Instant Pot Cheesecake
Do you need some instant pot dessert recipes? You have to give this instant pot cheesecake recipe a try! It's a classic vanilla cheesecake that tastes amazing topped with your favorite pie filling or just plain.
Can you believe I had a pressure cooker/instant pot before they were all the rage and never once made a recipe for the blog? I could have been ahead of the times, but instead, I'm behind like always. It's okay, I'm in the game now. I have a couple of cakes coming up too!
What Do You Need To Make An Instant Pot Cheesecake
Equipment
- Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker
- Trivet/Rack
- 7-inch springform pan (I use a pan with a removable bottom.)
- Hand Mixer
Ingredients
- cream cheese
- granulated sugar
- eggs
- flour
- sour cream
- heavy cream
- vanilla extract
How To Make An Instant Pot Cheesecake
Begin making an instant pot cheesecake like you would any other cheesecake. Prepare your crust and press it into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Instead of baking it, you'll freeze it for about 10 minutes until it's firm. While it's freezing, work on the cheesecake filling.
To prepare the filling as usual. Add in the cream cheese and sugar, and beat until smooth. Add in the vanilla extract, flour, and one egg at a time. Beat until smooth. Lastly, beat in the sour cream and heavy cream. Pour the filling into the frozen crust.
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I like to double wrap my pan with heavy duty tin foil to make sure no water gets into my cheesecake. Cover the top with foil too.
Then I add 1 cup of water to my pressure cooker and the trivet/rack. Carefully place the pan in the center of the trivet/rack. Lock the lid in place and turn the pressure release valve to the sealed position. Set pressure to high and the time to 35 minutes. When the cheesecake is finished cooking and the pressure cooker beeps, release pressure naturally for about 20-30 minutes.
Carefully remove the lid and take the cheesecake out. Let it cool to room temperature and then place in the fridge to chill overnight or at least 6 hours.
How do I keep the water off of my cheesecake? You can cover your instant pot cheesecake with tin foil. Be sure to add an additional 5 minutes to the cooking time.
How to get savory smells out of your instant pot? While my pressure cooker isn't in use, I add a small bowl of baking soda in the bottom of it to absorb the odor. You can also buy a second sealing ring for the pressure cooker. One can be for sweets and the other for savory.
Is it normal for the cheesecake to not have a smooth top when it's cooked? Yes. That's why you need something pretty like fruit pie filling, caramel, ganache, fresh fruit, etc to cover the top up with.
Don't have an instant pot? Try these traditional cheesecakes instead!
Instant Pot Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ¼ cups graham cracker crumbs
- 5 T. butter melted
- 2 T. granulated sugar
Filling
- 16 oz. (2 bricks) cream cheese room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 T. all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 can fruit pie filling
Instructions
Crust
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar. Stir to coat the crumbs with the butter.
- Press the crumbs in the bottom and sides of a 7-inch springform pan.
- Place into the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes and work on the filling.
Filling
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the cream cheese and sugar. Beat with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add in the vanilla extract, flour, and the eggs one at a time. Beat until the eggs are incorporated. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Beat in the sour cream and heavy cream.
- Pour the filling into the chilled crust.
- Double wrap the pan in heavy duty tin foil and cover the top in foil.
- Fill the pressure cooker with 1 cup of water.
- Place the trivet/rack in the pressure cooker.
- Carefully place the pan in the center of the trivet/rack.
- Lock the lid in place and turn the pressure release valve to the sealed position.
- Set pressure to high and the time to 35 minutes. When the cheesecake is finished cooking and the pressure cooker beeps, release pressure naturally for about 20-30 minutes.
- Carefully remove the lid and take the cheesecake out. Let it cool to room temperature and then place in the fridge to chill overnight or at least 6 hours.
- Add pie filling to the top and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
(Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.)
I have done this recipe twice now in the last year and both times my Center looks like pudding. I am using the recipe that calls for 35 minutes with 30 minute natural release. What am I doing wrong? I'm assuming that I need to add more time?
I would suggest adding more time. Every instant pot is a little different and this may effect the cooking time. If the center is very soft each time, try adding 10 minutes to the cooking time (so 45 min at high pressure total). Hopefully this helps!
Hello, when I removed the bottom foil from the pan there was butter on the foil maybe 2 tsp. Is this suppose to happen. Anyone else have this happen. Also mine seemed ready except still soft in the middle so I placed it back in the instapot for 5 more minutes. There was also a little water on it even though I covered it with foil so I just dabbed it with a paper towel. I haven’t tried it yet but the butter on the bottom foil concerns me.
The butter in the bottom is from the crust. It happens sometimes to me when I'm testing different cookies for the crust and have added a little too much butter for the cookies to absorb. It's perfectly fine! The cheesecake will look soft in the center like a set-up jello until it's chilled.
If you are going to freeze the cheesecake, do you freeze it without the fruit topping?
Yes, I would freeze it without the fruit topping.
I just tried this, first time making cheesecake and first time using my instantpot. I just took my cheesecake out of the instantpot and it’s very wet and jiggly. Will this become firm if I let it sit or do I need to cook it lol longer. Please help. This was my birthday gift to myself lol
Happy Birthday! If only the center is jiggling and the rest looks set, I would refrigerate it and it would firm up. It shouldn't look wet at all so I would definitely put it back in for another 10 to 15 minutes and let it naturally release again.
Tastes great but the center did not set. Any tips? I put in fridge over night and served in the evening.
Hi Leslie! The cheesecake probably needed another 5 minutes to cook. I know it can be tricky to get cooking times correct on the Instant pot! I am working on tweaking this recipe and updating it soon. Hopefully it will work perfectly for you next time- it is a great recipe!
Don’t have a 7 inch spring form pan only an 8 Inch- would/could that work?
Hi Jeanine- An 8" pan would work, as long as it fits into your instant pot!
How long is the cheesecake supposed to be in the instant pot? I put it on Pressure Cook and put the time in for 35 minutes.
It seemed like it just went on by itself. I looked at it after about 40 minutes. It didn’t release and when I canceled everything after a couple of hours there was no release. I just opened it let it chill.
Hi Ginny! That is very strange. Maybe the Instant pot didn't seal correctly. Usually, I put the cheesecake in, set the pressure and timer and it takes about 10 minutes for the instant pot to reach high pressure and begin baking. After baking at 35 minutes, it is about another 10-15 minutes to depressurize. Check the seal on your pot and make sure the lid is locked on. I hope this helps!
Very moist and creamy. Easy to make and tasted very good. I will be making this again in the very near future. My family loved it.
YAY! So glad you love it!
Do I leave it in the pan to complete chill?
Hi Theresa! Yes, leave it in the pan to cool completely. This will prevent the cake from cracking when unmolding. A cold cheesecake is much easier to remove from the pan. Good luck!
I love cheesecake! This looks delicious! Thanks for linking up for Friday Favorites. I'm featuring you this week.