With this Instant Pot Italian sausage recipe, you are going to see how easy it is to create delicious fresh sausage links using your pressure cooker! Using just 3 ingredients - uncooked sausage links, broth, and oil - and requiring less than 30-minutes of your time, our Instant Pot sausage recipe is a whole lot of simple and a WHOLE LOTTA YUM!
Italian Sausage in Instant Pot
It is no secret that our household love sausage in all of its wonderful varieties. Whether we are cooking up some breakfast sausage links in the morning, creating a quick lunch of chicken sausage, or going classic with a sausage and pepper dinner, sausage is always a winning dish.
And while you may not have thought to use your pressure cooker for dinner sausage, our Instant Pot Italian sausage recipe is here to show you just how amazing pressure cooking sausage links can be.
By starting with a saute, we can even get our Italian sausage links to look and taste like they were grilled or pan-fried!
Then, all that's left to do is decide how we want to serve our Instant Pot sausage links. Some of our household's favorite methods include plopping a perfectly cooked Instant Pot sausage right inside a roll, pairing Italian sausage links with a side of peppers and onions for a classic combination, or opting for homemade baked beans and coleslaw.
Why You'll Love This!
- With our recipe, we are going to show you just how easy it is to make the BEST Instant Pot Italian sausage in under 30-minutes!
- By starting with a quick saute, this instant pot sausage recipe sears in all the flavor and juices, plus it gives your sausage links that charred look and 'snap' with every bite.
- Perfect for anyone who is trying to stick to a healthy eating plan, our pressure cooker Italian sausage links are gluten-free, low-carb, keto, sugar-free, and dairy-free.
- Made with just 3 ingredients, our Italian sausage in Instant Pot recipe is one of the easiest recipes you will find.
We weren't joking earlier when we said that we love all the various ways you can cook and serve sausage links! If your family loves Italian sausage as much as ours does, be sure to try out our stuffed Italian sausage dinner, boiled Italian sausage (to use in recipes), and our Italian sausage in the oven recipe.
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Ingredient Notes
All you need is your favorite brand of raw Italian sausage, chicken broth, and olive oil and you will be ready to start pressure cooking your Instant Pot Italian sausage dinner.
- olive oil
- Italian sausage - raw, mild or spicy flavor
- chicken broth
Variations
- Italian Sausage - Any brand of raw Italian pork sausages will work in this recipe whether they're mild, sweet, or spicy. Raw chicken Italian sausage links will work, too.
- Chicken Broth - Half of the broth can be substituted with red wine, or cook the sausage in water, beef broth, or vegetable broth.
- Feel free to add vegetables to the pot! Onions and sliced bell peppers are great options.
Equipment
A Pressure Cooker - This is the Instant Pot model that we used.
Step by Step Instructions
Whether you are making Instant Pot Italian sausage for lunch or dinner, the process couldn't be any easier! We are going to start with a quick saute in the pressure cooker to help seal the edges and sear in the flavor and then follow up with a quick pressure cook. Once our Italian sausages have finished cooking, they will appreciate a natural release before being served with your favorite sides.
Prep Ingredients
Turn on the Instant Pot and set it to Saute High.
Brown the whole Italian sausage links lightly in the olive oil on both sides, about 2-3 minutes each. Brown these in two batches, depending on how many sausages you're cooking and the size of your pressure cooker.
Remove all of the Italian sausages from the Instant Pot and set them aside on a plate.
Assemble
Place a rack on the bottom, and pour the chicken broth into the bottom of the pot.
Set all of the sausage links on top of the rack.
Pressure Cook
Set the Instant Pot to Manual or Pressure Cook (depending on your model) and cook for 6 minutes.
Once done, do a Natural Release for 10 minutes and then release any remaining pressure.
Serve with your favorite sides.
Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Saute in batches of 2-3 sausages each to allow each sausage ample space.
- After sauteing in your pressure cooker there may be stuff stuck to the bottom of the pot. To remove, add your broth and scrape with a wooden spoon.
- To prevent your Instant Pot Italian sausage from drying out, we do recommend a 10-minute natural release. Your patience will be rewarded.
- For best results, use a digital meat thermometer to check for an internal temperature of 165F.
Common Questions
To cook ground Italian sausage in your Instant pot, start with either ground Italian sausage or remove the casing from Italian sausage links. Heat your Instant pot on Saute and add 1 tablespoon olive oil. When warm, add the ground sausage meat and brown for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently until cooked through. Use the fully-cooked ground sausage in other Instant Pot recipes like Instant Pot Italian tortellini soup or as a substitution for ground beef.
Yes, you can cook frozen Italian sausage in an Instant Pot using the same steps and methods as listed above. Simply brown your frozen sausage and then pressure cook for 2 additional minutes (8 minutes total).
Our Italian sausage in Instant Pot recipe pairs well rolls, peppers and onions, homemade baked beans, and coleslaw.
More Italian Sausage Recipes
Looking for more sausage recipes?
- Stuffed Sausage
- Italian Sausage Bake
- Air Fryer Italian Sausage
- Slow Cooker Italian Sausage and Peppers
- Cooking Italian Sausage in the Oven
- Instant Pot Sausage and Peppers
- How to Cook Italian Sausages on the Stove
- Boiled Sausage
More Instant Pot Sausage Recipes
- Instant Pot Bratwurst
- Instant Pot Sausage and Peppers
- Instant Pot Italian Tortellini Soup with Sausage
Come connect with us on Instagram! Be sure to tag us (wholelotta.yum) when you make a recipe. You can also find us on Facebook, and Pinterest.
Instant Pot Italian Sausage
An easy Instant Pot Italian sausage recipe shows you how to cook sausages to perfection that are juicy on the inside and browned on the outside! No one will ever know you used your pressure cooker instead of the grill.
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoon olive oil
- 5 Italian sausage, mild or spicy (raw)
- 1 cup chicken broth
Instructions
- Turn on the Instant Pot and set it to Saute High.
- Brown the whole Italian sausage links lightly in the olive oil on both sides, about 2-3 minutes each. Brown these in two batches, depending on how many sausages you're cooking and the size of your pressure cooker.
- Remove all of the Italian sausages from the Instant Pot and set them aside on a plate.
- Place a rack on the bottom, and pour the chicken broth into the bottom of the pot. Set all of the sausage links on top of the rack.
- Set the Instant Pot to Manual or Pressure Cook (depending on your model) and cook for 6 minutes. Once done, do a Natural Release for 10 minutes and then release any remaining pressure. Enjoy!
Notes
Any raw Italian pork sausages will work in this recipe whether they're mild, sweet, or spicy. Raw chicken Italian sausage links will work too.
Long handled rubber tip tongs work very well to turn the sausage and remove them from the Instant Pot.
Half of the broth can be substituted with red wine, or cook the sausage in water, beef broth, or vegetable broth.
Feel free to add vegetables to the pot! Onions and sliced bell peppers are great options.
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Nutrition Information
Yield 5 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 285Total Fat 23gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 18gCholesterol 44mgSodium 742mgCarbohydrates 3gNet Carbohydrates 1gFiber 0gSugar 2gProtein 15g
Rose says
Please can you tell me why recipe’s ask for oil to be put in the instant pot when browning fatty meat such as sausage and/or hamburger? I’m curious since the meats are not lean and have plenty of their own grease.
Thank you in advance.
Rose
WholeLottaYum says
I always add a touch of oil since everything seems to stick in the Instant Pot on Saute unless it's nice and greased.