The quickest way to prepare creamy sweet potatoes is with your Instant Pot!
If you don’t already know how much I love sweet potatoes, let me get this part over with real quick: I LOVE sweetpotatoes. And fun fact, it’s technically spelled as one word rather than “sweet potato”! I still can’t quite get used to the one word spelling so I go back and forth between the two!
Anyway, back to my love of sweet potatoes/sweetpotatoes!!I love the taste, I love how easy they are to make, and I love their versatility. And, as a runner, I especially love them since they are a great carb source for runners.
But do you know what I love almost as much as sweetpotatoes? My Instant Pot. Seriously. If I can tweak a recipe to be cooked in my pressure cooker instead of the normal way – I am ALL about it. And guess what? Sweetpotatoes are PERFECT to cook in an Instant Pot.
Not only do Instant Pot sweetpotatoes come out perfectly creamy, but they are much faster than roasting them in the oven. It takes about 30-40 minutes, start to finish, to cook whole sweetpotatoes in the instant pot. And, while perhaps microwaving sweetpotatoes is faster, I MUCH prefer this method. Microwaved sweetpotatoes are always dried out and flavorless. So, let’s get into some details on how to make sweetpotatoes in your Instant Pot!
How to Make the Best Instant Pot Sweet Potato Recipe
Ingredients
You only need 2 ingredients to make these Instant Pot sweetpotatoes! And does water really count as an ingredient? Nah.
2 large sweet potatoes
1 cup water
Instructions
Step 1
Scrub your sweetpotatoes and prick with a fork a few times. This will help the steam to escape and prevent any explosions from happening.
Step 2
Dump water in Instant Pot and place the insert (or trivet) that comes with the Instant Pot inside.
Step 3
Place sweetpotatoes on top of the trivet.
Step 4
Secure the lid, set pressure to high and set the cook time for 20-22 minutes. You can adjust the cooking time accordingly. I’ve cooked them for 18 minutes when I was in a rush and that worked too! I probably wouldn’t do any less than 18 depending on the size of your sweetpotatoes (more on that below!)
Step 5
Once your 20-22 minutes is up – let the pressure release naturally for 10-15 minutes.
Step 6
Remove from Instant Pot and serve with your favorite topping (suggestions below!).
Tips For Instant Pot Sweet Potato
Sweet Potato Sizes
It’s best to cook sweet potatoes that are all roughly the same size to get the best results. Depending on the size of your sweetpotatoes, you might need to adjust both your cooking time and your pressure release time. Usually by only a few minutes, give or take.
This recipe denotes “large” sweet potatoes which I categorize as about 3+ inches in width or 12-16 ounces. These usually need 25 minutes of high pressure.
Small sweet potatoes are 2 or less inches in width, about 6 to 8 ounces, take 12 minute under high pressure.
Medium sweet potatoes are about 2-3 inches in width, about 8 to 12 ounces, take 18 minutes under high pressure.
If you find yourself with giant sweetpotatoes larger than 4 inches, consider cutting them in half before placing in the Instant Pot. Otherwise, they might not cook all the way through or you might be waiting forever to eat, and that defeats the entire purpose of this recipe!
Making a larger batch
You can easily double or triple this recipe to prep a lot of sweet potatoes for the week. Just make sure the water doesn’t touch the sweet potatoes, so you may use less water even with more potatoes.
Storing leftovers
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Serving Suggestions
Butter and salt
If I’m having sweetpotatoes with dinner, I typically go for this simple version!
Coconut Oil, Bananas & Cinnamon
This is a delicious dessert like variation!
Almond Butter & Blueberries
I love love love this combination for breakfast and it’s especially delicious after a long run!
Peanut Butter, Banana & Chia Seeds
This is works great for breakfast or an afternoon snack. A registered dietitian even suggested this combination as a pre-marathon breakfast!
On top of a salad
I love love love adding sweetpotatoes on top of a salad! It makes them more filling and it pairs perfectly with so many combinations! You can get more tips on building delicious salads in my salad ecookbook! Sweet potatoes are one of my pantry staples to make amazing salads that don’t leave you starving!
Because they come out so soft and creamy, you can easily mash them for mashed sweet potatoes. This makes a perfect side dish for any main meal, in my opinion.
Casserole
Since it’s so close to Thanksgiving, I should probably mention that Instant Pot sweetpotatoes are perfect for a delicious sweet potato casserole.
Baked Potatoes
If you want softer baked potatoes in a shorter amount of time, you could throw the sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot (just cut the cooking time in half) before you bake them in the oven. This will give you a soft flesh which maintaining the firmer baked flesh. The peel on the sweetpotatoes cooked in the instant pot gets very soft!
Variations
Crockpot
You can cook your sweetpotatoes in a crockpot if you have more time and just want them simmering on the side while you cook up the rest of your amazing meal. I just prefer quick and easy Instant Pots myself for my home-cooked meals.
Potatoes
You cannot sub regular potatoes in this recipe. Yes, you can cook regular potatoes in an Instant Pot, but the cooking times are very different. And honestly, I just like sweetpotatoes better! Expect a longer cooking time for regular potatoes.
Leftovers
These sweetpotatoes will last about 3-4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. I love making a big batch and having these as my go-to, quick breakfasts during the week.
Nutrition
Now I mentioned this in my baked Sweet Potato Chips Recipe, but it doesn’t hurt to mention it again here, too!
Sweetpotatoes are a nutritional powerhouse! They are rich in potassium, fiber and vitamin C. And as you’ll see from the numbers below, they’re also an excellent source of Vitamin C! This is a big reason why they are a great meal for runners.
I ALWAYS buy North Carolina sweetpotatoes since they’re so easy to find here, either at the farmers market or the grocery store. Did you know that North Carolina is one of the largest growers of sweet potatoes in the world? As an NC resident, it just feels wrong to buy sweetpotatoes grown anywhere else when we have so many local farms here growing them!
This is based on a serving size of 1 sweetpotato at about 150g.
Calories: 124
Carbohydrates: 15.1 g
Protein: 1.2 g
Fat: 6.8 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g
Monounsaturated Fat: 4.9 g
Trans Fat: 0 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 41 mg
Potassium: 253 mg
Fiber: 2.3 g
Sugar: 3.1 g
Vitamin A: 10640 IU
Vitamin C: 1.8 mg
Calcium: 22.6 mg
Iron: 0.5 mg
What’s your favorite way to prepare sweetpotatoes? Instant Pot sweet potatoes are a regular in this house!
Step 1
Scrub your sweetpotatoes and prick with a fork a few times. This will help the steam to escape and prevent any explosions from happening.
Step 2
Dump water in Instant Pot and place the insert (or trivet) that comes with the Instant Pot inside.
Step 3
Place sweetpotatoes on top of the trivet.
Step 4
Secure the lid, set pressure to high and set the cook time for 20-22 minutes. You can adjust the cooking time accordingly. I’ve cooked them for 18 minutes when I was in a rush and that worked too! I probably wouldn’t do any less than 18 depending on the size of your sweetpotatoes.
Step 5
Once your 20-22 minutes is up – let the pressure release naturally for 10-15 minutes.
Step 6
Remove from Instant Pot and serve with your favorite topping.
2 responses to “The Best Instant Pot Sweet Potato Recipe”
Huge sweetpotatoe lover!!! Wedges or fries with burgers, but also in a vegan curry… I could literally eat this every single day. I am so happy that here in Belgium they are becoming more and more popular as well and you can find them in a lot of restaurants as alternative for the classic fries.
I’ve tried many times to have crispy sweetpotatoe fries from the oven, but so far I haven’t been able to find that one magical recipe. If you have any tips, please let me know!
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2 responses to “The Best Instant Pot Sweet Potato Recipe”
Huge sweetpotatoe lover!!! Wedges or fries with burgers, but also in a vegan curry… I could literally eat this every single day. I am so happy that here in Belgium they are becoming more and more popular as well and you can find them in a lot of restaurants as alternative for the classic fries.
I’ve tried many times to have crispy sweetpotatoe fries from the oven, but so far I haven’t been able to find that one magical recipe. If you have any tips, please let me know!
How had I never thought about sweet potatoes in the instant pot before?? Genius!