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Instant Pot Baked Potatoes is the easiest way to enjoy a fluffy, tender baked potato in record time! Regardless of the size of your potato, this recipe will walk you through the step-by-step process to guarantee fork-tender, creamy baked potatoes--without the need to turn on the oven!
Looking for more Instant Pot potato recipes? Don't miss my recipes for Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, Instant Pot Potato Soup, Instant Pot Potato Corn Chowder, and Instant Pot Potato Salad.
My Favorite Way to "Bake" Potatoes
Don't you agree that a classic baked potato is one of the most perfect side dishes? From my London broil recipe to blackened chicken to a pan-seared ribeye steak, baked potatoes complements just about any main course.
But on busy nights, I don't have a lot of time to bake potatoes. And on hot summer nights, the last thing I want to do is turn on the oven to make baked potatoes.
The Instant Pot solves those issues by making perfect baked potatoes in record time without heating up the kitchen.
Kristen's Tips for Perfect Potatoes
- Russet potatoes make the BEST baked potatoes. Their high starch content yields a pillowy, fluffy interior.
- Always start with cold water. Use cold tap water, not warm or hot water, as the temperature of the water will change the time it takes the Instant Pot takes to come to pressure, which impacts the cook time.
- Use a trivet to keep the potatoes from being submerged in the water as they cook. No trivet? Ball up some tin foil and place it right into the water in the inner pot and lay your potatoes on top of the foil.
- Size Matters! Cook time is based on size of potatoes, so be sure to select potatoes similar in size and follow the guidelines provided to ensure accurate cooking time.
How to Make Baked Potatoes in the Instant Pot
The following tips are provided to help you achieve perfect results. You will find the ingredient quantities and detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Prepare Instant Pot. Pour 1-½ cups of cold tap water into the inner pot and insert the trivet.
- Prepare Potatoes. Scrub the potatoes well and prick the potatoes several times with a fork or knife to allow steam and pressure to escape the potatoes as they cook.
- Stack the potatoes on trivet. Place the prepared potatoes onto the rack inside the inner pot. It will not impact the cooking time if you make 1 or 6 baked potatoes.
- Pressure Cook. Place the lid on the inner pot and be sure the vent knob is sealed. Set the cooking time to HIGH pressure and adjust the time according to the size of your potatoes.
- Let the Pressure Release Naturally. Allow the pressure to release naturally for at least 10 minutes. This just means to DO NOTHING and leave your instant pot alone. If after 10 minutes the pressure has not released fully, you can turn the valve to the venting position to release any remaining pressure.
- Serve. Cut the potato open, season with salt and pepper and serve with toppings of choice.
How to Determine Cook Time
While I have provided timings based on the diameter and/or weight of your potato, don't stress over being exact. Most potatoes sold in bulk bags at the grocery store are medium-sized. Those sold in bulk bins are typically large, and those sold at warehouses (like Costco) are extra large.
- Small Potatoes: 12 minutes (2-3 inches in diameter/5-7 ounces)
- Medium Potatoes:16 minutes (3-4 inches in diameter/8-10 ounces)
- Large Potatoes: 22 minutes (4-4.5 inches in diameter/11-13 ounces
- Extra Large Potatoes: 26 minutes (5 inches in diameter/15-16 ounces)
Serving Suggestions
Baked potatoes are great served classically with butter, sour cream, cheddar cheese, chives and/or crumbled baked bacon but there are so many more delicious ways to use Instant Pot Baked Potatoes.
- Stuff the Instant Pot Baked Potatoes with leftover Instant Pot pulled pork, taco meat, or Instant Pot chili and shredded cheese for an easy meal that transforms leftovers into something spectacular.
- Use these baked potatoes to make speed up the process of making twice baked potatoes or Potatoes Romanoff
- Dice up cooled baked potatoes and use to make a quick breakfast hash or as the base for a potato frittata.
- Allow the potatoes to cool fully then cut into wedges. Brush with olive oil and season with seasoned salt and bake the potato wedges at 450 degrees F for 10-15 minutes until crispy and golden for easy "fries."
- Transform the leftover potato skins into crispy, cheesy potato Skins using my recipe for baked potato skins or air fryer potato skins.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Allow the Instant Pot Baked Potatoes to cool fully and then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Reheat: Reheat the potatoes by placing them on a rack in the instant pot over 1.5 cups of cold water and cook on high for 3 minutes. Alternatively, microwave one potato at a time on a heat-safe plate for 1 to 2 minutes or reheat the potatoes in a 400 degree F oven for 15-30 minutes until warmed through.
Recipe FAQs
Just like ovens, the way an instant pot cooks can vary. If your potatoes are not fully cooked after the suggested cook time, place the lid back on the inner pot and cook for 2-5 minutes longer on high pressure. Take note of that added time so you can adjust the cooking time in the future.
You can cook as few as 1 potato or up to 8 potatoes in a 6-quart instant pot, and up to 8 potatoes in an 8-quart instant pot. However, if you are working with extra large potatoes, I would not cook more than 6 potatoes at a time.
While Instant Pot Baked Potatoes, have the same texture of oven baked potatoes, they don't have the same crispy exterior as an oven-baked potato. You can achieve that texture by broiling or quickly baking the potatoes. Simply place the pressure-cooked potatoes onto a rimmed baking pan, brush with olive oil or melted butter, sprinkle with kosher salt, and bake at 400-degrees F for 10 minutes or place under broiler on high for 2-3 minutes per side.
If you are cooking at a higher altitude, you will need to adjust the cooking time. Refer to my Instant Pot Altitude Guide for guidance.
More Staple Instant Pot Recipes
If you enjoyed this easy method for making Instant Pot Baked Potatoes, I would love for you to leave a comment and review below.
Instant Pot Baked Potatoes
Video
Ingredients
- 1-8 medium potatoes, scrubbed clean
Instructions
- Place 1 cup cold water in the inner pot of pressure cooker pan and place trivet in instant pot. Note: Use 1.5 cups of cold water in an 8-quart Instant Pot.
- Scrub the potatoes well and then pierce potatoes 5-6 times with a fork to allow pressure to release while cooking.
- Add the potatoes carefully on trivet (stacking on top of each other if needed). Place the lid on the instant pot and seal the valve.
- Hit the manual or pressure cook button and be sure HIGH pressure is selected. Adjust cook time to 12 minutes for medium potatoes, 16 for average/larger potatoes, and 22 minutes for really large potatoes. See notes on sizes.
- Once cook time has elapsed, allow pressure to naturally release for at least 10 minutes before doing a quick release of pressure. Remove potatoes from Instant Pot and serve up with whatever toppings you like.
- If desiring crispy skin, brush the pressure-cooked potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, and place onto a baking sheet. Bake at 400-degree F for 10 minutes or broil for 2-3 minutes per side until crispy.
Notes
- 10 minutes for small potatoes (less than 2 inches in diameter or 4-5 ounces)
- 12 minutes for medium potatoes (between 2-3 inches in diameter or 5-7 ounces)
- 16 minutes for large potatoes (between 3-4 inches in diameter or 8-10 ounces)
- 20 minutes for extra-large potatoes (4-4.5 inches in diameter or 11-13 ounces)
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally shared in 2017 but updated in 2024.
It would be super helpful if you could provide approximate weights for the potatoes instead of just saying “small, medium, large.”
Thanks for the tutorial! I haven’t quite got it perfected yet but your instructions provide a good starting point.
That is a great suggestion.
A regular potato would be between 5-6 ounces
A large potato would be over 6 ounces--closer to 8 ounces
A small potato would be about 4 ounces.
Hope that helps!
I just got a lot for Xmas and thank you for the step by directions. I really need all the help to understand this instant pot
Hi Debbie! I understand the pressure cooker is intimidating until you really understand it. I have this post on Instant Pot 101 to help OR I have a course with videos explaining everything–sometimes it helps to watch the video. Please don't hesitate to reach out with questions you may have.
Omg yum and perfect!!!! Yes poke dem taters lol and whoever came up with the instant pot for cooking foods is a genius and earned their wings in heaven! 🙂 I gotta brag about this recipe to my mom she'll be dying to try it out. Thank you so much for a perfect recipe!
You are so incredibly welcome Bethany! I am hope you enjoy for years to come!
Have you ever tried this with Red potatoes?
Hi Dana! If you are looking for a baked red potato, this recipe will work, but red potatoes never get quite as creamy as a russet potato. I would instead use this recipe for crispy, yet creamy red potatoes: Enjoy!
My instant pot nova plus says a minimum of 18 oz of water should be used when pressure cooking anything. Your recipe for baked potatoes calls for 1 cup (8 oz) water. How will using 18 oz of water affect this recipe?
Hi Patricia, the recipe will remain the same..it may just take slightly longer to come to pressure.
I was wondering if you could "bake" a mixture of Russets and Sweet Potatoes in the same batch in an Instant Pot?
Hi Mike! I really like my sweet potatoes cooked until SUPER soft, which take longer than russets. However, if you would like to do both together, use smaller sweet potatoes and medium russet potatoes and cook for 15 minutes on high pressure.
I’ve made this few times and I am currently making this and I plan on straining it to make the baked potatoes. This Recipe is very good and Thanks for your help!
I LOVE using baked potatoes for mashed potatoes, they turn out perfectly! Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving.