Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes (Vegan, Paleo)

Need a new way to jazz up sweet potatoes? Try this spicy, sweet, and savory Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes recipe—from start to finish, it can be made in just 30 minutes! Perked up with a dash of cayenne pepper, lime juice, and fresh cilantro, this vegan, Whole30, and paleo mash goes well with everything!

Not Your Ordinary Sweet Potato Mash

Most mashed sweet potato recipes are overly sweet and just plain one-dimensional. Not this one! My nomtastic version combines the earthy sweetness of sweet potatoes, the tingle of cayenne pepper, the zing of fresh lime juice, the assertively herbaceous kick of fresh cilantro—all tied together with a splash of creamy coconut milk. The resulting paleo-friendly mash makes the perfect accompaniment for a meal as special as Thanksgiving Spatchcocked Turkey or one as simple as weeknight Cracklin’ Chicken.

What Kind of Sweet Potato Should You Use?

For this recipe, use the orange-fleshed sweet potatoes that can be easily found at most local grocery stores, like the garnet or jewel varieties. You’ll end up with a dazzling orange mash that will cook in just 10 minutes under high pressure.

A hand holding two unpeeled garnet sweet potatoes.

Pro tip: cut the sweet potatoes into pieces that are no thicker than 1-inch so they’ll soften uniformly in the pot.

A bowl of sweet potatoes cut into cubes

Better in an Instant Pot

I’m always extolling the virtues of pressure cooking in an electric pressure like the Instant Pot. After all, if you can make a dish faster and easier, why wouldn’t you? This Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potato recipe is no exception!

Someone dumping sweet potato cubes into an open Instant Pot

Please note that in this recipe, the only liquid you need to add is a half cup of coconut milk. No, it’s not a typo. The sweet potatoes will end up releasing their own liquid and the contents will come up to pressure without burning. Trust me—have I ever steered you wrong? Also, you can pressure-cook the sweet potatoes ahead of time and keep them warm until you’re ready to season and mash them!

Need more Instant Pot recipes? Go here for my epic list.

No Instant Pot?

No problem! You can cook this sweet potato mash on the stovetop instead—but it’ll take longer and you’ll have to baby-sit it. Simply add the ingredients in a large saucepan, bring them to a boil, and simmer covered for 40 to 50 minutes or until the sweet potato pieces are fork tender.

An overhead shot of two hands holding a pot with cubed sweet potatoes, coconut milk, garlic, and salt.

Make Ahead, Freezing, and Reheating Instructions

The best thing about this Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potato recipe is that you can make it ahead and it’ll still reheat beautifully. Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months.

You can easily reheat the sweet potato mash in the microwave, on the stovetop, or even in your Instant Pot on the sauté setting. If you want to make it ahead and serve it for company, add the cayenne pepper, lime juice, and fresh cilantro after you reheat the mash—no one will suspect that it’s not made to order!

Ingredient Substitutions

No coconut milk? You can use another dairy-free milk in place of the coconut milk or even heavy cream if you eat dairy.
Hate spicy? Leave out the cayenne pepper and season to taste with black pepper instead.
Does cilantro taste soapy to you? For all you cilantro haters, minced chives are a great replacement.
No limes? Adding fresh lime juice helps balance the sweetness of the taters and the heat from the cayenne, but you can leave it out if you want a more traditional mashed sweet potato dish. If you like the acidity but don’t have limes on hand, lemon juice or sherry vinegar also works.

More Whole30 Vegetable Mash recipes

Time to Make Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes!

Serves 6

Ingredients:

2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes (I like using Garnet sweet potatoes or other orange fleshed sweet potatoes)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
½ cup full-fat coconut milk
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tablespoons minced cilantro

Equipment:

All my favorite tools are listed here. This is my favorite Instant Pot model.

Method:

Plop the sweet potatoes, minced garlic, salt, and coconut milk in the metal insert of an Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker.

Pouring coconut milk into an Instant Pot filled with cubed sweet potatoes and minced garlic.

Lock the lid…

Putting the lid on an Instant Pot to cook mashed sweet potatoes.

…and program the Instant Pot to cook under high pressure for 10 minutes.

The front display of an Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus the says 10 minutes and high pressure

When the sweet potatoes are done cooking, release the pressure immediately.

A dark haired smiling woman is manually releasing the pressure on an Instant Pot and the steam is right in front of her face.

Add in the cayenne pepper and lime juice.

A brunette smiling lady is pouring fresh lime juice into an open Instant pot

Blitz the vegetables with an immersion blender or mash with a potato masher until smooth. Taste and add more salt if needed.

An overhead shot of an immersion blender blending together instant pot mashed sweet potatoes

Mix in the cilantro (or chives if you’re a cilantro hater)…

A brunette smiling woman is adding minced cilantro to an open Instant Pot

…stir well, and plate it up!

Scooping up Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes into a black bowl.

This Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes is perfect for fast weeknight meals or fancy holiday suppers!

An overhead shot of a a hand scooping vegan and paleo Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes from a black bowl.

Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013) and Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017)!

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