Instant Pot Cheesecake

I have had five different pressure cooker cheesecake recipes and mixed and matched until I found one I like. This is it. You can use graham crackers, Oreo wafers, or vanilla wafers for the crust. You can add a quarter cup of cocoa powder to make it chocolate. With an Oreo crust, that is terrific. You can top it with pie filling, like cherry pie. You can drizzle hot fudge and caramel sauce over it. It is infinitely flexible. It takes a pressure cooker or Instant Pot to make. This is just the base and it is dependable and delicious and takes only 35 minutes of cooking in the pressure cooker.

You will need a 7” cheesecake pan. I use the Fat Daddio from Amazon. It holds up over time.

Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker) Vanilla Cheesecake

Author
Erick Erickson
Prep time
20 Min
Cook time
35 Min
Inactive time
4 Hour
Total time
4 H & 55 M

Ingredients

  • You will need a 6qt or larger Instant Pot or pressure cooker.  You will also need a 7" cheesecake or spring form pan.  I use the 7" Fat Daddio Cheesecake Pan from Amazon.
  • 2 cups crushed vanilla wafers
  • 3 tbs brown sugar
  • 4 tbs unsalted butter, melted
  • 16 oz Cream Cheese at room temp
  • 8 oz Sour Cream at room temp
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs at room temp
  • 1 heaping tbs all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Caramel Sauce (optional)
  • Hot Fudge Sauce (optional)
  • or Cherry Pie filling (optional)

Instructions

  1. Spray the cheesecake pan with cooking spray.  Wrap the pan tightly with aluminum foil.
  2. Mix the crushed vanilla wafers, brown sugar, and butter until moist.  Add to the pan and flatten using the bottom of a glass.  Make sure they are evenly spread and packed tight. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.
  3. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, add the cream cheese and beat on medium speed for two minutes.  Add the sour cream and sugar and beat on medium speed for three minutes.  Add each egg individually and beat on medium speed till incorporated before adding the second egg.
  4. Sprinkle the flour in the mixture and beat on medium speed two minutes to incorporate.  Add the cream and vanilla and mix to incorporate.
  5. Pour into the cheesecake pan.  Cover tightly with foil.  Take a 20 inch long piece of foil and fold it length-wise twice to make a sling.  
  6. Fill the instant pot or pressure cooker with one and a half cups of water and then add the steam tray, making sure the water is below the tray.
  7. Place the pan on the center of the foil sling, pull up the edges and use the sling to lift the cheesecake and then lower it into the Instant Pot.  Fold the edges down over the top of the pan to make it easy to lift out later.
  8. Get the pressure cooker to high pressure and cook for 35 minutes.  Let the pressure reduce naturally.  Remove the cheesecake to the fridge for four hours.
  9. Top with caramel and hot fudge sauces or pour cherry pie filling over the top.

Notes:

You can make this without the eggs, if you have an allergy, by using 1/4 cup of flour instead of the eggs. You can make it chocolate by adding 1/4 cup of cocoa powder and I would suggest using Oreo wafers without the filling as the base. You can also use Graham crackers instead of vanilla wafers. If you use Oreos, use 4 tbs of regular sugar instead of brown sugar.

Erick Erickson