Why Instant Pot Orecchiette Was Undercooked

Question

I have made several wonderful dinners from your newest book "Milk Street Fast and Slow" but, the last recipe gave me some grief.
Orecchiette with Sardinian Sausage Ragu:  The pasta was not anywheres near done on high, pressure for 3 minutes.  I then switched to sautés low and cooked the mixture for 8-10 minutes more until the orecchiette were al dente.  I must admit the sauce cooked down for the extra 10 minutes enhanced the taste.  What went wrong?

Lynn Clark · Accepted Answer

Hi Carol - I spoke with the recipe developer, Julia Rackow, and she had this to say:
It may be the brand of orecchiette. Some orecchiette is simply thicker than others. I just did some digging and De Cecco orecchiette (which we used during testing) cooks in 9-10 minutes, while Barilla cooks in 12-13. It doesn't sound like a lot, but it would definitely make a difference in the IP. The headnote says that any pasta, orecchiette or otherwise, with a 10 minute cook time works, so you can double check your packaging to see if it's in a different range. The pasta took so long after the lid came off because of the low water level. It doesn't need the extra water in a closed environment, but with the lid off, the low water level would make it take longer.
I hope that helps. Let us know if you have any more questions!

Why Instant Pot Orecchiette Was Undercooked

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