Instant Pot meatloaf and mashed potatoes is a pot-in-pot (PIP) recipe that gives you a complete comfort food meal with minimal cleanup.

Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes on a plate


 

With the weather turning chilly, there’s nothing better than some good old fashioned comfort food. One of our favorite all time comfort food meals is meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

Most of the time, making that dinner is a tedious affair. Between the bowls and pots and pans, it’s just a pain. Cooking it in the Instant Pot changes all that thanks to this easy technique, known as pot-in-pot (PIP) which allows you to cook your entire meal in one pot at the same time!

We have a few baked meatloaf recipes we love to . If you are eating low carb (or even if you aren’t) you’ve got to try our Keto Meatloaf or our Big Mac Meatloaf stuffed with cheese!

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ingredients for Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes

What You’ll Need

You’ll need a few different things for the meatloaf, glaze, and potatoes. Here’s how it all breaks down.

For the meatloaf

  • Ground beef – if you prefer, you could use other meats such as turkey or chicken
  • Onion – we use yellow or white, but you could use others if you prefer
  • Panko breadcrumbs – we like panko best, but you can use other varieties if you prefer
  • Large egg – helps hold it altogether and form the loaf
  • Worcestershire sauce – a great seasoning tool that helps bring a bold flavor to just about any food.
  • Spices – garlic powder and salt

For the glaze

  • Ketchup – for a sweet, somewhat tart flavor
  • Packed brown sugar – adds some added sweetness
  • Worcestershire sauce – sort of a go to sauce for nearly any occasion that adds some great extra flavor
chopped potatoes in Instant Pot

For the potatoes

  • Yukon gold potatoes – Yukon gold makes great mashed potatoes, but you could use other varieties if you prefer
  • Water – helps prevent the potatoes from being dry
  • Kosher salt – you can omit if you are following  a low sodium diet
  • Creaminess – to add a nice creamy texture, we use butter, cream cheese and milk
silicone insert for Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes

What Equipment You’ll Need 

Here’s what you’ll need to make great tasting meatloaf and mashed potatoes in the Instant Pot.

  • 6 Quart Instant PotThe 6 quart Instant Pot is a pressure cooker loaded with extra features and safety measures. It is perfect for making soups, sauces, gravies, roasts, potatoes, and meatloaf. We use ours just about every day which makes it one of the best investments we’ve ever made in a kitchen gadget.
  • Trivet – the Instant Pot comes with a trivet that you can use or you can add additional trivets to either keep delicate foods from the bottom or separate different food from each other. In this case, we use the trivet to set the meatloaf pan on top of the potatoes.
    -OR-
  • Trivet sling – A trivet sling comes with silicon or other wings that stick up from the trivet. The sling allows you to easily remove a pan from the Instant Pot with out burning your hands or spilling it and making a mess. This is what we use in this recipe, but you can easily make a sling at home if you prefer. 
  • 7-inch Springform panA springform pan makes it really easy to remove the meatloaf from the pan when you are done making it. 
    -OR-
  • 7-inch Pan – If you don’t have a springform pan, you can use any 7-inch pan in your arsenal. We recommend lining the pan with foil to make it easier to remove the meatloaf from the pan once cooked.

New to using an Instant Pot? Make sure you read our beginner’s guide on “How to Use an Instant Pot” to get started!

Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes on a plate

What is a Pot-in-Pot Recipe? 

The Instant Pot is an incredibly diverse tool, which is part of its massive appeal! One way to use your Instant Pot is to create a Pot-in-Pot (PIP). A PIP allows you to cook an entire meal in the Instant Pot at the same time! 
The PIP method keeps your food separate as it cooks together. The biggest thing to keep in mind is you need to make sure the pan you use is small enough to let steam rise up from the bottom as everything cooks. We use the 6 quart Instant Pot and find that 7-inch pans are perfect for this.

how make Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes

How to Make It

Mix the meat. In a large bowl, mix the ground beef, onion, panko breadcrumbs, egg, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, and salt. Mix until it is all well combined. You may find using your hands is easiest.

Prepare and fill the pan. Line a 7-inch springform or regular pan with aluminum foil. Once lined, press the meatloaf mixture into the springform pan and set aside. 

Add the potatoes. Pour the water into the inner pot and mix in the Kosher salt. Place the potatoes in the pot. 

Add the meatloaf. First, get your trivet ready. You can either use a sling trivet with wings or a trivet with aluminum foil. If you are using a sling trivet, place the trivet on top of the potatoes and place the pan with the meatloaf on top. Make sure the wings are sticking up so you can easily grab them when the meat is done. 

If you are using a normal trivet, take a 12 inch rectangle of aluminium foil and fold it in half lengthwise. Place the aluminum foil under the pan and make sure the sides are sticking up. Use the aluminum foil wings to lower the pan with the meatloaf to rest on the trivet.

Cook. Place the lid on the Instant Pot with the vent set to sealing. Select manual pressure cook and set to high pressure and cook for 30 minutes. Allow the Instant Pot to release pressure naturally for 10 minutes before quick releasing the remaining pressure.

Prep while it cooks. As the Instant Pot is cooking, preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. While they both heat, whisk together the ketchup, brown sugar, and worcestershire sauce to make the meatloaf glaze. 

Add the glaze. Once the pressure has released, carefully remove the meatloaf pan using the sling arms. Pour off any excess grease in the pan and then spread the glaze over the top. Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 7 to 10 minutes or until the top has caramelized.

Mash the potatoes. As the meatloaf finishes in the oven, pour off any excess water from the potatoes and place them in a bowl. Next, add the butter and cream cheese and begin to mash. If the consistency is too dry, add 1 tablespoon of milk. Add more milk as needed in 1 tablespoon amounts until a desired consistency is reached.

Serve. Once the potatoes are mashed and the meatloaf is done, allow the meatloaf to cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan. Cut the meatloaf into slices and serve with the potatoes and other side dishes.

Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes on a plate

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Servings: 6

Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes

Instant Pot meatloaf and mashed potatoes is a pot-in-pot (PIP) recipe that gives you a complete comfort food meal with minimal cleanup.
Instant Pot Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes on a plate
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Ingredients

Meatloaf:

Meatloaf Glaze:

Potatoes:

  • 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
  • 2 cups Water
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 3 tablespoons Butter
  • 2 ounces Cream Cheese
  • 2 tablespoons Milk

Instructions

  • In a large bowl combine the ground beef, onion, panko breadcrumbs, egg, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, and salt. Mix together until everything is fully combined.
  • Prepare a 6-inch springform pan by lining it with aluminum foil.
  • Press the meatloaf mixture into the springform pan and set aside.
  • Fill the Instant Pot inner pot with 2 cups of water and add 1 teaspoon of Kosher Salt.
  • Add the potatoes to the pot.
  • Place a trivet on top of the potatoes and then place your springform pan on top of the trivet. See note 1 for options.
  • Lock the Instant Pot lid into place and turn the valve to SEALING. Set to HIGH PRESSURE and cook for 30 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
  • In a small bowl whisk together the ketchup, brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon of worcestershire sauce to make the meatloaf glaze.
  • When the Instant Pot timer goes off press CANCEL and let it do a 10 minute natural release. Then carefully flip the valve to VENTING and let out the remaining steam.
  • Remove the lid and very carefully use the arms of your sling to pull the meatloaf pan out.
  • Pour off any excess grease that is in the pan with the meatloaf and then spread the glaze over the top. Place it in the 400 degree F oven and bake for 7-10 minutes to caramelize the glaze on top.
  • While the meatloaf is in the oven pour off any excess water from the potatoes and place them in a bowl. Add the butter and cream cheese and begin to mash. If the consistency is too dry add 1 tablespoon of milk, add more milk if needed.
  • Remove the meatloaf from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes before removing it from the pan.
  • Cut and serve with potatoes.

Notes

  1. You can either use a sling trivet with wings or a trivet with aluminum foil. If you are using a sling trivet, place the trivet on top of the potatoes and place the pan with the meatloaf on top. Make sure the wings are sticking up so you can easily grab them when the meat is done. If you are using a normal trivet, take a 12 inch rectangle of aluminium foil and fold it in half lengthwise. Place the aluminum foil under the pan and make sure the sides are sticking up. Use the aluminum foil wings to lower the pan with the meatloaf to rest on the trivet.
  2. Serving size is 1 inch thick slice meatloaf and 1/3 cup mashed potatoes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 472kcal, Carbohydrates: 38g, Protein: 38g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Cholesterol: 151mg, Sodium: 1177mg, Potassium: 1313mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 398IU, Vitamin C: 32mg, Calcium: 75mg, Iron: 6mg
Nutrition Disclaimer: We are not certified nutritionists. Nutrition facts are an estimate and are provided as a courtesy. They are generated by an online API which recognizes ingredient names and amounts and makes calculations based on the serving size. Results may vary.
Author: Kat Jeter & Melinda Caldwell
Handwritten signature for Kat & Melinda