Juicy and tender, these easy low carb meatballs with sauce are made in just a few minutes in your Instant Pot! These keto friendly Instant Pot meatballs are the perfect topping for cooked spaghetti squash or zoodles! A Hungry family favorite!
This week is all about low carb Instant Pot recipes, and will end with a collection of my favorite keto friendly Instant Pot recipes on Friday. I’m traveling in the states right now so hopefully I’ll be able to stay on schedule – if not I promise to post the rest next week instead!
It’s no secret that I love meatballs, so when I was brainstorming low carb recipes to make using the Instant Pot, this easy keto meatballs and sauce recipe was at the top of the list! It’s a variation of the basic meatballs from my popular low carb Meatballs alla Parmigiana recipe, and I was really hoping that cooking them in the Instant Pot would be easy and yield good results.
Having never used an Instant Pot to make meatballs before, I wasn’t sure that they wouldn’t just turn to mush, leaving me with meat sauce when I opened it after cooking. So it was with trepidation that I did the first test run, and I was ridiculously excited that they not only held together, but were so much juicier and more tender than my traditional method!
Usually it takes all day simmering in the sauce for them to get that gorgeous flavor and texture – but these meatballs cooked in my Instant Pot in just 10 minutes!
Typically I would saute my meatballs in olive oil to get a nice brown crust on them and then simmer them in my easy keto marinara sauce for a bit. I considered sautéing that first batch in a nonstick pan and then finishing them in the IP, but that kind of defeats the purpose of the ease of using my Instant Pot to make meatballs.
Because the Instant Pot comes with the saute feature, I tried browning the meatballs in a little olive oil in the stainless insert that comes with it. They stuck like crazy. So after the initial batch was browned and left a lot of meat stuck to the bottom, I just layered the rest of the meatballs in raw and poured the sauce over them.
After cooking the Instant Pot meatballs on low pressure for 10 minutes and releasing the steam, I really did expect to find a meat sauce in there, but the meatballs were fully intact. Be sure to leave space between them though and don’t jam them in too tight.
So you can brown the meatballs first, or not brown them first – the bottom ones that had browned didn’t taste any different than the others. That being said, the bits of browned meat from the process did melt into the sauce, and probably added another layer of flavor to it that cooking all of them raw in it wouldn’t have.
No matter which method you use to make these low carb Instant Pot meatballs, I’m fully confident they will be delicious!
Another point I want to add is that I used the equivalent of 85/15 lean beef and there was definitely an oil slick at the top of the sauce. I spooned some of it off and it wasn’t a problem.
You could probably get away with a leaner beef for this meatball recipe if you want to skip that step – I don’t know if it will make your meatballs less tender or not. I suspect you’ll be fine either way – you can even use ground turkey for these Instant Pot meatballs if you prefer.
If you don’t yet have an Instant Pot and are wondering what all the fuss is about, you can get more information on why I love them over on the IBIH Pantry Recommendations Page! It’s my hand’s down favorite appliance and I have gifted many of them to friends and IBIH readers at my own expense because of it!
Look for more low carb Instant Pot recipes coming soon!
Keto Meatballs in the Instant Pot Recipe Video
How to Make Meatballs in the Instant Pot – Low Carb
- Yield: 5 servings 1x
Description
Juicy and tender, these easy Italian meatballs and sauce are made in just 10 minutes in the Instant Pot! Low Carb and Gluten Free too!
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
- 1.5 lbs ground beef (85/15 or leaner)
- 2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- ¾ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ cup almond flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp dried onion flakes
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- 1/3 cup warm water
To cook the meatballs:
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 3 cups easy keto marinara sauce (or any sugar free marinara sauce)
Instructions
- Combine meatball ingredients in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly by hand.
- Form into approximately 15 two inch meatballs.
- Coat the bottom of the Instant Pot insert with the olive oil.
- If you wish to brown them, turn on the saute function and brown on both sides – or brown in a separate nonstick pan first.
- Layer the browned or raw meatballs in the Instant Pot, leaving 1/2 inch of space between them. Don’t press down.
- Pour the marinara sauce evenly over the meatballs.
- Seal the Instant Pot according to the manufacturers instructions.
- Set the Instant Pot to Manual.
- Select low pressure.
- Set the cook time to 10 minutes.
- Once the timer goes off (it will be longer than 10 minutes total due to preheating time,) turn the valve to vent and allow the steam to dissipate completely.
- Remove the lid and serve the meatballs with sauce over zoodles or spaghetti squash if desired.
- Category: Low Carb Instant Pot Recipe
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3 meatballs, 1/2 cup sauce
- Calories: 455
- Fat: 33g
- Carbohydrates: 5g net
- Protein: 34g
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Cyndi says
Thanks for this recipe! I LOVE meatballs over spaghetti squash. I don’t have an instant pot but I really wanted to make these. I used my deep square copper pan I heated the sauce on low while I added the meatballs as I rolled them. I gently spooned sauce to cover them once they were all in there. I covered and cooked on low for about 45 minutes. I gently scooped them up & turned them over now and then. Soooo good!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks for sharing your work flow on how to make these in a pot on the stove Cyndi – so glad you were able to make them work for you!
Tricia says
I’ve made this soooo many times. I like using a separate wide non stick pan for the browning part. Takes less time and I find the sauté in the IP sticks too much. Then drop everything in with my sauce. I like that some of my meatballs get crumbly and into the sauce. I add celery extra garlic, peppers and onions to the sauce and turn on IP. So easy and quick and makes great leftovers.
★★★★★
Kari says
Has anyone tried them without the cheese?
Stephanie says
I havent but I’d recommend adding more almond flour to substitute cheese if you do. Cheese acts as a binding agent in this recipe.
★★★★★
April says
This recipe was so good! I loved the combo of spices. I didn’t have almond flour so just used oat flour and about the same amount of water. Cooked without sauce (kids added after) and they were perfect in 7 min on high pressure. Thank you for this yummy recipe😄
★★★★★
April says
Used 1 cup of beef broth instead of sauce for above and it turned out great!
Kari says
sooooo happy with this! It was strange using low pressure but no burn notice and fully cooked. I use a higher fat burger, they are moist and flavorful. Thank you!
★★★★★
Meghan says
I got the burn notice and had to turn the pot off. After doing some further investigating… every other recipe says to put the sauce down first so it doesn’t burn. My meatballs are now meat sauce. Very disappointing
Lori says
I’m going to try this way tonight.
Lori says
I’ve been making your meatballs forever. However I get the overheat notice EVERY SINGLE TIME. I’m following the recipe to the t. I have to depressure , scrape the bottom and then repressure and it will work. Such a pain though! Thoughts??
Lori says
I tried putting the sauce in first but it overheated TWICE. 🤷🏻♀️ This one just isn’t meant for the IP I think.
Barbara says
Did you use low pressure? I missed that in the directions when I made it and though I didn’t get a burn notice it was counting down yet wasn’t at pressure. I restarted it and noticed at the end it was doing the same thing again. They were really good anyway. I think the low pressure will probably fix the issue for me :)
M says
Did low pressure work for you? I just tried these in low pressure and unfortunately got the burn notice as well. :( I tried some anyways and they’re pretty good; just wish there was a way to go through the whole recipe and finish it with success.
Merrilee says
I honestly can’t tell you how many times I’ve made these!!! I LOVE THEM SO MUCH and easy peasy to make. I’m vertically challenged so the saute thing in the instant pot doesn’t work well but with a non-stick fry pan I just use the meatball scooper and into the fry pan they go. I’ve also made them without browning and it didn’t make much of a difference. Thank-you so much for the keto meatballs! My son eats the leftovers in a meatball sub with mozzarella & extra sauce on top. These also freeze well so I get 2 meals out of it. I always make a batch of hard-boiled eggs first and then onto the meatballs so I only have to clean the instant pot once. Lazy tip?!
★★★★★
Annette says
This should not cook correctly. Anytime you cook with tomato in the instant pot it will burn.
You can only use on saute mode at the end.
★
Sami says
It works. It’s amazing!
★★★★★
Taz says
I only had 1 lbs of meat so I used less almond flour and only one egg…they were really dry…
Lisa says
got the burn notice so I took them out and finished cooking them in the oven. Still not confident with the InstaPot…but working on it.
This meatball recipe is the BEST I’ve ever cooked.
First bite: I couldn’t believe I made something so good!
I felt like I was eating from a restaurant. I’m not kidding.
Thank you for my new fav meatball recipe.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
I couldn’t ask for better feedback Lisa, so happy you loved them!
Liz Chase says
Got the burn notice, and then read through the comments. Wish I did that first. To avoid ruining dinners, the author should revise the recipe to have you had the sauce first (and probably make it a little thinner), and then add the meatballs.
★★★
Annette says
You would have to layer, add water not mentioned, meat top off with a sauce. Do not stir. This needs to be played with.
Tomato burns in the instant pot. I had always heard to add at end, but some you can layer, water first.
I think this recipe was a thought, not correct for what it says.
K says
I ended up making two batches of these because I had so much meat. The first batch I followed the instructions of placing the raw meatballs in the instant pot and covering with sauce. I ended up with a burn notice twice. After the second burn notice, I just left the instant pot to finish cooking the meatballs. Since I had to stir the meatballs to get rid of the burn notice, these ones fell apart slightly. In frustration I placed the remainder of formed meatballs in the fridge over night and read on another blog to add the sauce first in saute mode until warm, then placed the raw meatballs in and covered with sauce as needed. This system worked without the burn notice.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thank you for sharing that method – I haven’t gotten a burn notice but this seems like a good way to do it anyway!
Jackie says
Want to try these… but I am on low salt/no salt diet. Do you have that nutritional info for sodium? Already using salt substitutes like mrs dash etc
Paleo Man says
This was the first time that I cooked with an Instapot. These were the best meatballs that I have ever made. My wife even ate them. Resturaunt quality.
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks so much!
Steve says
AMAZING! I used venison, which is very lean and falls apart very easily. In fact, browning venison meatballs is problematic, so I went the raw route. I too thought I would open the instant pot to meat sauce. But low and behold, the venison was cooked through and the meatballs held together!
Best meatballs I ever had. Whomever developed this recipe deserves the Pulitzer price. Or a genus reward or something.
I did get the burn thing, but I was able to fight through it. Best meatballs ever!!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
That’s fantastic Steve, thanks for letting us know that this recipe works with Venison too!
Justin says
I followed the recipe down to every detail and after a few minutes I got a burn notice. Has anyone found the secret trick to avoid this? Upon inspection the meatballs are cooking but the sauce has lightened and looks more like a vodka sauce. I am trying again with less time, hopefully they don’t fall apart. On the bright side it smells amazing in here right now!! :)
Carolyn says
I have read on the Instant Pot website that when using a tomato based sauce you still need the additional recommended 1 cup of water/broth to avoid a burn notice. I think the tomato sauce is just too thick and does not work by itself when it is trying to come up to pressure. If you don’t want your sauce to be super runny then maybe just add the 1 cup liquid and just a little sauce and once the meatballs are cooked you can move them in a pot on the stove to warm with the rest of the sauce.
Annette says
Exactly.
Nicole says
My family and I have tried many other keto meatball recipes and this, by far, is our favorite. I have been on keto for many months now and absolutely felt as if I was indulging in the real thing. No dry meatballs here! Also, I enjoyed that fact that the flavor of the almond flour wasn’t apparent at all. I also have to admit that I didn’t read the instructions well….I put my instapot on high pressure for 10 minutes but they came out intact and wonderfully moist! This was a Sunday dinner to die for. YASSSSSS!
★★★★★
Julie says
Hi there
Wondering if tapioca flour would work? I am gluten free and just use regular all purpose gluten free flour?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Regular flour won’t work the same – typically bread crumbs are used in meatballs so if you have gluten free bread crumbs then that would be a good substitute.
Nikki says
Well they are cooking now. 5 minutes in I got a burn notice so I added water and restarted. Fingers crossed ? I hope it turns out they look so good!!!
Naomi says
I don’t have an IP but another brand of electric pressure cooker. It doesn’t have a low pressure option, would cooking it on normal high pressure be ok? May I ask why you didn’t use the normal high pressure function??
Mellissa Sevigny says
High pressure would likely turn these to mush.
Vilya says
Just finished making and eating this. I am in love!!! These are the yummiest meatballs ever! I’ve had my IP for almost a year and had never used the low pressure setting, so I was curious to see how they would turn out. Soooo good, that’s how! I ate them over zoodles, and now I am very happy. :)
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
So glad the recipe turned out for you! I still love this one and make it all the time!
Michelle A says
Here’s to hoping they cook. I’ve never made anything on low pressure before. The timer was going down before the seal was up. I’ve not seen that before, so I don’t know if it’s because it’s set to low pressure? Of course I tried to brown the meatballs on the Sauté function, lol. I had exactly the same result as you did, a mess.
Belle says
I have coconut flour on hand right now and was wondering if I could substitute the almond flour for that. I read that it’s generally 1/4 cup coconut flour +1 egg for almond flour. But that’s generally for baking and was wondering if it would alter the meatballs. If you could help me out I’m really excited to try out this recipe!! Thanks!
Hank Ronan says
Excellent recipe – simple, quick, and very tasty.Gluten-free, the almond flour makes a good binder, so they remain intact throughout the cooking. Very much enjoy these quick and easy meatballs.
★★★★★
Barbara says
These are amazing!! I made them with two pounds of ground turkey, adding a little more of each ingredient. I did brown them slightly in a separate non stick pan, quick to brown and quick to clean. Thank you for a well thought out delicious recipe. It’s my first time on your site, and I am inspired to try more of your recipes!
★★★★★
Emily says
All i had on hand was 99% fat free ground chicken. I was nervous, as ground chicken tends to have a much different texture than ground beef or turkey, but figured I’d atleast try and if all else fails I’ll have a meat sauce. I followed the recipe exactly with my ground chicken, but once I formed my meatballs I decided to stick them in the fridge for an hour in hopes they would firm up and possibly keep their shape while cooking. An hour later they seemed okay (not as firm as I hoped but I was running short on time) so i stuck them in the instant pot with my pasta sauce for 10 minutes. Low and behold , they came out delicious. They maintained their shape, were juicy, and the texture one would expect for a meatball. Will definitely be making these again.
★★★★★
Joan says
It’s ‘Lo and behold’.
Cyndi says
Haha oh jeezzzzzz
★★★★★
Catherine says
Made these tonight and they were SO easy and so yummy! I didn’t brown them, just put on 10 minutes and they were perfect.
★★★★★
Jessica says
YUM! I made these tonight with ground turkey. They held together beautifully yet still had a soft bite, just like a good meatball should. Highly recommend the mentioned sauce recipe as well. Thank you!! They’ll be going in our regular rotation for sure!
Holly says
Can I eliminate the parm to make it dairy free? Will that make them mushy?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Just add a little extra salt Holly so they aren’t bland, but it shouldn’t make them mushy to remove the Parmesan!
Steph says
Well, I botched these up- but it was MY fault. :) I attempted to make it with 2 lbs of lean ground beef (to avoid the oil in the pot). I also forgot to set to Low, and then I let it naturally release while I was cooking my first ever batch of Zoodles! The meat balls were incredibly dried out. Shame on me for not following instructions! If it’s any consolation, both the homemade marinara and the uncooked meatballs smelled HEAVENLY!! I am an advanced Instant Pot user (often ad-libbing with great results) – but, I am VERY new to Keto, so I think there might be a learning curve. ;) I’ll try these again!!
★★★★
Cindy Snow says
So frustrating. I follwed directions exactly and mine keep burning and won’t pressurize…
Laurie says
I think water needs to be added to this recipe with the sauce. Not enough liquid in the pot will cause it not to pressurize. I would add 1/2 – 1 cup water or broth.
Piper says
I had such issues with this! Kept getting the burn message so it wouldn’t pressurize. I put the meatballs in raw so maybe that was the issue? Idk what the deal is. So sad cuz I was so excited!
Heather says
Mine did this too. I am so upset and frustrated. I tried to sort of list them off the bottom when this kept happening and they all completely disintegrated. I followed the recipe but used fresh grated parm so IDK if I needed to use prepackaged. The meatballs were so wet that I wasn’t sure if they were going t o work. ? Dinner ruined.
Katie says
Hi. I dont have an Insta Pot… Can I use a crock pot? or would stove top be better?
Thanks :)
And yes I know I need an InstaPot but No new appliances can come into the house, until Something leaves the kitchen Hahahahaha :)
Mellissa Sevigny says
Stovetop or crockpot would also work Katie – and an Instant Pot is great because it does replace the crock pot. If I had that rule in my kitchen I’d have a lot more cabinet space lol!
Jen says
Ok. This was phenomenal!!!! So easy and so quick. I followed the recipe to a T except I used 2lbs of meat because they were prepackaged. (Did not adjust anything). I used Roa’s marinara Sauce because it is our sugar free go to.
Can’t wait to share with others!!!!
Rebecca says
I didn’t put the flour in. Is this why they are a little mushy? They are really good though.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Yes.
Stephanie says
Hi there, if I make another batch to freeze, how long do I cook frozen ones in the Instapot? 10 minutes as well?
Trevor f says
Trying this right now. But using my own sauce. Love this instapot. Wife thinks im turning into a wuss as i been sharing it on pinterest lol.
I dont care,i love food.
So i used 2 lbs of beefand mushroom sauce and some spice. No saute so i could see the results. 10 minutes was almost enough but a couple were pinkish. So for fun i put it on saute after for 4 mins and it was a nice feroshish boil. They look ugly but were around 185 degrees.
Easy to clean so will keep doing this but will add a saute to the
★★★★★
Theresa says
This was so good and nice that all ingredients are your common one’s in the cabinet. I just got my Instapot and was not sure about the settings but they cooked. I used moose burger and they still were moist. Can not get over the flavor!
Thank you~
★★★★★
Sarah Macías says
I’m making these for dinner, and I thought I set the timer to 10 minutes, but now after reaching pressure it says 30! Should I just take them out when 20 minutes are left?
Mellissa Sevigny says
Sorry I didn’t get this until now Sarah, hope they turned out ok!
Paulina says
So I made this today. It was DELICIOUS! However, I had to destroy the “meatballs” and just make it into “turkey sauce” lmao
The meatballs started sticking to the bottom of the pot while it was coming to pressure and the IP wouldn’t come to pressure. I just put it on saute and heated it through for about 20 minutes then “deglazed” the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon. I then cooked it on High Pressure for 8 minutes so it would cook through and I wouldn’t be eating raw turkey.
I used Rao’s Homemade Marinara and each “serving” came to less than a carb per! I also used Parmigiano Reggiano from Costco instead of regular ol’ Parmesan.
I will be making this again but I think next time I will put a thin coating of sauce under the meatballs so they don’t stick!
Thank you so much for this recipe!
★★★★★
Leeann says
Can you freeze these? I’d love to make a batch for my daughter’s lunch box
Rebecca says
Made these this week using 1 lb of ground turkey (meatball ingredients adjusted accordingly), did not brown them, used the easy keto marinara sauce, and they were delicious. I cooked them on high pressure for 6 minutes and then did quick release.
Thanks for this one, I’m sharing it!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
So glad you liked them Rebecca, thanks for sharing your method!!
Karissa says
I made these last night and I wanted to share with you how I browned them without too much sticking and breakage of the meatballs. I read on someone else’s blog or something that if you turn the sauté function on with a completely empty pot (no oil or anything) and let it heat until the display says “HOT” then add the oil and food it’ll be nonstick and it was right. I used that technique last night and only had one meatball that stuck enough to break it apart a little. I also let the meat brown until I see it is browning up the sides before I disturb it and that helps a lot as well!
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
That’s great to know Karissa, thanks for sharing!
Kori Cameron says
How long do you brown? Im new to the Instant Pot thing, do you not seal lid? Oil, meatballs, saute, and just watch to brown and once that is done then lid and seal?
Mellissa Sevigny says
When using the saute function to brown, you leave the lid off – you don’t seal it until you are ready for the pressure cooker part to begin!
Debi says
What do you mean by “Select low pressure” I dont have a way to select a pressure….does that matter?
Mellissa Sevigny says
My instant pot gives me the option for high or low pressure settings – if yours doesn’t give you an option just go with the factory setting and you should be fine.
Ali g says
I have the instant pot lux and it’s 8 inch diameter. I can only fit 8 meatballs if they are not on top of each other. Did you really fit 15 on one later?
Mellissa Sevigny says
It wasn’t one layer, I gently placed them in two layers.
Alison says
Are you psyllium husk instead of almond flour and it tastes just like breadcrumbs
Alison says
Sorry I use Psyllium husk
Mary says
I’m watching nuts right now and wondered if you have ever made your meatballs with ground pork rinds? I make sausage balls with almond meal and really enjoy that recipe, so I think I’d love the meatball recipe you posted. I eat LCHF. Thank you ?
Kat says
Thank you for the Instant Pot instructions – made your Kung Pao Meatball recipe instead (used same time/pressure as above) and it is delicious! Did not bother to brown the meatballs first. So simple!
Marilyn Ketterling says
Melissa, my husband and I are in our 70’s and I have been wanting to get the instant pot! My husband Thinks it’s too big for just the two of us and that it’s no different from my Wolfgang Puck pressure cooker. How can I convince him? I really would like one and is it too big for just the two of us? I’ve been following you for about five years and use your recipes most every day. Thank you
Mellissa Sevigny says
They sell the IP in different sizes Marilyn so you can get the smallest one and I think it would be fine for just the two of you! I don’t know much about the WP pressure cooker and it may work the same – but the IP also works as a slow cooker, has a saute function built in, and does other things too that I haven’t even experimented with. Maybe read him some of the positive reviews on Amazon? If your WP pressure cooker is older then the ease of the IP might win him over. But most of my IP recipes use the pressure cooking function so you can probably use them in you WP if you can’t win your hubby over to the IP!
Margot C says
I have an Instant Pot, I could make this1
★★★★★
Mellissa Sevigny says
You can and you should Margot!!!
Cami Valenzuela says
Yumm.. these look so good. I was just thinking i wantee meatballs this week to. I already have everything too. Thanks for the recipe.
Mellissa Sevigny says
Hope you enjoyed them Cami!!!!
Candis says
Has anyone frozen these? If so, did you increase the cook time? Thanks in advance!