Instant Pot Meatball Soup (With Homemade or Frozen Meatballs)

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Instant Pot Meatball Soup. A pressure cooker soup with pasta, and homemade or store-bought frozen meatballs.

The pitch for meatball soup in Bon Appétit was simple. “All the long-cooked flavors of beef stew in half the time.” That sounds fantastic, especially when I pressure cook the soup in my Instant Pot to cut the cooking time even more.

Instant Pot meatball soup with carrots and farfalle pasta
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When I think of meatballs, I think of big Italian meatballs in red sauce. I’m making the same Italian-style meatball mix for this recipe, but I want meatballs small enough to fit on a spoon. So I pull out my small cookie scoop and use it to scoop 1-inch meatballs, the perfect size for this recipe.

Ingredients

Meatballs (If using homemade)

  • Meatloaf mix (Ground beef, ground pork, and sometimes ground veal)
  • Onion
  • Garlic
  • Fine sea salt
  • Fresh ground black pepper
  • Dried Italian herb mix
  • Red pepper flakes (optional)
  • Egg
  • Grated parmesan cheese
  • Italian-style bread crumbs

OR: Frozen Meatballs

  • Small frozen meatballs, aka “Bite Size” meatballs

Soup

  • Olive oil
  • Onion
  • Carrot
  • Celery
  • Garlic
  • Red pepper flakes
  • Fine sea salt
  • Tomato paste
  • Beef Broth (or homemade chicken broth)
  • Mini Farfalle (Farfalline) or another small pasta shape

How to make Instant Pot Meatball Soup

Shape the meatballs

In a large bowl, break up the beef and pork. Sprinkle the bread crumbs, cheese, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, herbs, and red pepper flakes over the meat, then work the dry ingredients into the meat. Once evenly mixed, put the egg on top and work it into the meat. Roll the meat mix into 1-inch meatballs. (Or buy frozen meatballs, about 1-inch in diameter, aka “bite-sized meatballs”).

Sauté the aromatics

Heat the olive oil in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode – High (or medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker) until the oil starts to shimmer. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and sprinkle with the red pepper flakes and ½ teaspoon of salt. Sauté until the onions soften, about 5 minutes.

Everything in the pot

Stir the tomato paste into the onions and cook, stirring often, until the tomato paste turns brick red, about 5 minutes. Stir in the beef broth and scrape the bottom with a flat-edged wooden spoon to ensure no tomato paste is sticking. Stir in the pasta, then gently add the meatballs to the pot.

Pressure Cook for 10 minutes with a Natural Release

Lock the lid and pressure cook at high pressure for 10 minutes (Use “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot). Let the pressure to come down naturally, about 20 minutes. (If you’re in a hurry, let the pressure come down for 15 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.)

Serve

Unlock the lid, tilting the lid away from you to avoid the hot steam. Ladle the soup into bowls, divide the meatballs evenly between the bowls, serve, and enjoy!

Substitutions

Frozen meatballs

As the recipe says, you can substitute bite-sized frozen meatballs for the homemade meatballs. And there’s no need to thaw – the meatballs will thaw (and cook through) in the pressure cooker. If the meatballs are 1-inch across or less, frozen meatballs work with the recipe as it is written. If you have bigger frozen meatballs, say 1¼ to 2 inches, increase the pressure cooking time to 15 minutes – but I don’t recommend larger meatballs because the pasta will overcook.

Different pasta

Different kinds of pasta: You want pasta that is small enough to fit on a soup spoon. The bowtie shape of the mini farfalle looks good in pictures, so I used that for this recipe. Other good kinds of pasta for this soup are Mini Penne or Ditalini.

Equipment

A 6-quart pressure cooker

Small Cookie Scoop (about 1 tablespoon size, or a #70 to #60 disher)

Scaling

Doubling this recipe requires an 8-quart pressure cooker; it fills up the pot too much if you try to double it in a 6-quart pressure cooker. Cut all the ingredients in half, and this recipe will fit in a 3-quart pressure cooker. The cooking time does not change, doubled or halved. It takes the same time to cook each meatball, no matter how many are in the pot.

Storage

Soup makes excellent leftovers! Meatball Soup will keep in the refrigerator for a few days or in the freezer for a few months. I store it in 2-cup containers, which make the perfect size for a leftover lunch from the microwave.

Tips and Tricks

Homemade Broth: Now, I’m not going to insist that you use homemade broth…but if you have an Instant Pot, you really should try it. I make a lot of chicken broth at home because it is inexpensive and easy. If I have a leftover chicken carcass I can use that, or I buy cheap chicken backs for my chicken back broth. Beef broth is fantastic, but it takes more work (you have to roast the beef bones) and is high-priced. Beef soup bones are about twice the price of chicken backs at my local stores, and meaty shanks and oxtails are even more expensive.

Cookie Scoop: I said it above, but I’ll repeat it again: a small cookie scoop is the killer tool for making these small meatballs. No need to worry about rolling, just scoop some mix and push the release button. I don’t know the official size, but my Small Cookie Scoop from Oxo makes meatballs about 1 inch across, or about 1 tablespoon. I believe that means a #70 to #60 disher, but if you work in food service and know what disher has a 1-inch diameter, let me know in the comments below.

What to serve with Instant Pot Meatball Soup

When I have soup, I want it with crusty bread for dipping and a salad on the side. I know Soup and Salad is a cliche, but it’s on every lunch menu in America because it’s a great combination.

Inspired by: Meatball Soup, Kendra Vaculin, Bon Appétit magazine.

Print

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Instant Pot meatball soup with carrots and farfalle pasta

Instant Pot Meatball Soup Recipe


  • Author:     Mike Vrobel

  • Total Time:     1 hour 5 minutes

  • Yield:     16 cups of soup 1x

Description

Instant Pot Meatball Soup. A pressure cooker soup with pasta, and homemade or store-bought frozen meatballs.

Meatballs (If using homemade)

  • 1½ pounds meatloaf mix (1 pound ground beef, ½ pound ground pork)
  • 1 small onion, grated or finely minced
  • 2 large garlic cloves, grated or finely minced
  • 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons dried Italian herb mix
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • ½ cup (2oz) finely grated parmesan cheese
  • ¾ cup Italian-style bread crumbs

OR: Frozen Meatballs

  • 2 pounds (32 ounces) small frozen meatballs, aka “Bite Size” meatballs

Soup

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped into ½-inch pieces
  • 1 large carrot, cut into ½-inch half moons
  • 1 stalk celery, cut into ½-inch slices
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 6 ounces Tomato Paste
  • 8 cups Beef Broth (or homemade chicken broth)
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (only if using homemade broth)
  • 1 cup Mini Farfalle (Farfalline) or another small pasta shape

Instructions

  1. Shape the meatballs: In a large bowl, break up the beef and pork. Sprinkle the bread crumbs, cheese, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, herbs, and red pepper flakes over the meat, then work the dry ingredients into the meat. Once evenly mixed, put the egg on top and work it into the meat. Scoop the meatballs with a small cookie scoop, or roll the meat mixture into balls to make 1-inch meatballs. (Or buy bite-sized frozen meatballs, about 1-inch in diameter or smaller).
  2. Sauté the aromatics: Heat the olive oil in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode – High (or medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker) until the oil starts to shimmer. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, and sprinkle with the red pepper flakes and ½ teaspoon of salt. Sauté until the onions soften, about 5 minutes.
  3. Everything in the pot: Stir the tomato paste into the onions and cook, stirring often, until the tomato paste turns brick red, about 5 minutes. Stir in the beef broth (and 1 teaspoon of fine sea salt if using homemade broth), and scrape the bottom with a flat-edged wooden spoon to ensure no tomato paste is sticking. Stir in the pasta, then gently add the meatballs to the pot.
  4. Pressure Cook for 10 minutes with a Natural Release: Lock the lid and pressure cook at high pressure for 10 minutes (Use “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” mode in an Instant Pot). Let the pressure to come down naturally, about 20 minutes. (If you’re in a hurry, let the pressure come down for 15 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.)
  5. Serve: Unlock the lid, tilting the lid away from you to avoid the hot steam. Ladle the soup into bowls, divide the meatballs evenly between the bowls, serve, and enjoy!

  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Category: Sunday Dinner
  • Method: Pressure Cooker
  • Cuisine: Italian-American

Keywords: Instant Pot Meatball Soup, Pressure Cooker Meatball Soup

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