Instant Pot Baked Potatoes are the quickest & easiest recipe for light and fluffy baked potatoes that come out perfectly cooked every time! Enjoy with a dollop of fresh homemade guacamole or serve alongside my favorite burger.
There’s something about a perfectly fluffy baked potato that just makes dinner seem so darn good.
Topped with butter, maybe some bacon and sour cream and chives? Oh, man!! That’s my kind of vegetable!
The downside is heating up the oven.
And the bake time.
And poking the potato to see if it’s done yet… over and over.
Good news friends! With Instant Pot baked potatoes, that fluffy baked potato takes just 12 minutes to cook!
Instant Pot Baked Potatoes
If you’ve never made Instant Pot baked potatoes before, you’re in for a treat! It’s everything you wanted out of a potato, and a side dish!
- Quick & easy
- Light & Fluffy
- Doesn’t heat up the house
- Perfectly Cooked
- Doesn’t require you to check for doneness
- Can be made while you’re sleeping, or out of the house
Seriously, making baked potatoes in the Instant Pot is a busy mom’s dream come true!
One Ingredient for Perfect Instant Pot Baked Potatoes
And if the fact that you can make Instant Pot baked potatoes HANDS OFF isn’t enough to sell you, get this – you only need one actual ingredient: POTATOES!
Well, you could make this with just one potato, but why not make extra? It doesn’t take any extra cook time and you’re not standing there managing the oven anyway. Take advantage of the convenience of cooking with the Instant Pot!
How do you make baked potatoes in the Instant Pot?
Here’s how to make baked potatoes in the Instant Pot:
Step 1: Add water and a trivet to the Instant Pot. (The trivet comes with the Instant Pot, but you can buy an extra if you’ve lost yours. You’ll use it ALL THE TIME – promise.)
Make sure you’re using room temperature or cold water from the tap. Do NOT use hot or boiling water.
Do you HAVE to use water? Yes! That’s what allows the Instant Pot to come to pressure and the water will steam the potatoes.
Step 2: Scrub your potatoes and poke holes with either a knife or a fork.
For best results, cook 4-8 potatoes at a time. Using less or more potatoes will alter the cooking time (strange, I know!). If you don’t need that many potatoes, use leftovers in Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes or Leftover Pork and Potato Soup.
(Note: Poking holes is important, whether you cook potatoes in the Instant Pot or the oven. Steam builds up inside the potato and if there’s nowhere for the steam to go, it will forcibly leave the potato… meaning your potato will explode!)
Step 3: Place your potatoes on the trivet.
Do you HAVE to use the trivet or the rack? Yes! If you don’t, your potatoes will get watery and mushy.
You do not need to wrap the potatoes in aluminum foil! Just place the potatoes naked on the trivet.
Step 4: Place the lid on the Instant Pot, set the pressure valve to “sealing.” Cook on high pressure for 10-20 minutes, depending on the size of your potato (see my notes below).
Step 5: When the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally.
Psst! Want to kick these potatoes up a notch? Try a pinch of finishing salt before serving! I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because it doesn’t have microplastics (gross, right?) and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a bag for just 1¢!! (Get your penny bag of salt on this page.)
Instant Pot baked potatoes are great with BBQ pulled pork, or shredded chicken with homemade Frank’s copycat hot sauce!
How long do you cook a baked potato in the Instant Pot?
The cook time for baked potatoes in the Instant Pot depends on how big your potatoes are.
Because potatoes come in all sorts of sizes, I’ve given you two ways to measure the size – diameter of the potato and weight. If you have a kitchen scale, this is a great time to use it! (If you don’t have a kitchen scale, this is the one I have. I cannot recommend it enough, and I use it ALL THE TIME!)
- Small Potatoes (2” or less in diameter, or 4-5 ounces): 10 minutes cook time
- Medium Potatoes (2-3” in diameter, or 6-7 ounces): 12 minutes cook time
- Large Potato (3-4” in diameter, or 8-10 ounces): 16 minutes cook time
- Extra Large Potato (4-4.5” in diameter, or 11-13 ounces): 20 minutes cook time
What to serve with Instant Pot baked potatoes?
- Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breasts
- Oven Roasted Whole Chicken
- Blackened Salmon
- Steak with Montreal Seasoning
Other Instant Pot Basic Recipes
- Instant Pot White Rice
- Homemade Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Steamed Vegetables
- Hard-Boiled Eggs in the Instant Pot
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- Prep Time: 2 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 22 minutes
- Yield: 4–8 potatoes 1x
- Category: Sides
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4–8 potatoes, scrubbed clean
Instructions
- Add 1 cup of room temperature or cold water and the trivet to the Instant Pot. (If you have an 8 quart Instant Pot, add 1 ½ cups water).
- Poke the potatoes at least twice with a fork or a knife to allow steam to escape while cooking.
- Place the potatoes on the trivet, place the lid on the Instant Pot, and set the pressure valve to “sealing.”
- Cook on high pressure for 10-20 minutes, depending on the size of your potato (see my notes below).
- When the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally.
Notes
Notes:
The cook time depends on the size of the potato. Use this guide to help determine how long to cook your potato in the Instant Pot:
- Small Potatoes (2” or less in diameter, or 4-5 ounces): 10 minutes cook time
- Medium Potatoes (2-3” in diameter, or 6-7 ounces): 12 minutes cook time
- Large Potato (3-4” in diameter, or 8-10 ounces): 16 minutes cook time
- Extra Large Potato (4-4.5” in diameter, or 11-13 ounces): 20 minutes cook time
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