This Easy Instant Pot Cheesecake is the creamiest, most luscious cheesecake you’ll make in your pressure cooker! It is foolproof and pairs perfectly with all toppings!
This recipe was first posted on Spend with Pennies.
Table of Contents
It is time, folks.
Time to set aside our obsession with this Instant Pot Pot Roast and move on to cheesecake.
This right here is our next Instant Pot obsession, and I don’t think anyone is mad about it.
Why we love this Instant Pot Cheesecake:
How do I even answer that? There is just so much to love.
I’ll admit, even though cheesecake is my truest dessert love (when I first got my Instant Pot I wasn’t one of the ones rushing to make a cheesecake.
I was happy whipping up this Best Vanilla Cheesecake recipe (the one I adapted for this Instant Pot cheesecake recipe!), or this Easy Cheesecake recipe when I was short on time or motivation.
I’ve always thought of the pressure cooker like a slow cooker, just really fast, so I started with large cuts of meats, soups and stews and didn’t venture much into desserts.
Now I wish I’d started sooner!
I know now that the Instant Pot is one of the best tools for cooking a “baked” cheesecake, because of the moist environment.
Rather than fiddling with water baths in the oven, we can just rest our cheesecake pan on the trivet of our Instant Pot and let the steam work its magic.
What we get? A smooth, incredibly creamy cheesecake that is nearly foolproof, and cooks in about a quarter of the time!
How to make Instant Pot Cheesecake:
- Bake the crust: I prefer to bake my crust because it really helps the crust to firm up and stay crispy. You can skip this step if you must, but just know that your crust will be softer.
- Room temperature ingredients: this is crucial with all cheesecake recipes, because cold cream cheese does not beat into a smooth batter.
- Don’t overmix: When we overmix, we add too much air to the batter, and air bubbles in cheesecake — especially under pressure! — can do funny things while cooking.
- Get a new sealing ring: you can easily find cheap replacement rings for your Instant Pot online, and it’s worth it if you intend to cook sweet and savory dishes. The silicone rings hold on to smells, so if you want a pressure cooker cheesecake with no hint of pot roast, please use a fresh sealing ring.
What kind of pan do I need to make cheesecake in the Instant Pot?
This cheesecake recipe is designed for a 7″ pan. A 7″ pan fits perfectly in my 6 quart Instant Pot, but you will have a little extra room if you are using an 8 quart.
I use a Fat Daddio’s 7″ push pan as opposed to a springform pan, but either will work.
I like the push pan for the Instant Pot because you don’t have the clasp on the side taking up valuable space!
Make this cheesecake your own:
While the Instant Pot isn’t the safest place to experiment with recipes, there are a few easy ways you can mix things up once you have perfect the basic, vanilla cheesecake.
- Experiment with the flavor of cookies you use in the crust: swap the graham crackers for chocolate baking crumbs or another hard cookie on the grocery store shelf.
- Add a couple tablespoons of cocoa powder to the filling with the sugar — keep in mind that cocoa often adds bitterness, so don’t add too much.
- Stir in crushed Oreo cookies, or another crumbled cookie.
- Add a couple tablespoons of lemon or lime zest to the filling with the sugar for a citrusy twist.
- Stir in a spoonful of strawberry Jello powder or pureed freeze fried strawberries for a strawberry twist.
Easy Instant Pot Cheesecake
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 500 grams full fat cream cheese (room temperature) 2 packages or 16oz
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup full fat sour cream or Greek yogurt plain (room temperature)
- 2 eggs (room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a medium bowl, stir together graham crumbs and butter. Press into the bottom and about 1″ up the sides of a 7″ springform pan or push pan.
- Bake crust for 10 minutes, or until firm. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, scraping down the sides once.
- Add sugar and beat on low speed until smooth — using low speed helps to prevent adding unnecessary air bubbles to the batter.
- Add sour cream and beat on low speed just until smooth.
- Add eggs and vanilla and beat on low speed until smooth.
- Pour into prepared crust. Tap pan gently on the counter to bring air bubbles to the top, then pop with a fork or knife.
- Tear off a long piece of foil and fold it lengthwise to create a long narrow sling.
- Pour the water into the Instant Pot (I use a 6 quart – use 1.5 cups for 8 quart), then place the trivet inside. Place the sling on top of the trivet, bending it to lay flat on the bottom and stick up the sides, as shown in the photo above.
- Place pan on top of the sling, and fold the ends of the sling over top the pan so you can put the lid on.
- Put the lid on, turn the valve to sealing, and select Manual or Pressure Cook for 32 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to build pressure and begin counting down.
- When the cook time is over, turn the Instant Pot off and allow the pressure to release naturally before opening the valve and removing the lid — this should take about 15 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the Instant Pot using the sling. Set on a wire rack to cool to room temperature before refrigerating for 8 hours or overnight.
- Slice and serve.
Nutrition Information
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Mary L says
Loved this cheesecake. And so so easy! And it’s also the perfect amount of cheesecake. The only thing for me was the crust was a little softer than I like. Wondering if I did something wrong?
MT says
I have been craving cheesecake for awhile so I finally made this yesterday in my Ninja Foodi. I cooled it down for 2 1/2 hrs because that is all my patience would allow before I had a slice, sooo delicious and small enough so I don’t get carried away ! I used a tall 6” springform pan and it was cutest little cheesecake. Can’t wait to have another slice now that it’s completely set.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi MT! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Brooke says
Last 2 times I made this recipe, the cheesecake has overflowed the springform pan into the instant pot and looks horrible on the top☹️. Like cranky and bumpy. Tastes good, but looks horrible! Not sure what I am doing wrong? Any ideas?
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Brooke! It’s really hard for me to know what went wrong without being in the kitchen with you. How full is your pan before placing it in the Instant Pot. It sounds like you might need to add less of the filling. Hope this helps!
Ruth says
This recipe is SO good and unlike some other Instant Pot cake recipes, I found the timing to be spot on. My husband couldn’t wait to dive in! Served it with strawberries, yum!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Ruth! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Ruth says
I plan to make this today, but wondering if I’m missing something. It sounds like you cool it on the rack, before refrigerating overnight. However, I’m unsure how you got it out of the pan and inverted onto the plate. After cooling, will it slide out easily or is there a trick to this? Can’t wait to try this, it sounds fantastic! Thank you!
Ruth says
Sorry! Please disregard above question. My Instant Pot cake pan isn’t a springform or push pan, so I will just have to figure it out. We may be eating cake out of the pan with spoons! 😛
The Recipe Rebel says
Hope you enjoy it Ruth!
Laura says
Amazing cheesecake recipe. Like others have said, the IP cooks it so effortlessly and it turns out to be the most creamiest cheesecake I’ve ever eaten. I made a raspberry coulis to top and serve and it was delicious!!! This recipe is a keeper thank you! Can’t wait to make another one!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Laura! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Jenn says
I have my THIRD cheesecake cooling on the counter right now. Each time I’ve used your recipe and it has been absolutely everything you say it is! It’s the easiest, creamiest, most luscious cheesecake recipe and the only one I’ve ever used (or will need). I feel like such a pro whipping this up! It hasn’t failed me yet! I’ve added a caramel sea salt topping, made it into a turtle cheesecake and I’ll be sharing this Oreo one tomorrow. Thank you for giving me something impressive to make!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Jenn! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Beata Harris says
Mine came out with alot of water sitting on top and not cooked through..I will try again but cover it with foil to prevent the moisture. I had to finish it in a regular oven..
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Beata! Yes there may be water on top. You will just dab it off with a paper towel. Cooked cheesecake is supposed to be jiggly when it is done cooking — it is only firm once it has set and chilled completely.
CP says
I’ve tried this cheesecake in an 8″ Push Pan in my 8 quart Instant Pot. I knew I had to adjust the recipe for the larger size pan and it took two tries before I got it right. The first time I just increased it by an additional 1/4 and it tasted good but the height of the cheesecake was way too short. The second time I increased it by 3/4 and the size was great and it tasted great. I don’t make cheesecake often, but this is the only way I’ll make it in the future. This is a delicious recipe.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi CP! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this review and feedback on the pan you used!