Ninja Foodi spaghetti and meatballs

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Hearty meals are almost always a winner in my home. My daughters both love spaghetti and meatballs and it is a family meal that I can cook up, guarantee everyone will eat it, and best of all it is really low effort. Ninja Foodi spaghetti and meatballs are tasty, simple to make, quick and I can hide lots of vegetables in the pasta sauce.

Be sure to check out my Ninja air fryer recipes and Ninja Foodi accessories while you’re here!

Ingredients for spaghetti and meatballs in the Ninja Foodi:

12 meatballs (I use air fryer meatballs) – approximately 350g

10ml vegetable oil

200g spaghetti (I love to make pressure cooker spaghetti)

400ml pasta sauce – I like to use kale tomato pasta sauce

300ml beef stock (approximately 1 1/3 cups)

50g parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese (or a mix!)

Italian seasoning or fresh basil

Method for Ninja Foodi spaghetti & meatballs:

Lightly brown the meatballs in a little oil.

Place them in to the Ninja Foodi pressure cooker bowl.

Add the beef stock.

Break the spaghetti in half, so it fits, and place this on top of the meatballs.

Cover with spaghetti sauce.

You want to ensure that everything is covered fully with the pasta / spaghetti sauce.

Set the Ninja Foodi, or instant pot, to pressure cook for 7 minutes on high.

Quick release the pressure.

Stir well to mix it all together. The consistency of everything should be thick, not watery. If it’s too watery you may want to pressure cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Add the grated parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese, sprinkle over a little Italian seasoning or some roughy torn basil, place the lid back on and leave it for 5 minutes.

Serve and enjoy.

What type of spaghetti do you need for this method?

I use dried spaghetti that I purchased from a UK supermarket. If you use fresh spaghetti then this is going to alter the cooking time and cook MUCH faster. In this case I’d recommend just using dried spaghetti for this recipe.

Alternatively I’d suggest cooking the meatballs almost entirely, adding the fresh spaghetti, following the same method but using half the stock, cooking for 2 minutes on the pressure cooking setting, releasing the pressure and then following the same method for the adding of cheese and fresh herbs.

Can you re-heat the leftovers?

Yes, you can! I usually just microwave for around 3 minutes (800W microwave) until piping hot. You’ll want to adjust slightly based on the wattage of your microwave.

I like to add a few pepper flakes when re-heating, just for a little boost of flavour.

What type of meatballs do you need for this recipe?

I use my own homemade ones, just because we all love them, however, you can use fresh meat based meatballs, Vegan or Vegetarian meatballs or even frozen meatballs if that’s convenient for you. Just follow the same method of browning the outside a little first.

If using frozen meatballs then I would probably look to defrost overnight if I had time, or I’d add 1 minute to the cook time, and check the internal temperature has reached a safe level before serving to my family.

Can you use pre-made meatballs and sauce?

Yes, absolutely. I love to make homemade, as it can be a little cheaper and healthier, but spaghetti/pasta sauce is pretty low calorie these days, and pre-made meatballs are so convenient.

Absolutely nothing wrong with buying it ready made and throwing it all in. It’ll make the meal even faster to prepare and is ideal if you’re in a rush, or perhaps not a great cook.

How to make spaghetti and meatballs in the Ninja Foodi:

Note: All calorie information is for demonstration purposes only and is based on the specific uncooked ingredients that I used when creating the recipe.

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