01 pm

    5 stars
    I used fresh butternut squash (’tis the season!). And I just tossed it in with the onion & garlic to sauté first. Then proceeded as the recipe calls, delicious! My kids all asked for seconds, this is definitely replacing those quick boxed Mac & cheese lunches we do on occasion (this was just about as quick!). Thanks.

    Reply
  2. Kristyn says

    July 17, 2020 at 1:04 pm

    What can I substitute for the evaporated milk?

    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      July 21, 2020 at 7:09 am

      I haven’t tested it out, but you should be able to substitute for a mixture of whole milk and half and half.

      Reply
  3. CathyT says

    May 15, 2020 at 5:18 pm

    Made this for my mom and son tonight. Son raved!!! Oh, well, maybe he was really hungry!! Mom, just a different flavor and texture for her in the beginning but it grew on her. I loved it! Was a tasty change from regular Mac and cheese! Great recipe!

    Reply
  4. Tara says

    March 22, 2020 at 3:14 pm

    Is it imperative that the squash is frozen? Could you use fresh squash?

    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      March 22, 2020 at 3:31 pm

      You could certainly sub fresh, although I’d probably cook it on high pressure (with the broth) for 2-3 minutes first, quick release, then continue with remaining ingredients as written because frozen squash has usually been parboiled or steamed an cooks much faster.

      Reply
      • Sean says

        August 10, 2020 at 11:38 pm

        4 stars
        I used this tip to cook fresh butternut squash before adding everything else and it worked well. (I sautéed the onions on the stove.)

        Reply
  5. Marisa says

    January 8, 2020 at 8:48 pm

    5 stars
    Everyone loved it!

    Reply
    • Jennifer says

      January 9, 2020 at 8:36 pm

      hooray!

      Reply
  6. Natalie says

    June 28, 2019 at 4:56 pm

    5 stars
    I tried it and it’s delish 0 cons

    Reply
  7. Christina says

    January 3, 2019 at 5:43 pm

    4 stars
    Looks amazing am definately going to give it a try

    Reply

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Author Hi! I'm Jennifer and I believe that everyone deserves wonderfully delicious meals. Join me as I show you simple ways to make wholesome dinners and more in your slow cooker.
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