These Instant Pot Porcupine Meatballs Are Easier to Make Than You Could Imagine

Are you searching for something quick and easy to prepare for dinner? Then you’ll love this classic recipe! It’s a timeless favorite that typically takes quite some time to make. But if you have an instant pot at home, your porcupine meatballs can be ready in just 30 minutes! Neat, right? Check out the full recipe here, and start cooking!

First, let’s explain something. The porcupine recipe doesn’t really feature porcupine meat. Rather, the name comes from the grains of rice mixed with the minced meat which, during the cooking process, protrude the meatballs just like the spikes of a porcupine.

The recipe can be traced back to the 1970s Betty Crocker dish called oven porcupines. As you might have guessed, the original version takes well over one hour to complete. Luckily, this one doesn’t! It’s so simple and easy that it can make the perfect midweek meal for dinner. Below, you’ll find the ingredients list as well as step-by-step instructions on how to cook the meal.

Ingredients

You need the following ingredients to prepare the porcupine meatballs recipe:

2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
1 onion, chopped and divided
2 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1 can tomato sauce
½ cup water
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 pound ground beef
½ cup long-grain rice
1 teaspoon salt (more or less, to taste)
½ teaspoon black pepper (more or less, to taste)

Preperation

Here are the instructions for these upgraded porcupine meatballs:

Step One: Sauté the garlic and onion for about five minutes. You can do it in the instant pot.

Step Two: Next, prepare the tomato sauce. Stir in the water, Worcestershire, and tomato sauces, and let it simmer.

Step Three: Prepare the meatballs. Combine all ingredients that are left and roll them into roughly the size of a ping-pong ball.

Step Four: Proceed to cook the meatballs in the instant pot. Put them on one layer and spoon the sauce on top of each meatball. If you’re using a stovetop pressure cooker, you’ll need about 12-15 minutes to cook the meal. Otherwise, put the instant pot on the pressure cooking program for 15 minutes (note that the overall cooking time will be about 25-30 minutes, depending on how quickly your cooker comes to pressure.)

Step Five: Unpressure the instant pot and serve hot. You can sprinkle fresh parsley on top to add depth of flavor.

If you’re a fan of meatballs and are looking for a simple dish to prepare this evening, try this incredible porcupine meatballs recipe. It’s flavorful and can be ready in just half an hour.