Name: Multicooker Ziti with Sausage Ragu
Total time: 45 min
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Cuisine: Italian, Europe
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil; 1 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed; 1/2 fennel bulb, stalks discarded, bulb cored and chopped fine; 1/2 onion, chopped fine; Salt and pepper; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano; 3/4 cup dry red wine; 3 1/2 cups water, plus extra as needed; 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes; 1 pound ziti; 2 tablespoons shredded fresh basil; Grated Parmesan cheese

Why This Recipe Works

A tubular pasta like ziti proved to be the best match for the intense heat of the pressure cooker—strand pastas turned into unappealing clumps of noodles when cooked under pressure. We browned some Italian sausage, adding onion, fennel, tomato paste, garlic, and oregano for aromatic backbone. Deglazing the pot with red wine helped incorporate all the flavorful browned bits on the bottom of the pot, and letting most of the wine cook off ensured that our sauce didn't taste boozy. We then stirred in crushed tomatoes (which tasters preferred for the even-textured sauce they created), water, and our pasta. After just 5 minutes under pressure, the pasta was perfectly al dente, but even on the slow setting the dish cooked fairly quickly, making this a weeknight-friendly meal no matter which setting we used. We adjusted the sauce's consistency with a little additional water after cooking to make sure it was just the right thickness to coat our pasta. A sprinkling of basil at the end made for a fresh finish to our saucy, meaty ziti dinner.

Instructions

Using highest sauté or browning function, heat oil in multicooker until shimmering. Add sausage and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until browned, 6 to 8 minutes.

Stir in fennel, onion, and ½ teaspoon salt and cook until vegetables are softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, garlic, and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and cook until nearly evaporated, about 1 minute. Stir in water, tomatoes, and pasta.

TO PRESSURE COOK: Lock lid in place and close pressure release valve. Select high pressure cook function and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off multicooker and quick-release pressure. Carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you.

TO SLOW COOK: Lock lid in place and open pressure release valve. Select low slow cook function and cook until pasta is tender, 20 to 35 minutes. Turn off multicooker and carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you.

Adjust sauce consistency with extra hot water as needed. Stir in basil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with Parmesan.