Making mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot is an easy way to enjoy a delightful comfort food, made faster with help from the pressure cooker!
Quick and easy Instant Pot mashed potatoes made in the pressure cooker can save so much time and effort! Add these to your holiday menu!
UPDATED March 26, 2024
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Are you hosting a holiday dinner this year? Whether it’s Easter, Thanksgiving, or Christmas, then this recipe needs to be on your menu!
I typically really enjoy hosting dinners for special occasions, but it can be a little tricky to get the timing of everything just right.
Can I make anything ahead of time? What all needs to be baked in the oven?
What all needs to be cooked on the stove top? Can I make anything in the slow cooker?
And this year, the question is, “what can I make in my Instant Pot?”
By now, it’s no secret that I love my Instant Pot. While I often use it for soups or other main dishes, I also love using it for side dishes!
That’s why I love these Instant Pot mashed potatoes!
The Instant Pot is the perfect holiday helper–check out my picks for Thanksgiving Instant Pot recipes and Instant Pot Easter recipes!
Creamy Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes Recipe
I have to say, these were seriously quite possibly the quickest and easiest mashed potatoes I’ve ever made (aside from instant mashed potatoes, of course).
Normally, it takes forever to make homemade mashed potatoes. Peeling all of the potatoes, dicing them into cubes, boiling them, etc., just takes some time.
That’s too time consuming for me these days!
But with the Instant Pot, it’s way easier to make the best mashed potatoes.
Holiday dinners aside, pressure cooking is also the best way to prepare the perfect mashed potatoes for a regular weeknight meal.
Serve it with favorite weeknight dinners such as Crock Pot country style ribs, Instant Pot Salisbury Steak, Instant Pot shepherd’s pie, Instant Pot pork chops and gravy, or Instant Pot Swiss steak.
Now that I’ve discovered this method, I won’t think twice about making homemade mashed potatoes.
As a bonus, not only can you use your Instant Pot to make the mashed potatoes, but you can also reheat mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot!
How to Make Mashed Potatoes in the Instant Pot
It’s really easy to make this crowd-pleasing side dish with just a few simple ingredients.
No more boiling water and babysitting the pot while the potatoes cook.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Russet Potatoes
- Milk
- Butter
- Sour Cream
- Salt and Black Pepper
How to Make this Perfect Side Dish:
(Full printable recipe card is available below)
Peel the potatoes. First of all, this gadget is a life saver–it peels potatoes like a boss. Really.
A few quick cranks and the job of peeling is done. No more sore wrists from peeling those babies by hand!
Cut the potatoes. Take the peeled potatoes and cut them into four pieces each, trying to keep them roughly the same size.
Pressure cook. Next, you’ll just pour a bit of water into the Instant Pot, then put the quartered potatoes onto the trivet (or you can use an Instant Pot steamer basket, if you have one!) and lower them in.
Lock the lid and cook at high pressure for a cook time of 8 minutes.
Release pressure. After 8 minutes, do a quick pressure release and your potatoes should be perfectly cooked and ready to mash.
Pull them out of the insert pot and drain the water, then place them back into the pot.
Mash the potatoes. Mashing by hand does typically result in a better texture, in my opinion.
It takes a few minutes, but since these are cooked so nicely, it’s actually pretty easy.
Warm the other ingredients. In a small saucepan, combine the milk, sour cream, and butter and warm them over medium heat, just until the butter is melted.
Mix it together. Then, you combine the potatoes with the warm mixture, stirring/mashing to combine. If needed, add a splash or two of milk until your desired consistency is reached.
Add salt and pepper, adjusting to taste.
Keep Warm. Once your mashed potatoes are prepared, you can keep them warm in the Instant Pot on the “Keep Warm” setting until you are ready to serve.
You should definitely add these to your holiday dinner repertoire–it’s the perfect side dish!
Notes and Adaptations:
- Not a fan of sour cream? Feel free to use cream cheese instead.
- You can also opt for chicken broth instead of milk, if desired. Or to make it more creamy, opt for heavy cream instead of milk.
- Adjust the seasonings by adding garlic powder or fresh herbs to the final product.
- Feel free to use Yukon gold potatoes or red potatoes instead of russet, if you prefer.
- To store leftovers, allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate in an airtight container.
Recommended Equipment:
- Instant Pot (I use the DUO60 model)
- Johnny Apple Peeler
- Potato Masher
Other Instant Pot Side Dishes:
- Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce
- Instant Pot Funeral Potatoes
- Instant Pot Potatoes and Carrots
- Instant Pot Acorn Squash
- Southern Style Green Beans in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Dinner Rolls
- Instant Pot Au Gratin Potatoes
- Instant Pot Fresh Green Beans
Quick and Easy Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
Easy Instant Pot mashed potatoes are the perfect side dish for your holiday meal or other favorite dinner!
Ingredients
- 6 medium russet potatoes
- 1 cup of water
- 2 Tbs sour cream (optional)
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1/2 stick butter
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel and quarter the potatoes.
- Pour water into the bottom of the Instant Pot pressure cooker.
- Place potatoes onto the trivet within the Instant Pot.
- Close lid and set vent to "sealed."
- Using the manual setting, cook at high pressure for 8 minutes.
- While potatoes are cooking, combine the sour cream (if using), milk, and butter and warm either on the stove top or in the microwave.
- At the end of the 8 minute cook time, do a quick pressure release.
- Remove potatoes to a bowl and add in the warmed milk mixture. Mash by hand until desired consistency is reached.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve immediately or use the "Keep Warm" function of the Instant Pot until ready to serve.
Notes
- Not a fan of sour cream? Feel free to use cream cheese instead.
- You can also opt for chicken broth instead of milk, if desired. Or to make it more creamy, opt for heavy cream instead of milk.
- Adjust the seasonings by adding garlic powder or fresh herbs to the final product.
- Feel free to use Yukon gold potatoes or red potatoes instead of russet, if you prefer.
- To store leftovers, allow the potatoes to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate in an airtight container.
Adapted from Pressure Cooking Today
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 258Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 151mgCarbohydrates: 39gFiber: 4gSugar: 2gProtein: 6g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is not guaranteed for accuracy.
Be sure to save this recipe to your Instant Pot board on Pinterest!
Hi! I want to double the recipe. What adjustments will I need to make regarding liquid and cooking time??
Hi Carly! I would recommend leaving the amount of water the same and keeping the cook time the same–that’s what I do when I adjust the quantity on this recipe and it’s always worked fine for me. Enjoy! 🙂
Awesome, thank you!
I usually try to leave positive comments, but 8 minutes in the Insta pot was nowhere near enough! I ended up having to boil them anyway and for quite a long time. When I pull the potatoes out I could hardly get a fork in them! I use my Insta pot for a lot of different things and even cut my potatoes up on the small side just in case.
I’m sorry to hear this, Katie! Eight minutes should be plenty long enough, unless the chunks were larger. I use medium potatoes quartered, but if your potatoes are large, quartering them might result in pieces that need a couple more minutes of cook time. You might also check that the pressure wasn’t accidentally set to low instead of high. I hope that helps! 🙂