In just 5 minutes you can have a cheesy, protein-packed dinner ready to go! Make this Protein Instant Pot Mac and Cheese for the ultimate kitchen hack you’ll ever do. This Protein Mac and Cheese made in the Instant Pot is made with 100% whole grain noodles, cottage cheese, and a little Greek yogurt for extra creaminess.
FRIENDS.
If you do not have an Instant Pot yet…THEN PRETEND IT’S YOUR BIRTHDAY AND BUY YOURSELF ONE ALREADY.
It took Linley and I almost a year to muster up and buy one and then another year to start using it. Now, we just can’t stop! Linley is really the Instant Pot queen in the Fit Foodie kitchen and I like to call myself the ultimate taste tester. We really are a dream team 😛 We get the question all the time, what Instant Pot do you have? We have the 6-quart one and it retails for $99. It really seems like the perfect size for everything we’ve made and I’m not sure I’d want to go bigger if I had the chance.
Now that I’ve convinced you to buy an Instant Pot…let’s talk PROTEIN Instant Pot Mac and Cheese.
What makes this protein mac and cheese? The addition of cottage cheese and a little Greek yogurt. Linley and I have been a wee bit obsessed with cottage cheese lately. I feel like in college I was super into cottage cheese, but the nonfat kind. Then, for about 5 years I took a major cottage cheese break. Well, I’m back on the train and now I’m more of a fat-filled cottage cheese kind of girl. It’s just so creamy and delicious and satisfying and yummy and the best snack ever. For this recipe, we used 2%, but you can really use any fat % you want! Let’s check out what else you need for this Instant Pot Mac and Cheese!
Here’s What You Need
- Elbow macaroni noodles
- Chicken broth
- Ghee (or butter)
- Garlic powder
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- 2% cottage cheese (any % will work)
- Nonfat Greek yogurt
- Dijon mustard
Have I mentioned that this protein mac and cheese recipe only takes 5 whopping minutes to make? Well, 5 minutes inside the Instant Pot, that is! I’d say this will take 15 minutes TOPS and there’s no boiling of water involved.
Kitchen Hack: Protein Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
In just 5 minutes you can have a cheesy, protein-packed dinner ready to go! Make this Protein Instant Pot Mac and Cheese for the ultimate kitchen hack you’ll ever do. This Protein Mac and Cheese made in the Instant Pot is made with 100% whole grain noodles, cottage cheese, and a little Greek yogurt for extra creaminess.
Ingredients
- 16 oz. whole wheat elbow macaroni (normal pasta works too!)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons ghee (or butter)
- 1.5 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup 2% cottage cheese (any % will work)
- 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place macaroni noodles, broth, ghee, garlic powder, and dijon mustard into the Instant Pot and mix well.
- Set your Instant Pot by making sure the pressure valve is turned to seal. Then, press manual. Turn your pressure to high pressure and set time to 5 minutes. Then, let the Instant Pot do its thing.
- When the time on the instant pot runs out, quick release the pressure by turning the pressure valve to vent. Be careful, the steam is hot!
- Remove the Instant Pot lid and give the noodles a quick stir. Then, add the cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, salt and pepper to the noodles. Stir until creamy*.
- Remove mac and cheese from Instant Pot and enjoy!
Tips & Notes
*If the cottage cheese isn’t melting, turn on the saute function on your instant pot and stir.
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size: 1/6 recipe Calories: 430 Sugar: 5 Fat: 16 Carbohydrates: 56 Fiber: 8 Protein: 23Similar recipes:
That is all for now! I’m peacing out to Costa Rica tomorrow with Mark, my sister, and brother in law and I can’t wait. Follow me on Instagram to see what I’m up to and get ready for some delish recipes we’ve got coming up next week while I’m gone 😀
I was looking for a Mac & cheese with some better macros and landed here. I’ve been trying to convert some family favorites to some healthier options and sometimes I am met with resistance. I kept my efforts a secret and after the whole gang went in for seconds and told me how delicious it was I revealed my surprise! I did double the cheese but I will cut it back next time. I added a little Cajun season, smoked paprika and extra garlic. I used a blend of Swiss, mozzarella, and sharp cheddar cheese. This is a definite win, especially since my 4 year old will only eat Mac & cheese! Oh I did use a hand mixer on the cottage cheese before adding it to the pot to break down the lumps. Not sure if it was necessary but it didn’t hurt. I also transferred to a casserole dish with a slight sprinkle of cheese on top and baked for a few minutes so that it looked like what my family was used to!
★★★★★
I followed the directions exactly and it came out like soup. After boiling it down and adding another cup of cheese I finally got a closer consistency to mac and cheese but the flavor really lacked. Nobody liked it. I really wanted to like it but it just doesn’t taste like mac and cheese.
★
I wasn’t looking for a “healthier” Mac and cheese. However I was looking for one that used cottage cheese as I had a small container that was going bad soon.
I followed the recipe, even whole grain noodles, as that’s what I had (:
I did however double the cheese, I used medium cheddar and a small amount of Monterey Jack cheese. And I didn’t have any Greek yogurt and used 1/2 cup of sour cream.
I have to say, this is the BEST macaroni and cheese I have ever had. I have a very picky 3 year old who age it all and even wanted more. He doesn’t normally like homemade Mac and cheese because it’s stringy. This was a hit and I will be making it again!
★★★★★
So glad your little loved this!!
This was delish. I used 4 cups of elbow mac and a cup and a half of shredded cheddar for a little extra cheesiness. Turned out perfectly, not soupy or gummy at all like some of the other comments said. Mac & Cheese you can feel good about!
★★★★★
Easy and creamy and delicious.
★★★★★
I have a question. In Canada we don’t usually use Ounces as a measurement. As I stare at my pot of curd and noodle soup that I made, I am thinking I don’t understand how to use Ounces. On my measuring cup, 16 ounces is 2 cups which is what I used. Should I actually be purchasing a kitchen scale and weighing these noodles? How do you know which of the two measurements to use? Thanks!
★★★
Mine also turned into a curd noodle soup
Hi Nicole, for the pasta 16 oz is 450 g. That’s weight, not the fluid oz that your cup is measuring.
I absolutely love this recipe! I discovered it last summer and then rediscovered it this year when I started Weight Watchers and was looking for a low-point mac and cheese! So creamy and delicious! Definitely a keeper!
★★★★★
YAY!! Glad you love it!
Tried this out with chicken burgers for my boyfriend and I. It was creamy and delicious! I was skeptical since cottage cheese is NOT my jam. Aside from the appearance, you’d never know it was in there!
★★★★
Can I use whole wheat penne?
Hey Bailey, that should work just fine!
I would recommend adding some finely chopped cauliflower with the macaroni noodles, broth, ghee, garlic powder, and dijon mustard into the Instant Pot! It turned out great!
**Maybe just add a teeny bit more broth if you add the cauliflower!
I made this last night, and am so pleased with the outcome! I love how quick it was. I was worried since so many comments said that it came out watery and gooey, but I feel like the author either revised the recipe or those folks didn’t follow the instructions. I know usually with instant pot recipes, you pour everything in at the beginning, but it’s important to note here the cheese goes in AFTER it cooks (that may be where people went wrong). I reduce the broth by about 1/4 cup (but I think it would have been fine with all 4 cups). I also blended the cottage cheese to remove the clumps in advance. Everything melted perfectly without the saute function. In the end, I added some franks hot sauce and spinach. I packed it into containers for meal prep, and ate it cold for lunch and it was still delicious. It’s important to note, I don’t even like cottage cheese! This will be a regular meal prep recipe for me!
★★★★★
Wow!!! This was delicious and so quick! Thank you.
★★★★★
We love this recipe. My older kids can make it themselves too. It’s a great meal with a salad or veggie on the side.
★★★★★
I loved this! I used a box of banza elbows so it was half the pasta this calls for. I added a little more than 3 cups of broth and it turned out runny and I had to strain it, so if you use a box of banza you will need less broth. I also added chopped broccoli. I used all the cheese but due to the lesser amount of pasta noodles I should have used less. I will definitely make this again!
★★★★★
I like this so much! Without an instant pot just make it on stove top?
So good! This is my week night, guilt-free, staple!
★★★★★
This turned out the first time- followed the recipe exactly. Will be making this regularly! My 33y/o “kid” (fiancé, LOL) HATES cottage cheese and even asked why it was in the fridge… didn’t tell him it was in the mac and cheese, which we both enjoyed. Thanks!
★★★★★
YASSSSSS! Sorry buddy 😛
So delicious! I like my noodles a little bit softer so I would’ve cooked a little longer, otherwise so yummy! Didn’t have problem with it being too liquidy or noodles sticking to bottom.
★★★★
This is surprisingly good! Pasta was perfectly cooked, no issues with burning, and most of the cottage cheese melted in. I think next time I’ll try blending the cottage cheese first to make it less obvious for my picky eater.
★★★★
Yay! I am so glad it worked and that you liked it!!
After 3 minutes my instapot started beeping that it was burning 😒 pasta was stuck to the bottom. It was cooked, but the whole mixture was runny. How did you prevent this?