These beauties are so delicious and made simple, you’ll want to have Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes all the time!
I’ve always been a HUGE fan of sweet potatoes, they are so delicious and you can enjoy them any time, don’t think they’re just for the holidays.
I love that they are so delicious any way you make them, sauteed, baked, or if you’re more a slow cooker type they can be made by cooking on high for 4 hours or low for 6-7 hours, OMG you have to give them a try using an Instant Pot (pressure cooker) which is great all year long, great for Rving and if you like fast and easy it’s the way to go! And be sure to try my roasted holiday potatoes.
By cooking sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot what you’ll end up with is tender cooked sweet potatoes, now just imagine all the wonderful ways to enjoy them.
If you’re looking for what to top your sweet potatoes with try some of these:
- my personal favorite is simple butter, salt, and pepper
- butter, cinnamon, and sugar (brown sugar is a great choice)
- butter and nutmeg
- butter and bacon and a drop of maple syrup
- Parmesan cheese and bacon
- brown sugar and pecans
- sour cream
- smokey, spicy flavors are a great addition try chipotle, cayenne, and smoked paprika
- pile a fried egg on top with green onion for a savory breakfast
- be sure to give my twice baked sweet potatoes a try!
There are 35 different variations of sweet potatoes!
That means choosing them can sometimes be challenging. I see lots of varieties in the stores and sometimes I think the labels are wrong, but since there are so many varieties it can be confusing. You can see what I mean by the photo below.
The skin of a yam (left) looks light and similar to a baking potato, while a sweet potato (right) is more reddish-brown. Real yams are entirely different root vegetables that are more like yucca in texture and flavor. They have bumpy, tough dark brown skin (that looks almost tree trunk-like) with starchy interior, and not sweet.
So I always choose the one with the darker skinned, no matter what it’s labeled.
Sweet potatoes in a can are often labeled Yams (and a lot of people call the Thanksgiving dish with marshmallows candied yams) but they are actually sweet potatoes.
It’s all too confusing … trust your gut.
We have found delicious ways to enjoy these naturally sweet potatoes. But I’ve found other amazing ways to transform them, and they are family-approved!
And you really don’t have to feel guilty about eating these tubers, they have great nutritional value. They are packed with many essential vitamins such as vitamin B-5, vitamin B-6, and thiamin (vitamin B-1), niacin, and riboflavin. These are essential as the human body requires them from external sources to replenish. Sweet potatoes also provide iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, and potassium. So eat up!
I love them as a small lunch all to themselves with some of the toppings I’m mentioned. They’re also terrific with my Instant Pot Pork Ribs.
This recipe is such a cinch and can be prepared and cooked in under 40 minutes. Because you’ll be using an instant pot, you don’t have to constantly monitor them, checking to see if they are under or overcooked. The instant pot does all the hard work. Let’s begin!
Start by rinsing and scrubbing the sweet potatoes. Then place them on the trivet inside the instant pot.
Add water to the pot. Turn the pressure to high and time for 28 minutes. Once the timer goes off, pressure release for 10 minutes, then allow a natural release for 10 minutes.
Just a Note:
If your sweet potatoes are larger, you can add a few more minutes to the timing, or cut them into smaller pieces to reduce the cooking time. Likewise, if you have significantly smaller potatoes just reduce by about 5 minutes.
How do I tell if a sweet potato is ripe?
Let’s answer this by telling you what you shouldn’t see, or smell. Your nose is usually the most reliable way to tell if your sweet potatoes have gone bad. If it smells off, don’t use it. Visual signs include discoloration and growths through the skin. A good sweet potato should be uniform in color and very firm. Sweet potatoes should be firm. Store sweet potatoes just like you do baking potatoes in a cool dark place, not in the fridge, not on the kitchen counter, not near sunlight, a lower kitchen cabinet or pantry is good.
Are yams the same as sweet potatoes?
They aren’t even the same type of plant. Yams are sweeter than sweet potatoes and nutritionally not as good for you. In many recipes that can be interchangeable. That being said, sweet potatoes are generally harder than a yam. So cooking times may vary.
How long could I store these in my fridge?
You can wrap your potato in saran wrap and refrigerate for up to a week.
I have this 6 quart Instant Pot and find it very useful and easy to use,
be sure to check out some of my other Instant Pot Recipes:
- Instant Pot Rice Pudding
- Instant Pot Pork Ribs
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs
- Instant Pot Teriyaki Pork Chops
- Instant Pot Baked Beans
- Instant Pot Shredded Pork great for Tacos
- Instant Pot Curry Peanut Chicken
- 3 sweet potatoes (approx 2" round and 6" long)
- 1 cup water
- Rinse and scrub sweet potatoes.
- Place sweet potatoes on the trivet inside the pot o the instant pot.
- Add water to the pot.
- Turn the pressure to high and time for 28 minutes.
- Then allow a natural pressure release for 10 minutes.
- Quick-release any additional pressure.
- If your sweet potatoes are larger add a few more minutes to the timing, if you have significantly smaller potatoes reduce them by a few minutes.
If you like this or any other recipe at 
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