Instant Pot Potato Salad

Instant pot potato salad is a quick and easy side dish that is made in your instant pot mini! The potatoes and eggs cook at the same time--in just 5 minutes. Stir together the mayonnaise dressing while everything cooks, mix and chill before serving.

Grilling side dishes:

Quick--you've just been invited to a summer barbecue and you volunteered to bring a side dish! What do you bring that is fast, delicious and crowd-pleasing? This instant pot potato salad is the winner, my friends! Everything cooks in the instant pot in 5 minutes--have I sold you yet?! 

I'm using my instant pot a lot during the summer because I love cooking without having to turn on the stove or oven! My instant pot mini is my one pot meal workhorse. Yes, I use the mini, or smallest model of the instant pot because I'm cooking for two.

Most of my recipes for the instant pot mini serve 3-4, especially my instant pot mac and cheese. My instant pot chicken soup recipe makes 3 bowls of soup, and I think it's the perfect amount for small households. This instant pot potato salad makes 6 side dish servings. 

If you're cooking with the regular sized 6-quart instant pot, just double the recipe, but keep the same cooking time! It will turn out great, and you'll have enough potato salad for a crowd.

Classic potato salad in instant pot:

I like to think that I have some authority on potato salad, since I'm from Texas and hardly knew a summer without potlucks with mayonnaise based salads. When we say salad, we usually don't mean a green leafy salads with vegetables. Macaroni salad is another great example of this.

Speaking of Southern foods, you should check out my funeral potatoes recipe--it's another incredible way to enjoy potatoes!

So, this isn't the first time I've used the instant pot to make potatoes. My instant pot mashed potatoes recipe that I serve at every holiday taught me how the pressure cooker makes quick work of potatoes!

With this recipe, you cook the potatoes and the eggs in the pot at the same time! The total cook time is 5 minutes--just 5 minutes, friends! 

Instant pot potato salad steps:

First, gather your ingredients. Potato salad ingredients are pretty simple, but you do have some choices. I use baby Yukon golds because I like potatoes with skin in my potato salad. If that's not how you like them, instead, grab 1.5 pounds of regular-sized Yukon golds and peel and dice them.

You also need ¾ cup of mayonnaise, 1 or 2 tablespoons of yellow mustard, ¼ cup of dill pickle relish (yes, you can use sweet pickle relish instead), and 2 green onions. Not pictured are ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper. Potatoes love black pepper!

Add the diced potatoes to the instant pot. I dice them into bite-size pieces before adding them to the instant pot--each piece should be about the size of a grape.

Next, wash the eggs and then nestle them on top of the potatoes in the pot. Yes, they really have the same cooking time!

The potatoes and eggs just need 1 cup of cold water in the pot to cook. Then, put the lid on the instant pot, turn the valve to sealing, and pressure cook for 5 minutes.

While the potatoes and eggs cook, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard, dill pickle relish, salt and pepper. Slice the green onions and set aside.

When the instant pot timer goes off, release the pressure immediately using a wooden spoon to open the valve. Remember to stand back and avoid the hot steam. Once the valve drops, drain the water from the pot and place the potatoes in a serving bowl. 

While the potatoes are still warm, add the mayonnaise dressing and stir to coat. The warm potatoes will start to absorb the dressing. Meanwhile, peel the eggs and chop them.

Add the chopped eggs to the potato salad and stir.

Add the chopped scallions, stir and then chill in the fridge for a few hours before serving.

Totally optional, but I like to sprinkle on some Cajun spices, just for a little kick. This is totally optional here. Most people sprinkle paprika over potato salad for color, but I say use Cajun spices for flavor!

Small batch potato salad:

This serving bowl has about 6 side dish sized servings  and uses 1.5 pounds of potatoes. It's perfect for a weeknight side dish with a few leftover servings for lunch the next day. You can always double this recipe for more servings and make it in a larger instant pot. Please note that the cooking time stays the same if you double the recipe and cook it in the larger instant pot.

I am happy to have this recipe in my arsenal! It's going to make summer cook-outs a breeze. Plus, it's an easy side dish if you're dropping dinner off at someone's house, too. It keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days, tightly wrapped.

One final note: traditional potato salad uses sweet pickles instead of dill pickles. My tastebuds lean towards punchy dill pickles, and I've been known to drink pickle juice and sauerkraut juice straight from the jar. If you want to make this recipe with sweet relish, you will love it, too!