PC
Instant Pot
30
30 Minutes or Less
GF
Gluten-Free
DF
Dairy-Free
VG
Vegetarian
5I
5 ingredients or less
Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes – Perfect Every Time!
Posted: 11/06/2017
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes might be your new favorite way to make sweet potatoes. They’re ready in about 30 minutes (including pressure release!) and they come out silky smooth every time.
When I was doing Whole30, I ate a lot of sweet potatoes. I mean, A LOT. Roasted, in a hash, sweet potato toast, mashed, pureed, noodled, baked, turned into chips, basically any way I could.
They’re more or less the only type of carbohydrate you can have besides fruit and regular potatoes, but for the most part, I prefer sweet potatoes to regular potatoes.
I had to get creative to keep from getting bored, and I also had to find quick and easy ways to prepare them so I didn’t have a reason to fall off the Whole30 wagon.
Enter the Instant Pot, one of my favorite Whole30 tools. It makes the most perfect sweet potatoes.
I’ll admit, I sometimes resort to the microwave to cook sweet potatoes. Stab them with a fork, wrap them in paper towel, and they’re ready in about 5 minutes. However, that method does tend to dry them out, whereas the Instant Pot will not.
This is definitely my new go-to method, and I think it’s going to be yours, too.
I have a killer recipe coming up Wednesday that uses mashed Instant Pot sweet potatoes – it’s perfect for Thanksgiving and you guys are going to love it.
Ben doesn’t even really like sweet potatoes too much, and he said they were the best he ever had! In the meantime, we’re starting with the basics, just like we did last week with how to cook delicata squash and following up with those insanely good vegetarian tacos using the squash.
Tip: Buy a good brush to scrub the outside of your potatoes. I love this one – it has soft and firm bristles and it’s dishwasher safe. I also love the way it fits in your hand.
Now you’ll know how to make perfectly velvety Instant Pot sweet potatoes, that you eat just the way they are (I like topping them with a little cinnamon and butter), or that you can dress up.
You can make stuffed sweet potatoes, or you can scoop out the filling and mash it for any assortment of fun mashes (I like to add chili powder!) or stuff like handheld sweet potato casserole, sweet potato bread pudding, or twice baked sweet potatoes.
You can also make Instant Pot Baked Potatoes in a similar way! Or you can try these Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes…it’s the absolute best way to make mashed potatoes!
I can’t wait to hear from you – what are you going to do with these Instant Pot sweet potatoes?
Get the Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes Recipe!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
servings
Instant Pot sweet potatoes come out silky smooth every time. Pressure cooking sweet potatoes may be the best way yet!
Ingredients
- 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes (10-12 oz. each), approximately 2 inches in diameter (see note)
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Scrub sweet potatoes and trim if necessary. Pour water into Instant Pot. Place wire trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot and place sweet potatoes on top of the trivet.
- Secure the lid and turn valve to seal.
- Select Pressure Cook (or Manual on High) for 15 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure.
- Allow pressure to release naturally (do nothing after the timer goes off) for 15 minutes.
- Release remaining pressure, remove lid, and serve.
- Cooked sweet potatoes can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
Notes
- Serving size: Half of 1 medium sweet potato.
- Sweet potatoes with a diameter much larger than 2 inches cook less evenly, even if you add extra time.
- You can add fewer sweet potatoes or add more. Cooking time is the same but it will take less/more time for the Instant Pot to come to pressure.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 0.5potato, Calories: 97kcal, Carbohydrates: 23g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.02g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.02g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.001g, Sodium: 64mg, Potassium: 381mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 16031IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 35mg, Iron: 1mg
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
Husband’s take: He doesn’t love them plain but he loves when I dress them up!
Changes I would make: None are necessary. If you have humongous sweet potatoes, you might need to increase cooking time slightly.
Difficulty: Ridiculously easy!
James Thornton says
Making now for my dogs and me lol
Rachel Gurk says
:) I hope you and your dogs love the sweet potatoes!
Karin says
I’m only cooking three large potatoes so what is the cooking time with a smaller amount? I’m new to instant pot.
Rachel Gurk says
Same cook time! :) I hope you love them!
Anna Page says
I’m new to IP. I followed directions with 3 medium sweet potatoes. They were perfect! Skins fell off, mashed with a fork. Added a little butter, drizzle of maple syrup and sprinkle of cinnamon. Delicious and so quick and easy. New go-to. Thanks Rachel!
Rachel Gurk says
I’m so glad to hear you liked this recipe! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment and review!
D says
Absolutley did not work using the specified time. I restarted and added 10 minutes and still slightly firm.
I couldn’t imagine doing less than 30 minutes unless you like crunchy sweet potatoes.
Rachel Gurk says
I just made these the other day as written in the recipe, with large sweet potatoes. They were very soft. Did you make sure the silicon ring was securely in place and the valve was turned to seal? Did you let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes?
MB Billington says
I just tried your way to cook sweet potatoes in the instant pot. I found that the sweet potatoes ended up too soft. They were way over done unless you wanted to mash them.
Rachel Gurk says
It definitely depends on the size of your sweet potatoes…they can come out soft, but they’re super creamy and delicious in my opinion. :)
Karen says
These Instant Pot sweet potatoes were delicious!! Best way to prepare them.
Rachel Gurk says
So glad you like them! I’m making them this week to use in my vanilla bean mashed sweet potatoes.
Judith says
Can cooking time be extended a bit and the pressure released rather than waiting for passive decompression?
Rachel Gurk says
I haven’t tried that method, but it might work. Let me know if you give it a go.
Patty in CO says
Thank you for the cooking times…I added 20% to my time because I am at high altitude and OMG!, these came out so silky smooth and yummy.. I wil never cook sweet potatoes any other way. If you haven’t tried virgin coconut oil and cinnamon/sugar (I used a sugar substitute) to top them with, you don’t know what you are missing….so velvety and sweet….I ate the skin and all.. ….absolutely lovely!
Rachel Gurk says
That combination sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing, and thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment. It means a lot to mw!
Madison says
Hi! I do not have the steamer thing anymore, do you think it will still work?
Rachel Gurk says
I haven’t tried this without the steamer. I think it would be worth buying an inexpensive steamer basket that will fit inside your Instant Pot.
Lilly says
Followed the instructions exactly and my potato was still hard in the middle and required being microwave to be done in time for dinner. Microwaved a total of 4 min in addition to time in Instapot.
Rachel Gurk says
Hi Lilly, I’m sorry you had that experience! Are you sure your rubber ring was all the way in? Sometimes if that’s not placed correctly, it can prevent the Instant Pot from sealing properly and that will cause the food to not cook as it should.
Dawn says
Is it possible to “keep warm” for a long time after natural release or do they need to be pulled out soon after the release?
Rachel Gurk says
I haven’t tested it, but it should be fine. They may get pretty soft, but I think they’d be alright. How long is a “long time?”
Megan says
This may be a dumb questions but do I need to poke holes in them with a fork using this method? Never cooked sweet potatoes in the instant pot. but whenever I cook regular potatoes this way I poke them.
Rachel Gurk says
I don’t poke holes in them when I cook them with this method.
Rocco says
What is the “Pot” c a pressure cooker?
Rachel Gurk says
This recipe is made in an Instant Pot which is a brand of electric pressure cooker. The recipe will work in any electric pressure cooker. I hope that helps!
Emily says
Made this recipe and the the potatoes were too firm.
Rachel Gurk says
Sorry to hear that, Emily! Did you have your valve turned to seal? Was your rubber ring in place? It could be that your potatoes were just extra large. As you can imagine, larger potatoes take longer to cook so this recipe is definitely a jumping off point more than anything else.
Supriya Kutty says
Looking very delicious and very healthy. I will definitely try this recipe and I will definitely let you know. Thank you for sharing this post.
Rachel Gurk says
Thanks! I hope you love them!
Jennifer says
I just found your recipe this evening as I bought a few sweet potatoes to make…for my dogs… :) One of them has chylothorax, and needs a low fat diet and sweet potatoes are a good addition for him. So… love my IP, in fact have used it today for boiled eggs and shredded chicken. I had a huge sweet potato, and put it in for 15 minutes. After it had started, I read the reviews and thought I wouldn’t have a good result because the potato was big and I didn’t think I gave it enough time. So I let it go for 35 minutes on natural release, and when I took it out, it was PERFECT! So.., one strategy is to go for the 15 minutes, and let it release longer the larger the sweet potato. This is a wonderful way to get creamy sweet potatoes with almost no effort.. thanks for the recipe!
Rachel Gurk says
Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave such a helpful comment, Jennifer! I’m glad you liked this recipe!