Perfect Instant Pot sweet potatoes each and every time, with perfect, creamy insides. A time chart based on the width of your sweet potatoes ensures they are perfectly cooked each time.
While I love a baked sweet potato and the convenience of a crock pot sweet potato, sometimes we just need to get it done quickly, right? Enter Instant Pot sweet potatoes. Ready in a fraction of the time, and they come out perfectly creamy, each and every time!
The thing is, there are way too many 'one size fits all' Instant Pot sweet potato recipes out there, and can we be real? Not all sweet potatoes are made the same, so why should the cooking method be?
After being constantly disappointed by under-cooked sweet potatoes, I set out to test dozens of sweet potatoes, until I came up with a formula so that you can have perfect sweet potatoes as well.
Reasons you'll โก Instant Pot sweet potatoes
- they cook in a fraction of the time as the oven
- they are perfectly tender and creamy
- they are hands off...set the button and go on with your day while they cook!
Recipe Video
Want to see exactly how to cook sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot? Watch this 1-minute video! You can find more recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
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Measure the width of your sweet potatoes
In my experimentation, I discovered that the cook time of your sweet potatoes is completely dependent on the width of your sweet potatoes.
After testing dozens of sweet potatoes, I came up with the following formula:
- small (2 inches or less in width): 15 minutes + 10 minute natural pressure release
- medium (2-3 inches in width): 30 minutes + 10 minute natural pressure release
- large (3-4 inches in width):ย 60 minutes * + 10 minute natural pressure release
* honestly, depending on what you're going to use those gargantuan sweet potatoes for, you're probably better off cutting them into cubes to cook faster
How to cook sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot
A few simple steps stand between you and your perfect sweet potatoes:
- measure (or estimate) the width of your sweet potatoes
- scrub sweet potatoes, and prick with a fork 4-5 times
- place 1 cup of water in the Instant Pot insert (or 1.5 cups for an 8 quart Instant Pot), and place the trivet on top
- arrange your sweet potatoes on the trivet
- place the lid on the Instant Pot and set the valve to 'sealing'. Pressure cook for the time indicated on recipe card based on the width of your sweet potatoes
- allow pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes, then carefully release the remaining pressure
Ta da! Perfect sweet potatoes
Which Instant Pot works the best?
You can cook sweet potatoes in a 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot with no change to the cook time. The one thing that does change between the two sizes is the amount of water you add to the pot.
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- add 1 cup to a 6 quart Instant Pot
- add 1.5 cups to an 8 quart Instant Pot
I have not tested in a mini Instant Pot, and am not sure if the sweet potatoes would fit. If you have tried, would you leave a comment below to let us know how it worked for you?
FAQ
Can I cook regular potatoes using these cook times?
No, regular potatoes require a different cook time. See this post for Instant Pot Baked Potatoes.
Can I stack the sweet potatoes or do they need to be in a single layer?
My testing was done with a single layer, however in theory, you should be able to stack them up without additional cook time. If you find that your sweet potatoes need additional cooking time, you can simply put the lid back on, add more time, and the pot will come back to pressure really quickly.
Is it better to use the 'steam' or the 'manual' setting to cook sweet potatoes?
I've done it both ways, and it worked fine either way. The steam setting simply cooks from full power straight away, since it assumes there is just water in the Instant Pot and there is no risk to burning food in contact with the base.
Wondering how to use up your sweet potatoes?
Whether you use your Instant Pot sweet potatoes as twice baked sweet potatoes, in hummus, breakfast burritos, or any of the recipes, using the Instant Pot to cook them ahead definitely makes your meal prep go a little faster.
- Enchilada Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Smoky Sweet Potato Hummus
- Freezer Sweet Potato Taquitos
- Freezer Sweet Potato Waffles
- Taco Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
More Instant Pot Recipes
- 7 Instant Pot Chicken Breast Recipes
- Instant Pot Whole Chicken
- Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
- Instant Pot Chickpeas
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
PERFECT Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2-4 sweet potatoes
Instructions
- Measure or estimate the width of your sweet potatoes.
- Scrub sweet potatoes, then prick 5-10 times with a fork.
- Add 1 cup of water to the insert of a 6 quart Instant Pot or 1.5 cups to an 8 quart Instant Pot.
- Add the trivet to the Instant Pot and arrange sweet potatoes on the trivet.
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot, and set the valve to 'sealing'.
- Make sure your Instant Pot is set to 'high pressure', and select manual (or 'pressure cook', depending on your model). Then set the timer depending on the thickness of your sweet potatoes: small- under 2 inches: 15 minutes, medium- 2-3 inches: 30 minutes, large- 3-4 inches: 60 minutes.
- When timer beeps, allow pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes before releasing the rest of the pressure.
- If for some reason your sweet potatoes are not fully cooked through, place the lid back on the Instant Pot and add an additional 5-10 minutes. Your Instant Pot will come back to pressure quickly.
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Nutrition Information
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Suzanne says
Perfect! I wanted these precooked and firm enough to slice and bake as a casserole. Timing was spot on and made life much easier than using precious oven space for hours!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Suzanne, so glad to hear that your sweet potatoes turned out perfectly! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review ๐
Erik Larson says
Thank you for the guide.
Itโs great.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Erik, we're so glad you found this post helpful! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review.
Leanda Moore says
Thank you so much for the cooking times and wonderful explanation. I'm new to instant pot cooking and this was so helpful. My daughter has Crohn's disease and went through a surgery to remove part of her intestines. I am challenged to find recipes that meet all her dietary restrictions. We are slowly reintroducing foods after over 3 months on intravenous feeding. We are currently at the soft food stage and she likes sweet potatoes so this recipe is perfect. The bigger challenge is that she is currently living in Japan and finding the foods when we don't speak the language is very challenging, but God is amazing and always provides a way. Sorry for the novel , but I'm finding that networking is how I am learning to help her. Here is my question, can we substitute Japanese sweet potatoes because I can't get the US ones here. They are a bit different texture. Don't know if you have tried these are not. If not I will try and let you know, it might be a great additional comment for your amazing site.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Leanda, we're so glad to hear that this recipe (and all of our Instant Pot recipes) could be of help to you right now! Best wishes to you and your daughter, hopefully she heals up quickly! We have not tested this with Japanese sweet potatoes, but I don't see why it wouldn't work out! Please be sure to report back and let us know how they turn out if you do try it!
Ike says
I appreciate the in-depth info on cooking different size sweet potatoes!!!
Note: Please get rid of your live ads. I donโt revisit sites that have them. I couldnโt find a way to delete them as well.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Ike, Glad to hear that you found this info helpful! Thanks for your feedback on the ads. We are always striving to keep the user experience as good as possible, however, it costs a significant amount of money to publish these free recipes. In order to keep it free for you, we rely on advertising to cover those expenses. Thanks for understanding!
Pam H says
I used my little 3 quart for 3 smaller sweet potatoes and added a little under 1cup water and cooked 15 minutes ..turned out great..thanks!
Karen Stoloff says
When done the sweet potato almost falls apart in the pot when I lift it. I was told to cook it for less time. I cooked it for 22 minutes-it was about 2 1/2".
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Karen, the cook time really depends on the size of your sweet potatoes! You may need to adjust it slightly if you have smaller sweet potatoes and would like them to be less cooked. For example, for small (2 inches or less in width) we recommend 15 minutes + 10-minute natural pressure release. I hope this helps!
Nita says
I have two med size sweet potatoes I would like to cook in my instant pot. I also would like to warm some ham to go with. Pot in pot. Would it get dried out by the time the potatoes are done?
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Nita, Unfortunately, we have no experience cooking ham in the Instant Pot so we really can't say how this would turn out. It looks like cook time varies based on the size of your ham. Here's a great post to give you an indication of how long your ham might take. If the cook times line up, it could work!
Mark G. says
Worked perfectly! I cooked one 2 1/2โ potato in my 6 quart using the times exactly as stated in the recipe (30 min/10 NPR). Peeled and mashed easily.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Mark, that's awesome! We're so glad that you enjoyed these Instant Pot sweet potatoes. Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review!
Rachel G says
Easy peasy recipe and the sweet potatoes turned out fantastic. We did 30 min cook time with the 10 min release for 3โ potatoโs. Mashed with salt, pepper, garlic, onion and cinnamon with butter. We wanted mash and the skin came right off of these spuds. If you want them less cooked then by all means go with less time. Cheers!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Rachel, so glad to hear that this recipe was useful and that the sweet potatoes turned out to be so delicious! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review!
Clancy says
Followed the instructions re: size and this recipe cooked them for wayyyy too long, theyโre complete mush.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Clancy, so sorry to hear that it didn't work out for you. What size of sweet potatoes did you use, and for how long did you pressure cook them? We'd be happy to help you troubleshoot - as others who followed these instructions have had success!
Kathy says
I was wondering if you have ever cooked the sweet potato in the ip WITH the ham?
Denise Bustard says
Hi Kathy! Unfortunately I have not tried this, hopefully someone can chime in if they have!
Aaron says
Like others in the comments, I too followed the directions and got great results : ) It was also my first time cooking sweet potatoes! I also liked how the directions were cut in dry in the list, some other cooking things on the web could take note of.
Matt says
I made as directed and the potos were light, fluffy in texture. Perfect. Thank you!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Matt! I'm so happy to hear the sweet potatoes came out perfectly. Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review, I really appreciate it!
Joanna Gray says
Mini works the same. Just less water used. Only way I cook sweet potatoes.
Denise Bustard says
Thanks for reporting back, Joanna!
Sharon says
I have the 3qt mini Duo Nova. I did a sweet potato that was 2-1/4". It was done in 15 minutes with a full Natural Release. Tonight I will be doing an acorn squash!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Sharon! So happy to hear it worked for you in the mini. Good luck with the acorn squash!
Kar says
Hi! Would this work if I just use regular cooking pot woth water? Sorry we dont have much instant pot here in our country. Hope you'll reply. Thanks!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Kar! If you are looking to steam or boil sweet potatoes, you might want to cut them first. Here's a post with a whole bunch of ways you can cook them: https://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/how-to-cook-sweet-potatoes/
Ana Rosa says
Thank you so much for this recipe, it turned out perfect. I used 1 cup of water for two medium sweet potatoes in my 3 Q Instant Pot (35 minutes HP + 10 NPR), and they were delicious!!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Ana! So happy to hear it was a success for you, and that's great to hear it works in the 3 quart IP. Thanks for reporting back ๐
Heather says
Your instructions don't mention whether you are cooking on low or high pressure.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Heather, it's high pressure.
Moriaelini says
Thank you for this comprehensive guide! One of my husband & my favorite weekend (and now quarantine) lunches is steamed sweet potatoes with hummus, cheese, taco sauce and a dollop of sour cream. Sounds weird, tastes like heaven. But the sweet taters I get at sprouts come in such varying sizes that it is difficult to parse how long to cook them. This guide is PERFECT.
Denise Bustard says
I am so intrigued by your lunch, and am so glad to hear this guide was helpful for you. Thanks so much for your review, Moriaelini ๐
Stephen says
I did three sweet potatoes and followed the instructions to the T. Absolutely brilliant result. Thank you...I am new to Instant Pots and also to cooking in general. So, getting a proper result is most satifyinf.
Denise says
Hurray! Happy to hear it worked well for you, Stephen. Thanks so much for reporting back ๐
Mary Barker-Damour says
Hi, I usually boil my sweet potatoes on the stove and then peel them . Can I just put them in the water to boil and then set my meatloaf on the trivet on top of them so it will all cook together. Or will my potatoes by soggy by being right in the water.
Denise says
Hi Mary! I have not tried cooking the sweet potatoes right in the water. It is possible they may cook quicker in the water...but if you try it, would you let us know how it goes for you?