Instant pot sweet potato gratin is quicker than its oven-baked version but tastes equally delicious. Sweet potatoes, rich sauce are layered & topped with cheese.
Guys, do you love sweet potatoes? I hope you do because today I have this Instant Pot sweet potato gratin on the menu!
This creamy pressure cooker sweet potato gratin can also be made with any potatoes of your choice, in case you are not a fan of sweet potatoes. And guys, if you don’t have a pressure cooker but still want to make this Instant Pot sweet potato gratin then you can do so as well.
As you might have already noticed, I cook in my Instant Pot a lot because it saves me time, money and I don’t have to babysit it. If you own one, you might like these easy recipes:
How to make sweet potato gratin in Instant Pot?
First things first: You will need a steam rack with handles (that probably came with your Instant Pot), a springform pan that you can fit in your inner pot and tin foil.
This Instant Pot sweet potato gratin is pretty easy to make. Start off with slicing sweet potatoes really thin. If you have a mandolin, use it! If you don’t have one, don’t panic. Just use a knife and slice them as thin as possible.
Once you have done this, season them with salt, pepper and dried garlic. Give them a good mix. You want each slice to be coated in some seasoning.
Now move onto making the creamy white sauce. It takes about 5 minutes to make. Get a small or medium sauce pan and pour olive oil in. Let it heat up before adding the flour. Now keep stirring until well combined.
Add the cream while stirring constantly. Bring this to a boil and stir around until it gets thicker. When it does, turn off the heat. Stir in the cheese and butter. You can taste it and add some more salt, if you feel like it is needed. But make sure you taste it first. You don’t want to end up with over-salted dish. You see some types of cheese are very salty so if melted into a sauce, they not only flavor the sauce but also season it.
I used a 7 inch/18cm wide and 3.5 inch/9cm deep springform round cake pan for this Instant Pot sweet potato gratin. Start with covering the bottom of the cake pan with potatoes. I cut them very thin so I do 2-3 layers before spreading the white sauce over. Then I repeat this again and again. So I usually end up with 3 layers of sweet potatoes, 3 layers of white sauce and one layer of cheese (the top layer).
This I cover with tin foil as I don’t want any steam dripping onto the gratin. Then the process is pretty simple: Pour water in your Instant pot, put in the steam rack and place the springform pan onto the rack.
Close the lid, lock it and set the manual to 30 minutes. Yes, it still takes 30 minutes to cook but bear in mind that if you made this sweet potato gratin in the oven, you would need somewhere between 1 hour 15 minutes to 1½ hour to bake them. So even with the pressure building up and releasing (which is in this case pretty fast) you will definitely save at least half an hour.
Also with the keep warm function, the pot will keep your food warm for several hours (apparently up to 10 hours) so I’d say it’s pretty handy. You could make this Instant Pot sweet potato gratin ahead and let it inside (without opening it) until you are ready to serve I guess.
Good to know when making Instant Pot Sweet Potato Gratin:
- This actually applies to any gratin – the warmer it is the juicier it looks which also means that it is almost impossible to get a nice slice. The longer you wait – the colder it gets which means the cheese and white sauce will set and if you wanted, you could slice it with a knife and reheat it.
- Make sure the cake pan you have will fit into the pot. Check this with the steam rack in and lid closed. If you can close the lid without any problem, then you are good to go.
- You can make this Instant Pot sweet potato gratin with any oven proof cake pan that will fit inside your inner pot.
- This recipe has enough white sauce for almost 2 pounds of potatoes.
- Cut sweet potatoes evenly and thinly so they will be ready at the same time.
Can I make this sweet potato gratin without Instant Pot?
Yes, you can still make this dish. Just use an oven-proof casserole or any dish you have on hand instead of the springform pan – actually, you can also use the springform pan, if you have nothing else.
You can cover the pan/oven-proof dish with tin foil and remove it about 10 minutes before the end so the cheese on top will get some crust.
The baking time will be way longer so count with 80-90 minutes (or longer). The baking time may vary. When I bake potato gratin in the oven I know it will take at least 80 minutes to bake.
Instant Pot owners! If you are looking for some recipe ideas, check out these Easy Instant Pot Recipes!
Want to see how to make Instant Pot Sweet Potato Gratin? Watch the video!
Instant Pot Sweet Potato Gratin
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds Sweet Potatoes (700 grams)
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 tablespoon Dried Garlic Powder
- 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 tablespoons Flour
- 2 cups Heavy Cream (500 ml)
- 5.5 ounce Grated Cheddar Cheese (155 grams)
- 1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
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Instructions
- Wash, peel and thinly slice sweet potatoes. Place them in a large bowl and add salt, pepper and dried garlic. Mix until the slices are coated in seasoning.
- To make the creamy sauce: heat the oil in a small-medium sauce pan. Add flour and whisk until well combined. Cook for about a minute. Now add the cream while constantly stirring. Bring this to a boil (while stirring) and turn off the heat. Stir in grated cheese and butter (optional).
- Cover the bottom of your springform pan with 2-3 layers of sweet potato slices, spread about 3 tablespoons white sauce over. Continue until you have used up all your sweet potato slices and white sauce. Finally top with a generous amount of grated cheese.
- Cover the pan with tin foil. Place steam rack (with handles) in your instant pot. Add the water and place the pan inside. Cover with lid and lock.
- Turn the steam release to “SEALING”. Press “MANUAL” and set the timer to 30 minutes.
- When the cooking cycle is finished, wait until the steam is released naturally (until the pin drops down). Take the pan out, let it cool down a bit and serve.
Notes
- This recipe was made in a 6 quart/6 liter Instant Pot.
- Springform pan size: 7 inch/18cm wide and 3.5 inch/9cm deep.
- The cooking time does not include time needed for the pot to come to pressure and also time needed to release the pressure.
- If you serve this immediately, the sauce will be runny and cheese nicely melted. However, the gratin will not hold its shape.
- If you want to divide into individual portions and slice it nicely, wait until it’s cooled down.
- This gratin can be made ahead and reheated, if needed.
- If you don’t have a pressure cooker, follow the same instructions but place it in the oven instead of Instant Pot. The baking time will be somewhere between 80-90 minutes.
April says
I just saw this on Pinterest and thought wow that looks different but in a delicious way!
Julia says
How much water do you need to add to IP? Would 1 cup be enough? This recipe looks really yummy and I love all the beautiful layers of this dish
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
I always add one and a half cup.
Jessica says
Love how quickly this comes together! This would be a hit at our house!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thank you, Jessica!
Sandi says
What a fabulous idea. I bet my kids would devour those sweet potatoes this way.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks, Sandi!
chris says
This genuinely looks like one of the most delicious potato gratins I’ve ever seen! And it’s with sweet potato!? I’m sold.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks so much, Chris! :)
Jessie says
WOW. This looks absolutely incredible and delicious! I’m inspired.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thank you :)
Virginia says
I made this recipe yesterday, trying it out before the holiday gets here. :) It’s delicious, and I’ll definitely be serving it for Thanksgiving!
One note: I wasn’t sure how to divide the cheese. Ingredient list calls for 5.5 oz cheddar, but instructions call for some in the sauce and some on top. I estimated quantities and am happy with the result, though.
Also, finely crushed pecans make a fabulous optional topping!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Hi Virginia, thanks so much for your feedback. You can just use half of the cheese for the sauce and the rest for topping or even increase if you like. I will fix the instructions though to make them clearer. Thank you for letting me know!