Instant Pot Beef and Noodles is a traditional, comforting and hearty family dinner recipe that has been updated to use in your electric pressure cooker (Instant Pot). This recipe is a perfect balance of tender beef pieces and hearty egg noodles coated in a rich gravy. If you are craving comfort food, this will be your new go-to!
When I first made this I said “we will never not be eating beef and noodles!”, it’s that good, it’s one of my favorite Instant Pot recipes!
If you would rather make this with chicken, pop over to this recipe for Creamy Chicken and Noodles.
Some other favorite Instant Pot Beef Recipes are Beef and Barley Stew, Red Beans & Rice, or Instant Pot Beef Pot Roast.
Why It’s SO Good
- It is made with really simple ingredients that can be found at ANY grocery store.
- The recipe calls for those THICK frozen egg noodles, just like this recipe for Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup. I use Reames brand Egg Noodles
- Campbell’s condensed French Onion Soup also adds incredible flavor!!
- No “cream-of” soups used here!
- With beef prices on the rise it is nice to have a delicious recipe that uses a cheaper cut, like stew meat.
It’s Not Stroganoff
If you are looking for a beef stroganoff recipe , this is not it.
This is definitely a traditional Beef and Noodles recipe. Stroganoff generally has a dairy component and can include mushrooms and sometimes peas. A classic Beef and Noodles recipe is made with a broth gravy.
Ingredients
Like I said before, only simple ingredients goes into this Instant Pot Beef and Noodles recipe. Pictured are the ingredients that you need, plus some tips on a few ingredients:
Stew Meat – beef stew meat is a cheaper cut of beef that does well with a long cooking time. In this case we are using high heat and pressure to help tenderize it quickly.
Beef Base – I love using beef base (or chicken base) in any brothy recipe. It adds a deeper layer of flavor. “Base” comes in a paste form, usually in a tub or jar. It will be near the bouillon in the soup aisle. I like to use Better Than Bouillon Brand.
Condensed French Onion Soup – this is the heavy lifter in this beef and noodles recipe. A LOT of the flavor comes from this can of condensed soup. We like Campbell’s brand. Don’t try to sub just beef broth, it will not be the same!
Egg Noodles – We are not talking about dry egg noodles here… we are talking thick and hearty frozen egg noodles. They are not the same, not even comparable! If you have never used frozen egg noodles, it’s time to start. You will NOT be disappointed. We like to use Reames brand.
Step by Step Picture Instructions
Start with your Instant Pot on high sauté function, add the butter and olive oil.
To get to “high” mode, tap the sauté button and you will see it scroll through the different settings on the display screen. tap the button until it reads “high”.
Make sure your stew meat is cut roughly into 1 inch pieces, season with garlic powder, onion powder and pepper.
Brown the beef in two batches to not over crowd the pot, removing each batch of seared beef to a separate plate.
In the now empty, hot pot pour ½ cup of the beef broth and use a wooden spoon to deglaze the bottom of the pot, scraping up all the browned bits.
Complete the deglazing thoroughly. It will help reduce the chance of getting the burn warning.
Turn the sauté mode off. Add the beef and all juices back to the bot. Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, beef base and remaining beef broth, French onion soup and water to the pot.
Set the Instant Pot to cook on high pressure for 22 minutes. Do a 10 minute natural pressure release, then quick release the remaining pressure. While the beef is cooking, set the noodles out at room temp.
Open the lid and turn the instant pot back onto low/less sauté mode.
Press the sauté button until it reads less or low in the display screen.
Add the egg noodles to the pot and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring often, until the noodles are soft.
The starch from the noodles will thicken the sauce perfectly!
Serve immediately
Serving
I like to serve Instant Pot Beef and Noodles just as is, with a side of crusty bread and a side salad.
You can also serve it on spooned over top of mashed potatoes! If you choose this route, either of these recipes would be GREAT:
Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes or Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes.
Storing
Store any leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days. It will thicken quite a bit in the fridge. You may need to add some broth or water to reconstitute when reheating.
Instant Pot Beef and Noodles Sauce Troubleshooting
- Sauce too thick? Add some water or broth until it is the consistency you want.
- Sauce too thin? Make a cornstarch slurry; mix together 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon cool water, drizzle into the simmering sauce, it should thicken within 30 seconds.
More Delicious Dinner Recipes!
Instant Pot Beef and Noodles Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 lbs beef stew meat cubed
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon beef base (I use Better Than Bouillon)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- (2) 14.5 oz cans beef broth
- (1) 10.5 oz can condensed French Onion Soup (I use Campbell's)
- 1 cup water
- (1) 24 oz bag frozen egg noodles (I use Reames)
Instructions
- Start by turning your Instant Pot on to high sauté mode and let it heat up.Pro Tip: To get to "high" mode, tap the sauté button and watch it scroll through the settings on the display screen, tap until it gets to high.
- Meanwhile season the beef pieces with the garlic powder, onion powder and pepper.
- Add the butter and olive oil to the Instant Pot. Once the butter melts, add half the seasoned beef to the pot and sear/brown the meat. Remove to a separate plate and then brown the other half and then remove to the plate.
- In the now empty pot pour ½ cup beef broth and completely deglaze the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon, scraping up all the browned bits. Pro Tip: Deglazing the pot thoroughly will reduce the chance of getting the burn notice.
- Turn the sauté mode off.
- Now add the browned beef and all juices back to the pot, along with the Worcestershire sauce, beef base, remaining beef broth, French onion soup and water. Give everything a good stir.
- Pop the lid on the pot and lock in place, turn the pressure vent to seal. Set the pot to cook on manual pressure, high, for 22 minutes.
- Do a 10 minute natural pressure release, and then release the remaining pressure with a quick release. **don't be alarmed that the broth is not thick… adding the egg noodles in the next steps will thicken it up perfectly!
- Turn the Instant Pot on to low sauté mode.Pro Tip: To get to "low" mode, tap the sauté button and watch it scroll through the settings on the display screen, tap until it gets to low.
- Add the egg noodles to the pot and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring often, until they are al dente.
- Turn off the sauté mode and let the pot cool for 5-10 minutes, the sauce will thicken even more as it cools.
- After the pot has cooled, if you still want your gravy thicker turn the sauté function back on, mix together 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon cool water and pour it into the beef and noodles while it simmers. It will thicken within 1 minute. Repeat if necessary.
- Serve right away. Optionally garnish with parsley.
Storing
- Store leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 4 days.
- It will thicken in the fridge, you may need to add some broth or water when reheating.
Notes:
If nutrition facts are provided they are calculated as an estimate to the best of our knowledge.
Jennifer
I made this tonight with my teenage son in mind, since I have to find recipes for him with no vegetables due to sensory issues. I added a tad less water since some people commented about the consistency, and it came out okay, but fairly blah. The general idea is great, and after adding some pepper-themed seasonings, it improved the flavor. Next time, I think I’d like to try adding fresh thyme and rosemary also.
Tiffany
This recipe was wonderful! I only bought 1.25lb of stew meat and a 1x12oz bag of noodles but everything turned out so good! I was very happy the noodles weren’t gummy either. Definitely a do over at my house!
Carolyn
Holy cow this was really good – restaurant good! The noodles had great texture & the sauce was really tasty. I added 1 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp pepper to the finished recipe, only because my husband has destroyed his tastebuds somehow & needs extra spice. I will make this again! Has anyone made it without browning the stew meat? I might give up a little flavor if it saves that much fussing.
Susie Weinrich
That is amazing, Carolyn! I think you can absolutely make it without browning the beef.
Jeanie
I can’t get frozen egg noodles at my local stores. Hints for using dried?
Susie Weinrich
I am not 100% sure the dried noodles will work exactly the same. But here are the things I would do if I used them:
Skip the 1 cup of water added at the beginning before pressure cooking.
Pressure cook the written amount of time (22 minutes, with a 10 minute natural release).
During the sauté at the end I would add the noodles and only simmer for about 5-8 minutes (whatever package instructions are for your noodles).
It might not thicken the same as when you use the frozen egg noodles. So I would make a cornstarch slurry (1tbsp cornstarch and 1 tbsp cool water) and stir that in at the end while it is still simmering, that should thicken it up nicely. If it doesn’t add one more tablespoon of cornstarch slurry.
Let me know how it goes!!!
Jeanie
I made this Wednesday. I combined three recipes, including yours. My ingredients came from Beef Tips by 365daysofcrockpot, except that I cut everything in half. The ingredients are similar to yours except I used a mushroom gravy mix packet instead of French onion soup and added a small chopped onion. I used Better Than Bouillon beef with 1 cup of water. I followed your suggestions for cooking the dry egg noodles except that I had to add a cup of water before I put the noodles in and then pressure cooked for five minutes more. I forgot to push them down into the liquid and a few were too al dente. I didn’t need to add a slurry to thicken them up. Thanks for you quick reply to my question. Leftovers reheated well in a stackable pan on a trivet in 2 cups of water; 6 minutes on Steam. 5 stars for your support.
LoriO
Made this last night and it was delicious!! I had to sub Reames flat dumplings as the store was out of their regular noodles. I made no other changes to the recipe and I could not have been more happy. My husband is a super picky eater and he loved it too…win, win! I served with mashed potatoes and fresh baked crescent rolls. This is a definite make again, thank you!