Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
This Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup is cheesy, flavorful and easy to make. It’s a comforting lunch or dinner that the whole family will enjoy!
I love making soup in the Instant Pot, and I’m excited to add this Instant Pot broccoli cheddar soup to our collection of favorite Instant Pot soup recipes. Like my stove top Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipe, this Instant Pot soup is deliciously creamy, yet it’s made without cream. Instead of using heavy cream or cream cheese to add richness to this soup, a little bit of butter plus a gold potato give this soup the best texture and flavor. Once you add in the cheese, you won’t miss the cream at all.
Using your pressure cooker to make soup isn’t necessarily faster than cooking it on the stove, once you account for the time that it takes for the pot to reach pressure and then release pressure. However, you won’t have to worry about watching or stirring a pot on the stove. Once you get everything in the Instant Pot for this Instant Pot broccoli cheddar soup, it’s completely hands-off while the soup pressure cooks.
Cheesy comfort food, here you come!
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup Recipe Ingredients
The ingredient list for this easy soup recipe is short and simple!
- Butter & Olive Oil: I like to use a combination of butter and olive oil because the butter adds richness and the olive oil lightens things up.
- Onion & Garlic: A small yellow onion and a few cloves of fresh garlic provide a base layer of flavor for the soup. We’ll sauté these aromatics briefly to enhance their flavor.
- Vegetable Broth: I recommend using a low sodium vegetable broth. If you can’t find low sodium broth, reduce the amount of added salt in this recipe. You can substitute low sodium chicken broth if you do not need the soup to be vegetarian.
- Italian Seasoning: This seasoning blend brings delicious flavor to the soup.
- Salt & Pepper: For seasoning. Adjust the amounts to your tastes.
- Yukon Gold Potato: My secret ingredient! A gold potato gives the soup a creamy texture, without adding any heavy cream.
- Carrot: For flavor complexity and to sneak an extra veggie into the soup.
- Broccoli: Of course! I use broccoli crowns and chop them into florets before adding to the pot. You can also chop up and add the broccoli stems, just use a vegetable peeler to peel off any tough outer layers on the stems first.
- Cheddar Cheese: Sharp cheddar cheese will add the most flavor. It is best to buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself using a box grater. The pre-shredded cheese that you can buy at the grocery store often has a coating that prevents it from melting smoothly.
Find the full recipe with ingredient amounts and instructions in the recipe card below.
How to Make Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Here is an overview of the steps to making broccoli cheese soup in the Instant Pot. If you are new to Instant Pot cooking, see my guide on how to use an Instant Pot.
- Sauté the onion in olive oil and butter using the Instant Pot sauté function.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Pour in the broth. Then, stir and scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Add the seasonings and vegetables. Stir to combine everything together.
- Pressure cook on high pressure for 5 minutes.
- Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. To do this, just let the Instant Pot sit after the cooking cycle ends.
- Then, quick release any remaining pressure by moving the steam release valve to the venting position.
- Remove about 1 cup of broccoli pieces, if desired. You’ll stir these back into the blended soup to give it some added texture.
- Puree the soup, either with an immersion blender or by transferring it to a countertop blender.
- Stir in the shredded cheddar cheese, followed by the reserved broccoli pieces.
- Taste the soup and add more salt if needed. Then serve and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
When soup is on the menu for dinner, I like to round out the meal with bread and/or a salad. Here are a few favorites that pair well with this Instant Pot broccoli cheddar soup:
Storage & Reheating Tips
If you have leftover soup you can enjoy it for an easy lunch or dinner on another day. Here’s how to store and reheat this soup:
- Refrigerator: Store soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezer: Let soup cool completely and then store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw the soup overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To Reheat: Reheat soup in a pot on the stove over low heat or reheat gently in the microwave. This soup tends to thicken up over time in the refrigerator. If needed, you can stir in a little more broth when reheating to thin it out. Since the soup has dairy (cheese) in it, you need to be especially careful when reheating the soup after freezing. Heating it over low heat and stirring it often can help to prevent the soup from curdling or separating as it reheats.
More Instant Pot Soup Recipes
Soup is one of the best comfort foods and the Instant Pot does an amazing job at developing the most delicious flavors. Here are a few other pressure cooker soup recipes that you might enjoy.
- Instant Pot Vegetable Soup
- Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
- Instant Pot Minestrone
- Instant Pot Lentil Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
You can find all of my Instant Pot recipes here.
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped, about 1 ¼ cups
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 ½ cups low sodium vegetable broth, plus up to ½ cup more, as needed
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 medium Yukon gold potato, about ½ pound, chopped into ½-inch pieces
- 1 medium carrot, sliced into â…›-inch thick half rounds
- 1 ½ pounds broccoli crowns, chopped into florets, about 8 cups chopped
- 1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Heat the butter and olive oil in the Instant Pot using the saute function. Once the pot is hot, add the onion and saute for 3 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Turn off the Instant Pot.
- Pour in the 3 ½ cups of broth. Stir and scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Then stir in the potatoes, carrots and broccoli.
- Close the Instant Pot lid and move the steam release valve to the sealing position. Pressure cook on high pressure for 5 minutes. The Instant Pot will take about 15 minutes to reach pressure and then the cook time will start counting down.
- When the cook time ends, allow the pot to release naturally for 10 minutes. Then carefully move the steam release valve to the venting position and wait for all of the remaining steam to escape. Once the pin drops down, open the Instant Pot lid.
- Use a slotted spoon to remove about 1 cup's worth of broccoli pieces and set aside, coarsely chop into bite-size pieces if large.
- Use an immersion blender to puree the soup in the pot until it is mostly smooth. (If you do not have an immersion blender, you can transfer the soup in batches to a countertop blender.)
- Stir in the shredded cheddar cheese until melted. Taste and add more salt if needed, to taste. Stir in the reserved broccoli pieces. Serve.
Notes
- Do not use store bought pre-shredded cheese, since it doesn't melt as smoothly.
