Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce is so easy to make it is ridiculous. And the flavor is amazing. I make mine with orange zest, orange juice, a cinnamon stick and couple of star anise pods for a tart-sweet-spicy flavor.
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A lot of people love the jellied cranberry sauce that comes in a can, and I get that. It’s something people grew up with on their thanksgiving table. It’s delicious and easy on the cook responsible for the rest of the Thanksgiving dinner.
But I’m here to tell you that if you have an instant pot, making your own cranberry sauce is almost as easy.
What ingredients do you need to make Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce?
This homemade cranberry sauce is simple, with only 3 required ingredients and a couple of optional ones:
- Fresh cranberries or frozen cranberries
- Sugar
- Zest and juice of an orange
- Cinnamon stick (optional)
- Star anise pods (optional)
How do you make it?
You’re not going to believe how easy this is. It is literally 3 steps:
- Put the ingredients in the Instant Pot (you don’t even need to stir them together!)
- Seal the pot and pressure cook for 2 minutes.
- Let the pressure release naturally for about 10 minutes, then release the remaining pressure.
That’s it! Seriously!
What do you serve cranberry sauce with?
This sweet-tart sauce is obviously the perfect condiment for roast turkey, but it’s also great with roasted chicken. Or even with ham.
This year we’re doing a quiet Thanksgiving at home—just 3 of us—so we’re not roasting a whole bird, even a small one.
Instead, I’m making Instant Pot duck confit. The rich, savory meat will be a perfect match for the sweet-tart sauce.
This would also be great with Air Fryer Turkey Legs or Instant Pot Ham. Add a Green Bean Stuffing Casserole or Green Bean Salad and you’ve got a perfect holiday meal.
What to do with leftover cranberry sauce?
Here are a few ideas for how to use up leftover cranberry sauce:
- Spread it on a turkey sandwich, obviously (or a chicken sandwich).
- Thin it with a bit of water or juice and use it as a glaze for a baked ham.
- Use it as a condiment on a turkey burger along with melted sharp cheddar or gruyere cheese.
- Spread it over the top of a turkey meatloaf before baking.
- Spread it on toast instead of jam. Or on buttermilk biscuits!
- Combine it with a sharp, melty cheese like an aged white cheddar in a grilled cheese sandwich.
- Spoon it on top of a round of brie and bake it until the sauce is bubbling and the brie is melty.
- Even better, wrap that cranberry sauce-topped round of brie in puff pastry and bake until crispy and golden brown.
- Stir it into plain yogurt.
- Stir it into oatmeal.
- Dollop it on top of pancakes, waffles, or French toast.
- Replace some or all of the oil in muffin batter the way you would with applesauce.
- Use it to fill thumbprint cookies.
- Use it as a gooey layer in the middle of oatmeal cookie bars.
- Spread it on pastry crust and top with sliced pears for a cranberry-pear tart.
- Top a cheesecake with it.
- Warm it up and drizzle it over ice cream.
Tips for success
Here are my best tips for making an amazing Instant Pot cranberry sauce.
- When you put the ingredients into the pot, put the cranberries in first and spread them out so they are covering the bottom. Pour the sugar on top and then the juice over that. You just want to avoid having a pile of dry sugar on the bottom of the pot, which may cause the pot to give a you a burn message.
- The sauce is ready to serve the day you make it, but it’s best to let it cool at least to room temperature before serving as that will help it to thicken up.
- You can make the cranberry sauce ahead of time. It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Pressure cooker cranberry sauce can also be frozen. It will last in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- You can create all sorts of flavor variations by adding or substituting ingredients. Substitute water, apple juice, cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, or blueberry juice for the orange juice.
- Add a diced jalapeno for a spicy version.
- Substitute honey or maple syrup for the sugar.
More Instant Pot Recipes You’ll Love
- Instant Pot Palak Paneer
- Instant Pot Coconut Rice
- Instant Pot Chicken Shawarma
- Instant Pot Spare Ribs
- Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
- Instant Pot Thai Chicken Curry
- Instant Pot Mulligatawny Soup
- Instant Pot Beef Pho
- Instant Pot Congee with Brown Rice and Turmeric
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Instant Pot Mexican Black Beans
- Instant Pot Duck Confit
Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 12- ounce bag of fresh or frozen cranberries
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- Juice of 1 large orange 3 to 4 tablespoons
- 1 cinnamon stick optional
- 2 star anise pods optional
- Pinch kosher salt
Instructions
- Place all of the ingredients in the Instant Pot. Do not
stir them together. - Put the lid on the pot and set the valve to the sealing
position. Cook on high pressure for 2 minutes. - Let the pressure release naturally for about 10 minutes
and then manually release any remaining pressure (or if you prefer, let the pressure fully release naturally). - Stir the sauce and transfer to a serving dish or storage
container.
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