Free up oven space by making this Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole instead.
The Instant Pot works great for cooking potatoes and sweet potatoes, plus it locks in all those nutrients. In this version of Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole, you’ll actually make two pans of it so you can keep one on warm in the Instant Pot until the first pan runs out.
If you’re a huge sweet potato fan you’ll especially love this classic casserole since it’s a dessert dish that passes as a side. Speaking of desserts, you should try this sweet potatoes cupcakes recipe.
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What Variety of Sweet Potato is Best for Casserole?
You go to the grocery store knowing you need to buy sweet potatoes so you can make your casserole, but when you get there, you discover that there are several different kinds of sweet potatoes. So, how do you know which one(s) to buy?
Garnet sweet potatoes are many people’s favorite choice for casseroles because they are moist and flavorful, and they retain their orange color well after baking. You can find this variety in the grocery store by looking for sweet potatoes with dark orange-red skin.
Jewel is another variety that has a lot of moisture, so it does well when boiling, baking, and used in casseroles. You’ll recognize these in the store by their bright orange skin.
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❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
You’ll love all of these conveniences of making this Instant Pot sweet potato casserole:
- Frees up oven space: If you’re using your oven to cook the turkey, stuffing, and rolls you’ll be glad that this casserole recipe is made in your Instant Pot instead.
- Perfect for picky eaters: Everyone usually loves this casserole because since it’s sweet, it’s almost like they’re getting to cheat and have dessert for dinner.
- Fills the house with a delicious aroma: The smell of the sweet potatoes combined with the brown sugar smells so good. When your guests arrive for Thanksgiving dinner, they’ll be greeted with a mouth-watering scent.
If you ended up buying too many sweet potatoes, you can use them to make Instant Pot sweet potato chili for dinner once you finish your Thanksgiving leftovers.
🥘 Ingredients
It should be easy to find the ingredients needed to make this casserole.
- Sweet potatoes: As mentioned above, garnet or jewel are the best choices for making the casserole.
- Granulated sugar: This is used in the filling because it complements the natural sugars in the sweet potatoes, and it dissolves well which gives the filling a smooth and cohesive texture.
- Eggs: They help bind the ingredients together
- Cream: It adds a subtle richness that balances the flavors, preventing the filling from tasting overly sweet.
- Brown sugar: The topping uses brown sugar because it has molasses, which adds a rich, caramel-like flavor that pairs well with the crunchy pecans and butter, creating a contrasting layer with the sweet, smooth filling.
See recipe card for complete list of ingredients and quantities
🔀 Substitutions
If you are used to using other ingredients to make your sweet potato casserole, you want to make it healthier, or you just want to try something different, here are some ideas:
- Granulated sugar: If you want a natural sweetness in the filling you can use maple syrup or honey instead. You may need to reduce the amount to about 1 cup and slightly reduce the liquid in the recipe to maintain consistency.
- Eggs: If you can’t use eggs because of allergies or health reasons, you can use 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce per egg to add moisture, though it may make the filling slightly denser.
- Cream: If you only have milk on hand, try whole milk, half-and-half, or a lower-fat milk for a lighter version, though it will be less rich.
- Brown sugar: Coconut sugar can be used instead because it has a similar molasses flavor and is less processed.
🌈 Variations / Options / Add-Ins
In case you want to add some different flavors to your filling or topping, here are some ideas:
- Spiced sweet potatoes: Add warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves (1-2 teaspoons total) to the filling for a more autumnal, cozy flavor.
- Citrus Twist: Mix in 1-2 tablespoons of orange juice and a little zest to the filling to add a fresh, citrusy note that complements the sweetness of the potatoes.
- Spiced Topping: Add cinnamon or pumpkin spice to the brown sugar mixture for a warm, spicy kick in the topping.
- Coconut Topping: Mix in shredded coconut (about 1/2 cup) with the brown sugar topping for a tropical flair.
If you want to make a different side dish using sweet potatoes, try these air fryer sweet potato fries.
🥄 Equipment Needed / Helpful Tools
You’ll need a few things to make this recipe, especially items that can go in the instant pot, but they should all be easy to find.
- Instant Pot: This is where you’ll cook and prepare almost everything needed for this recipe.
- Steamer basket: The sweet potatoes will first cook on this in the instant pot.
- Stackable insert pans or Casserole dish: After mashing the potatoes and adding the other ingredients, it will need to cook a little bit more in these pans/dish in the instant pot.
- Potato masher: The design of the potato masher (whether it has a perforated or wavy plate) allows for even mashing of the sweet potatoes. It presses down through the potatoes in a way that breaks them apart evenly and helps blend in sugar, butter, eggs and cream without overmixing.
🔪 How to Make Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole
Making Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole is similar to traditional sweet potato casserole, but the Instant Pot plays a starring role instead of the oven.
Step 1: Cook the Potatoes
You need to soften up those sweet potatoes before you can mash them. So, first, place them in a steamer basket and put them in the Instant Pot (don’t forget to add water to the bottom of the pot).
Pressure cook them on manual high pressure for 22 minutes. Quick release the pressure when the timer beeps.
Once the pressure has fully released, carefully remove the cover and lift out the sweet potatoes.
Step 2: Prepare Casserole
Carefully remove the peels from the sweet potatoes (they should peel off easily). Then, place them in a large bowl and use your potato masher to break them up.
Add eggs.
Also add sugar, butter, and heavy cream. Then, use the masher to combine the ingredients.
When you’re done mashing, your sweet potato mixture should look like this:
Pour the sweet potato mixture into a stackable pan. If you follow the recipe card below, you’ll actually need to use two pans.
Step 3: Prepare Topping
Now it’s time to make that deliciously sweet, crumbly topping. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, melted butter, flour, and chopped pecans.
Step 4: Add the Topping
Spread the topping evenly over the mixture in the stackable pan(s).
Step 5: Pressure Cook
Before lowering your casserole dish into the Instant Pot, add a cup of water to the inner liner. Then, insert the pans on a trivet.
Secure the lid, making sure the valve is set to sealing. Press “Manual” and set the time for 20 minutes. When time is up, do a quick release of the pressure.
Step 6: Serve and Enjoy
Remove the pans from the Instant Pot and transfer to a serving dish. Top with additional chopped pecans, if you prefer.
If you expect your Thanksgiving feast to last a while, leave one pan in the Instant Pot on warm and retrieve it when the first batch is almost gone.
❓ Recipe FAQs
Substitute coconut oil or vegan butter for the butter, and use coconut cream or almond milk in place of the heavy cream. Ensure any dairy-free replacements have a similar consistency to maintain the texture of the filling.
Yes, you can reduce the sugar in both the filling and the topping. For the filling, try reducing it to 1 cup or even 3/4 cup of granulated sugar. For the topping, you can use 1 cup of brown sugar instead of 1 1/2 cups. Keep in mind that this may alter the sweetness and texture slightly.
To reheat the casserole, cover it with foil and bake at 350°F (175°C) until heated through (about 15-20 minutes). You can also reheat individual portions in the microwave.
🙏 Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole:
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📋 Recipe
Instant Pot Sweet Potato Casserole
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Equipment
- Instant Pot
- Steamer basket
- Stackable insert pans or casserole dish
Ingredients
Potatoes:
- 3 pounds sweet potatoes
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup butter melted
- 3 eggs
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
Topping:
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- 5 tablespoons butter melted
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups pecans chopped
Instructions
- Place potatoes in a steamer basket over 1 cup water in the inner pot of your Instant Pot. Secure lid and set valve to sealing. Press “Manual” and set time for 22 minutes. When the cook time has finished, move the valve to venting to quick release the pressure. After the pressure has fully released remove the sweet potatoes from the Instant Pot.3 pounds sweet potatoes
- Carefully remove peelings and mash in a large bowl with a potato masher (if you don’t have one, you can use a fork). Add in the sugar, butter, eggs and heavy cream and mix together until smooth.1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 1/3 cup butter, 3 eggs, 1/3 cup heavy cream
- In a separate bowl, mix together the topping ingredients.1 ½ cups brown sugar, 5 tablespoons butter, 2/3 cup all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups pecans
- Place potatoes in a casserole dish or pan that fits into the Instant Pot (it is okay to divide between two pans) and then cover with the topping.
- Add 1 cup of water to the inner pot of the Instant Pot and then lower the casserole dish into the inner pot on a trivet. Cook on high pressure for 20 minutes and allow for a quick release of pressure when the cooking time has finished.