A beautiful, Roman classic, Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe is the fastest, easiest, and certainly the most delicious recipe that you can make in your Instant Pot. You’ll love this cheesy pasta dish and all of the flavor it brings to dinnertime!
Why Make this Recipe
- Less than 5 Ingredients: I can almost guarantee that this is the most delicious and authentic tasting pasta dish you’ll be able to find for just 4 ingredients. You certainly won’t be breaking the bank purchasing the ingredients for this meal!
- An Authentic Taste of Roma: Rome, Italy is known for this classic, simple pasta dish. Cacio e Pepe is served on every restaurant menu in Rome, and now you can make the exact same dish at home!
- Dump and Start: The best dinners are the ones with max flavor and minimal effort. This recipe falls under just those categories! Simply throw the spaghetti in the Instant Pot to cook. Once it’s done, pour the cheese and pepper into the pot, stir, and *chef’s kiss*, you’re done! With a cook time of 8 minutes, nonetheless.
What Goes in This Recipe?
- Spaghetti: I used “thick spaghetti” for this recipe, but you can also use “thin spaghetti” if you’d like. If you use “thin spaghetti” make sure to take about 1 minute off of the Instant Pot cook time. Your pasta should be dry when you put it in the Instant Pot.
- Black Peppercorns: Black pepper, believe it or not, loses its flavor in just a few short weeks after it’s been ground. Using fresh ground black pepper is especially vital to this recipe, as it’s where the pasta gets most of its flavor. Crack the peppercorns on the largest setting so that they are fairly large pieces of cracked pepper.
- Pecorino Romano: I use a block of Pecorino Romano cheese and grate it on the finest setting, making the cheese look like powder. Use a minimum of 2.5 cups of cheese and a maximum of 3 cups
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Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Cook the Noodles
Add the chicken broth and spaghetti noodles into the pot. Close the lid and cook on HIGH for 8 minutes. When the cook time ends, perform a Quick Release (immediately release the pressure so that the noodles do not keep cooking).
Step 2: Add Cheese and Pepper
Wait about 1-2 minutes to allow the pot/noodles to cool down slightly. Add the powdered cheese right into the pot about ⅓ cup at a time.
Use tongs to mix the cheese into the pasta water and allow it to melt completely. Then add the next round of cheese.
Repeat until all cheese is gone and the cheese melts and forms a sauce to coat the noodles.
Use your pepper grater to grate peppercorns into the pasta to taste.
Expert Tips
- Make sure to turn the Instant Pot off (don’t even have it on KEEP WARM) when adding the Pecorino Romano into the Instant Pot. If the pot is continuing to warm up, the cheese will clump together when you add it into the pasta water, causing a lumpy mess.
- Conversely, make sure that you add the cheese into the Instant Pot immediately once the pressure is released. Waiting too long will allow the pasta water to cool down, meaning that the cheese won’t melt as easily into a creamy sauce, and it may stay grainy. There is a delicate balance of heat when making Cacio e Pepe, but luckily, this balance is far easier to get correct in the Instant Pot than it is on the stove.
- Use freshly grated peppercorns! As mentioned above, freshly cracked peppercorns have far more flavor than the pre-grated containers you can buy at the grocery store. Using store-bought, pre-cracked pepper will result in a flavorless Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe.
Recipe FAQs
Can I Replace Pecorino Romano with Parmesan?
Parmesan is far more common in grocery stores than Pecorino Romano, so it’s tempting to want to replace the cheese in this recipe with parmesan. I would caution you against this choice, as I don’t find the end result hardly as delicious.
Pecorino Romano contains so much flavor and melts so beautifully into a sauce. Plus, if you want true, authentic tasting Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe, you’re going to want to do as the Romans do!
You can find Pecorino Romano cheese at almost any speciality grocery store. If you can’t find it, Parmesan will work in a pinch.
What Other Noodles Can I Use?
Italians normally use tonnarelli to make Cacio e Pepe. Tonnarelli is incredibly similar to spaghetti except for the fact that it is slightly thicker and is square shaped instead of cylindrical.
Tonnarelli can be hard to find in the USA, so spaghetti is a fine substitute.
How Do You Keep the Cheese from Clumping?
The temperature of the pasta water is really important for keeping your cheese from clumping. Following the steps in these instructions (releasing the pressure, turning off the pot, then adding the cheese) keeps your water at the perfect temperature to prevent clumping.
Another reason your sauce may be clumping is because of your cheese. Make sure to use a fresh block of Pecorino Romano and grate it yourself at home. Sometimes pre-shredded cheese will melt funky.
Also take care to grate your cheese on the smallest setting, as it should be as fine as sand. This smaller you grate the Pecorino Romano, the easier the cheese will melt.
How Do You Say “Cacio e Pepe”?
It is pronounced “ka-tchee-oh eh peh-pay”
Can I Make this Recipe on the Stovetop?
Absolutely! I make this recipe on the stovetop quite frequently actually. I will occasionally add pancetta into that recipe for some extra flavor!
Did you like this recipe? Make sure to check out these other Instant Pot Pasta recipes I picked out just for you!
Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
- Tongs
- Box Grater
Ingredients
- 8 oz spaghetti noodles, uncooked
- 2 ½ cups chicken broth
- ½ lb about 2.5 cups Pecorino Romano, grated
- fresh ground black pepper (Use code FF20 for 20% off), to taste
Instructions
- Use a cheese grater to grate your Pecorino Romano cheese on the very smallest setting. The cheese should look like powder.
- Add your chicken broth into the Instant Pot. Use your hands to break the spaghetti in half, then place the dry spaghetti noodles in the pot. Make sure the broth covers the noodles completely.
- Place a lid on the Instant Pot and set it to HIGH for 8 minutes. Once the cooking cycle has completed, perform a Quick Release. Open the lid of the Instant Pot and make sure the pot is turned off completely.
- Wait about 1-2 minutes to allow the pot/noodles to cool down slightly. Add the powdered cheese right into the pot about ⅓ cup at a time. Use tongs to mix the cheese into the pasta water and allow it to melt completely. Then add the next round of cheese. Repeat until all cheese is gone and the cheese melts and forms a sauce to coat the noodles.
- When your sauce has reached the desired consistency, use a pepper grinder to add fresh ground black pepper into the pot. In this case, the more the better! Plate and serve… enjoy!
Notes
- I used “thick spaghetti” for this recipe, but you can also use “thin spaghetti” if you’d like. If you use “thin spaghetti” make sure to take about 1 minute off of the Instant Pot cook time. Your pasta should be dry when you put it in the Instant Pot.
- Using fresh ground black pepper is especially vital to this recipe, as it’s where the pasta gets most of its flavor. Crack the peppercorns on the largest setting so that they are fairly large pieces of cracked pepper.
- I use a block of Pecorino Romano cheese and grate it on the finest setting, making the cheese look like powder. Use a minimum of 2.5 cups of cheese and a maximum of 3 cups
- Make sure to turn the Instant Pot off (don’t even have it on KEEP WARM) when adding the Pecorino Romano into the Instant Pot. If the pot is continuing to warm up, the cheese will clump together when you add it into the pasta water, causing a lumpy mess.
- Conversely, make sure that you add the cheese into the Instant Pot immediately once the pressure is released. Waiting too long will allow the pasta water to cool down, meaning that the cheese won’t melt as easily into a creamy sauce, and it may stay grainy.
Rill Wright says
I’ve made this twice and it’s delicious, for sure. But no matter how carefully I spread the pasta (criss-cross) on top of the broth, it always clumps. I mean, big clumps. Too much trouble trying to separate them. I’ll definitely make it again but not in the Instant Pot.
The Foreign Fork says
Hi Rill, it’s one of the hazards of cooking spaghetti in the instant pot, unfortunately. I’m so glad you liked the flavors, though, and that you will be making this recipe again on the stovetop! Thanks for the review 🙂
DD says
Way, way, way too much cheese. I would 1/2 it. Sorry!
Walter says
Hi, would the chicken stock liquid be less for doing this in my 6 qt instant pot?
Thanks, this looks delish and I going out to get all the ingredients to try!
The Foreign Fork says
No the measurements and cook time would be the same for a 6 quart! Enjoy it 🙂
Caitlyn shroyer says
I did exactly as you said and turned the pot off as soon as I finished releasing pressure and added the cheese and it still clumped! What did I do wrong?
The Foreign Fork says
Hi Caitlyn,
I’m sorry to hear that it clumped! Did you grate the cheese yourself and grate it on the smallest setting? This is normally why the cheese clumps! If that’s not the problem, I would suggest waiting about 2 minutes after opening your pot to add the cheese and then adding it little by little instead of all at once. I hope this helps!
Allie says
This reminds me of my time in Rome. Soooo delicious and easy to throw together!
kim says
Can you use roasted garlic olive oil as well? Sounds really good, going to have to make this!
The Foreign Fork says
If you’re looking for “authentic” Cacio e Pepe, roasted garlic olive oil wouldn’t be in a traditional recipe. But I’m ALL FOR making substitutions and trying new things, and your idea sounds delicious!! Let me know how it turns out 🙂
Paul Antonio says
This is an EXCELLENT recipe. Super easy to make and even easier to eat! But you MUST MUST stick to the 8 minutes. I know it sounds long but it really works.
I added finely chopped sage and lemon zest and a little bit of cream too!
Too good. That is the only problem with this recipe, too good and TOO EASY to make.
The Foreign Fork says
I’m so glad that you liked the recipe, Paul. 8 minutes does sound long, but I find it comes out great every time! Your modifications sound INCREDIBLE!! Thanks for leaving a comment, I really appreciate it 🙂