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On a high carb, high fat diet? 😂 This Instant Pot Vegan Mac and Cheese is perfect for you!
Indulgent Instant Pot Vegan Mac and Cheese
Jokes aside, I don’t indulge frequently but when I do – it’s on pasta! I probably gained 3 pounds testing this Instant Pot Vegan Mac and Cheese (seriously, I made it 3 times to perfect it and could not resist eating a bowl each time.)
The first time I tested it, I tried to get all complicated and make a cheese sauce on the side. But I think the whole point of an Instant Pot is to make life easier. I settled on a recipe that you can just throw together and EAT.
Store bought vegan cheese makes this recipe happen. My favorite vegan cheeses for mac and cheese are: So Delicious Cheddar Shreds, Chao Creamy Original, and Daiya’s Medium Cheddar Block. If you don’t like the Daiya shreds, you might like the cheddar block. I like the texture better and find it doesn’t have as much of an aftertaste. Whatever the case, grab your favorite vegan cheese, and let’s go!
How to Make Vegan Mac and Cheese in an Instant Pot
Add a 16oz box of macaroni pasta, 4 cups of water, and a little salt to your Instant Pot (this is the Instant Pot I have.) Put the lid on and make sure the valve is set to seal. On manual mode, set the timer to 4 minutes. Your Instant Pot will heat up, pressurize, and then begin the countdown.
When the timer goes off, release the pressure by moving the valve over (do NOT open the lid yet). Hot steam will roar out and sputter, so be careful!
Once there is no longer steam coming out, your Instant Pot has officially depressurized and you can remove the lid. Set your Instant Pot on sauté mode (this will help the macaroni absorb any liquid left in the pot and also help your cheese melt.) Stir in the non-dairy milk, butter, cheese and your seasonings of choice.
I love super flavorful mac and cheese so I usually add: mustard powder, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and sometimes a veggie bouillon cube. Vegan cheese is typically less salty than dairy cheese so adding some extra salt via the bouillon cube helps.
You can also add nutritional yeast (if I use Daiya, I’ll add some.) We all have different tastes so just add whatever you like.
Serve right away!
If you’re looking for baked vegan mac and cheese, try this recipe.
Step by Step Recipe Video for Vegan Instant Pot Mac & Cheese
Instant Pot Vegan Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 16 oz box macaroni
- 4 cups water
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 1/2 cup cashew milk - or any non-dairy milk
- 2 cups shredded vegan cheese
All of the following seasonings are optional/or to personal taste!
- 1/8 tsp mustard powder
- 1/8 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp vegetable bouillon - or one cube
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Instructions
- To your instant pot, add in macaroni, water and salt.
- Close the lid and make sure to valve is set to seal.
- Using the manual setting, set to 4 mins.
- Meanwhile, shred or cut up your cheese if necessary.
- When the Instant Pot timer goes off, release the valve and let the steam come out. Once there is no longer steam coming out, open the lid.
- Set the Instant Pot to sauté mode.
- Stir in non-dairy milk, vegan butter, cheese, and seasonings of choice. You might need to add more milk to get a creamy consistency.
- Once the cheese is melted and all ingredients are incorporated, turn off the Instant Pot and serve!
Lindsey says
Am I supposed to drain the water after it’s done cooking in the instant pot or leave what water is left?
Karissa says
Leave it – don’t drain. The noodle soak most of it up.
Sandra says
This is so good!! Perfect for a rainy day lunch. We live on a boat so I truly appreciate Instant Pot recipes that don’t require many ingredients. Looks like KD and tastes oh so much better.
Sarah Martin says
Thanx was looking forever for a vegan Mac and cheese recipe that I can use bio cheddar in and less ingredients as for my daughter to make at special school 🙂 ur a life saver.
Sophie says
If I make this without an instantpot (on the stove) and I used the 4 cups of water to cook it, would I have to drain that water the pasta is cooking in once it’s done or can I just add the rest of the ingredients to it once it’s finished cooking?
Karissa says
I would recommend cooking the pasta as instructed on the box, drain it, then mix in the remaining ingredients.
Joanne says
We love this recipe! I have made it so many times. It is really easy and quick. Thank you!
Kelly says
I thought it was great ! Not too overly rich – So easy to make too I added all ur spices and a handful of sliced green onions
nina says
I have made this recipe time & time again and it never fails! I am f
vegan and gluten free, so i use tinkyadas noodles & they work great. I like to use one bag of follow your heart cheddar shreds and one bag of follow your heart mozzarella shreds. my favorite combo for this max&cheese! thanks for sharing this awesome & super easy recipe
Kristy says
Trying to figure out nutrition info. How much is one serving? 1 cup?
Karissa says
Hey, Kristy! I’m currently in the process of going back through to older recipes and adding in the nutrition information. For now, I recommend plugging the ingredients into cronometer.com to see the info.
Ryan Jarman says
This was my first instant pot recipe! The only issue I ran into is that there was still a good amount of water when I open the pot. Am I supposed to drain it? I do have maybe a bigger model so I’m not sure if that would affect things. Still very tasty!
Mardy says
Alexa, great recipe! I used all of what you had written, only 1/2’ed it using about 2.5 C broth, just enough to barely cover the pasta. 2 wasn’t quite enough. I had the same issue w/ the spurting steam so let it sit for 5 minutes and that did the trick. Used Violife cheddar shreds and better than broth. Yum!
Mike black says
Super quick and tasty.
Betty says
I made this recipe last night. For the options I only put in a pinch of garlic and paprika. It was absolutely wonderful and has satisfied my mac and cheese craving.
I think I will add nutritional yeast the next time.
Jenny says
Will one block of Daiya cheddar make 2 cups shredded?
Karissa says
Yes!
Megan says
I got my instant pot last night and made this recipe on my first attempt using the instant pot tonight. It was delicious! Thank you so much! I loved Mac n cheese and I’ve tried making vegan recipes but i hadn’t found a good one until now. I have been using the daiya boxed Mac n cheese but it is pretty expensive. I’m so glad that I stumbled upon your recipe on here. Thank you for sharing!
suzi says
Just served this up and its incredible!!! I used all the extras listed, spicewise and will add some pickle juice when I warm up leftovers tomorrow. I have tried so many different recipes/ variations and this is the simplest and the most reminiscent of our good old traditional homemade Mac n cheese!!
douglas says
can we make this without using a instant pot?
Karissa says
Definitely! Just cook the noodles according to the package instructions, drain the noodles, and put them back into the warm pot along with the rest of the ingredients.
Megan says
Hi! I tried this but my vegan cheese wasn’t melting.. any recommendations for cheese brands?
Karissa says
Oh no…I usually use either the Daiya cheddar block or So Delicious cheddar shreds. Sometimes it helps to just let the cheese sit in there for a minute to warm up. I have found that vegan cheese doesn’t melt instantly as regular cheese does. But the two I mentioned always melt for me!
Jamie Fischer says
Made it and it came great! Thank you for sharing!
I made it with small shells. I used Daiya shreds, and almond milk. Only thing I was wondering about that maybe you can help. I’m a new Instant Pot user. When I went to release the steam, a lot of water came spitting out with the steam. It went all over my cabinet, counter, and floor. Is that normal?
Karissa says
Hmm, there is always some sputtering for me but it doesn’t go all over the place. It usually stays on the lid-area. It wouldn’t hurt (for this recipe) to let the pot naturally de-pressurize for about 5 minutes before releasing the valve. That should solve the issue…or at least some of it!
Jamie Fischer says
Okay! Thank you! I’ll try that next time. I’m so excited for my Instant Pot!! lol…
Jessie says
This happened to me the first time I made pasta in mine. I’ve realized that less water comes out if I move it slowly to the venting position. Basically keep it halfway between venting and sealing until there’s little pressure left and I can move it fully to the venting position.
Candace Allain says
Fabulous!!
Laurie Mallon says
I made this tonight and it was so easy and delicious! Thank you!! (I posted it on IG but couldn’t find you to tag you.)
Spencer says
Hi, I just made the creamy vegan caesar dressing using your recipe it tastes great and has a unique flavor to it. Thank you for the recipe!!!
Lilly says
Any suggestiins in how I can make a a lot of batches to freeze and how to rehaet them for when I want to use them?
Karissa says
Hi, Lilly! I haven’t personally tested this recipe out in the freezer – so I’m not sure and wouldn’t want to give out faulty advice! I am planning on doing a freezer meal series soon and I’ll make sure to test this and let you know.
lisa bartlett says
Hello: I’m new to “dairy free” cooking. Just found out my daughter is allergic to milk (not lactose intolerant) so we need to cut out all milk products. What non-dairy milk is best for cooking? I have always used unflavored soy milk for drinking and cereal anyways, but are almond or rice milk better than soy for cooking?
Thank you!
Lisa
Karissa says
Hey, Lisa! It’s all about your personal preference. I prefer either almond or cashew milk. If you like soy, that works great for cooking, too!
Alexa Penn says
Hi – great recipes!
But why can’t i search? i wanted chocolate chip cookies or any cookie –
and besides cookies, there should be a search.
thanks – alexa
Karissa says
Hi, Alexa! There is a search bar on the right hand side of the menu on desktop. On mobile, click on the three black lines underneath my site logo and it will be at the bottom of the menu.