Instant Pot Mashed Potato Recipe

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The days of making mashed potatoes on the stove top are behind us! This Instant Pot Mashed Potato Recipe is my favorite way to make mashed potatoes. In a few minutes you can have creamy mashed potatoes in one pot!

There are so many uses for the Instant Pot from making one-pot dinners to cooking side dishes like this Instant Pot Mashed Potato Recipe! I love the way the Instant Pot cooks and also keeps the finished dish nice and warm until time to serve.

Our former stand-by for mashed potatoes was ABK’s Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, it is the perfect way to cook potatoes and keep warm without cooking stovetop! The downside to using the slow cooker is the cooking time is 4 hours, compared to about 30 minutes total (including mashing) in the Instant Pot! 

My preference for mashed potatoes is a small red potato. A few reasons why I like this variety of potato: They are easy to scrub and don’t need to be cut up before using. I like a bit of color in my mashed potato, so leaving the skin on small red potatoes and then mashing works well for me. Red potatoes have better flavor than a Russet (imho), which are the premium potato for mashing.

Russett’s yield the most fluffy mashed potato, if you are looking for a smooth, fluffy finished product! I like my mashed potatoes to be a bit more rustic looking and don’t mind it when my mashed potatoes have a few chunks of potato. While many people use an electric mixer, I always use a Potato Masher, this one is my favorite.

Once you try ABK’s Instant Pot Mashed Potato Recipe you’ll never go back to boiling potatoes on the stovetop. For holidays, this method is perfect because it frees up space on the stove and also keeps the potatoes warm for hours. One less dish to worry about when you’re trying to get a big meal on the table, hot, all at once.  If you are looking for gravy to top your Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, take a look at this recipe for Simple Pan Gravy!

Instant Pot Mashed Potato Recipe

5 from 16 votes

Print Pin

Author: Si Foster

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 20 minutes mins

Servings: 15 servings

Ingredients 

• 5 lbs potatoes, washed and scrubbed I recommend either Red or Russet, peeling optional
• 1 cup water
• 12 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 1/2 cups half and half, more may be needed if potatoes are dry
• 1/2 cup sour cream, optional
• Sea Salt to taste

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

• Pour 1 cup of water into the pot.
• Place washed potatoes into the Instant Pot.
• Place the lid on the pot, making sure the seal is in place inside the lid.
• Turn the lid to the closed position, and make sure the top is set to the “seal” position.
• Use the Manual setting and turn the Instant Pot on and set the time for 15 minutes.
• While the potatoes are cooking, melt 12 tablespoons of butter and warm the half and half in a measuring cup in microwave for about 1 minute, or just until warm. Set aside until potatoes are finished cooking.
• After the timer goes off, manually release the steam by turning the vent to the VENTING position, make sure to not place arm in the way of the steam vent!
• After all pressure has been released, remove the lid. Drain the excess water out of the Instant Pot.
• Add the melted butter and half and half and salt to the hot potatoes in the Instant Pot.
• Using a potato masher or an electric hand mixer, mash the potatoes until desired consistency.
• Add sour cream and about 1 1/2 teaspoons salt to taste. If the potatoes are not creamy enough, add more sour cream and or half and half.
• Leave mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot on warm setting until ready to serve.
• Taste and add more salt if needed.

Notes

-I add sour cream to keep the potatoes smooth even after re-heating.
-If you are using Russets, always remove the peel. Russet skins are quite tough. You can leave the skins on the Russets when they cook, they will pop right off after being steamed in the Instant Pot, then mash and add butter and other ingredients.
If using Red Potatoes, try leaving the skins on, they blend nicely into the mashed potatoes!