Instant Pot Potato Soup
This Instant Pot Potato Soup Recipe is quick and easy to make with healthy ingredients. This pressure cooker potato soup is thick, creamy, and so good loaded with all of your favorite baked potato toppings!
Looking for more comforting Instant Pot recipes? Try my Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup, Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup, Instant Pot Beef Stew and Instant Pot Pot Roast.
Making soup in an Instant Pot is a great way to get a wholesome one pot meal on your table. You can sauté ingredients, pressure cook, and thicken the soup, all right in your Instant Pot. It’s so easy!
The pressure cooking process develops the flavors of the ingredients in a short amount of time. I’m always amazed at the flavor of the meals that I cook in my Instant Pot, and this healthy potato soup is no exception!
I also highly recommend my best stovetop potato soup recipe and this easy crockpot potato soup, but I have to say that this pressure cooker soup might be my favorite! This Instant Pot potato soup takes just about 35 minutes to make, start to finish. It is thick and hearty, with flavorful chunks of potato and carrot. Pile on your favorite toppings for the best Instant Pot loaded potato soup!
Are you new to Instant Pot cooking? Read my how to use an Instant Pot beginner’s guide to learn the basics of cooking in an Instant Pot.
How to Make Potato Soup in an Instant Pot
There are just a few simple steps to make the best Instant Pot potato soup. I’ll give you my best tips to make sure your soup turns out perfect!
The first step is to sauté the aromatic ingredients, which in this soup are onion and garlic. I like to cook the onion in a little butter, because I like the flavor that the butter adds to the soup. You can use olive oil if you prefer.
Once the onion is soft, you’ll add some minced garlic to the pot. You’ll want to press cancel to turn off the Instant Pot’s sauté mode right after adding the garlic, since it takes a few minutes for the pot to cool down. (You can always remove the inner pot from the base if you need it to cool more quickly. Be sure to use oven mitts because the inner pot will be hot.)
Before adding the remaining ingredients, you need to deglaze the pot to remove any browned bits that might be stuck to the bottom. All you have to do is pour in a little bit of broth and scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pot.
Next, you will add the remaining ingredients and pressure cook the soup for 6 minutes on manual. The Instant Pot will take a few minutes to come to pressure and then the cook time will begin counting down. When the cook time ends, you will let the pot release naturally for about 10 minutes before quick releasing any remaining pressure.
Once the steam and pressure have all been released and the pin drops down, it is safe to take the lid off of the pot. Now all that you need to do is mash some of the potatoes and thicken your soup!
This soup thickens really well, using the Instant Pot’s sauté mode. You’ll stir in a slurry of milk and cornstarch and then stir the soup until it is as thick as you want it. If you are making this soup ahead, keep in mind that it will thicken as it cools. Use a potato masher or wooden spoon to mash some of the potatoes. I like to leave some whole potato pieces in the soup for texture.
How to make Loaded Baked Potato Soup in your Pressure Cooker
To make Instant Pot loaded baked potato soup, all that you need to do is load up your bowl of soup with your favorite baked potato toppings. Try these potato soup toppings:
- cooked, crumbled bacon
- shredded cheese
- sliced green onions or chives
- sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
Cooking Tips for Instant Pot Potato Soup
- Use Yukon gold potatoes to make the best potato soup. Gold potatoes are waxy and buttery, with a low starch content. Their creamy, moist texture will give your potato soup the best thick, creamy and smooth texture.
- Chop your potatoes into 1/2-inch size pieces, so that they will cook in the time given in the recipe.
- To make Instant Pot potato leek soup, you can add 1 large or 2 small leeks to this recipe. Slice and wash the leeks and sauté them with the onion.
- To make your soup dairy-free, substitute unsweetened, unflavored almond milk in place of the whole milk. Use olive oil instead of butter.
- To make vegetarian potato soup, use vegetable broth and keep your toppings vegetarian.
You might also love my Instant Pot Minestrone Soup, Instant Pot Lentil Soup, or Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup. Don’t miss these other quick and easy Instant Pot recipes!
Instant Pot Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2.5 pounds Yukon gold potatoes (cut into 1/2-inch pieces)
- 2 carrots (sliced)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 3/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, for spice)
- 2.5 cups low sodium vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
After Pressure Cooking:
- 1 cup milk (whole milk preferred)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
Optional Toppings, for Serving:
- shredded cheddar cheese
- cooked crumbled bacon
- sliced green onions or chives
Instructions
- Press the Saute button on your Instant Pot to turn on saute mode. Add the butter to the pot. When the Instant Pot is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring often, until onion has softened, about 3 minutes.
- Add the garlic to the pot and press Cancel to turn off the Instant Pot. Stir for 30 seconds.
- Pour in a little bit of the broth and stir, scraping up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add the potatoes, carrots, oregano, salt, pepper, cayenne (if using) and remaining broth to the Instant Pot. Stir.
- Close the Instant Pot lid and turn the steam release valve to the sealing position. Using the Manual/Pressure Cook function, set the cook time to 6 minutes. The Instant Pot will take about 15 minutes to reach pressure and then the cook time will begin counting down.
- When the cook time ends, allow the pot to naturally release for 10 minutes by just letting it sit. After the 10 minute natural release, use the handle of a long spoon to carefully turn the steam release valve to the venting position. Once all of the steam escapes and the pin drops down, carefully open the Instant Pot lid.
- In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, stir together the 1 cup milk and 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Turn the Instant Pot on saute mode and stir in the milk and cornstarch mixture. Use a potato masher to mash some, but not all, of the potatoes. Let the soup simmer, stirring, until it thickens slightly.
- Press cancel to turn the Instant Pot off. Serve the soup with toppings, as desired.
Notes
- You can make this potato soup up to 3 days ahead. It reheats well. When you are thickening the soup, keep in mind that it will continue to thicken as it cools.
Nutrition
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I saved this Potato Soup recipe to try in my new Instant Pot. It is very close to the Homemade Creamy Potato Soup my Grannie & Mom made on the stovetop. (I’m looking forward to teaching my daughter that recipe to keep the tradition going.)
I made my 4th meal ever in the Instant pot this evening, it was your Honey Garlic Chicken. Family loved it. We’ll make it again.😊
P.S. You’re the first person I’ve seen that agrees with me that potato soup is best with the Yukon Gold potatoes. That’s my preference. It’s a twist on the original family recipe that normally used good ol’ russet potatoes or whatever potatoes were on hand. 😉
They give the soup the best flavor and texture, don’t they? 🙂
It makes me so happy to know that you are enjoying my Instant Pot recipes! Your family’s potato soup recipe sounds wonderful. Family recipes are the best. 🙂
Do you peel the potatoes? Thanks!
If you use Yukon gold potatoes you don’t need to peel them. If you use Russet potatoes, you should peel them. I hope you love the soup!
I use cream of chicken soup to thicken instead of a slurry. Sooooooooo creamy!
Delicious! Thank you!!
I use daily Yukon gold, about 2 lbs, had only 1/2 cup of 2% milk and worked just fine, and I added 1 tablespoon of sour cream at the end. I also added 2 yellow carrots in addition to 2 orange ones . Overall delicious!!
Made it with russet potatoes and it was great! Next time I’ll try Yukon Gold! Thanks for sharing!
This soup is so good. I made this tonight and I didn’t have cornstarch, so I used a cup of evaporated milk instead of regular milk. It still turned out great. It tasted so good on a cold, rainy night. Thanks for the recipe.
Thank you sooo much for this recipe! It was absolutely delicious! So thick & creamy. Perfect on a chilly night.
my family and i really enjoyed this recipe, i’ll definitely make it again
I’m about to make it… I’m wondering how many potatoes in 2.5 lbs… 🙂 Maybe include cups as well as weight?
One pound of yukon gold potatoes is about 4 medium (2 to 3-inch wide) potatoes. For this recipe I’d recommend using 8-10 medium yukon gold potatoes. If you are using larger potatoes, such as russet potatoes, you will need fewer. I haven’t measured the amount in cups. With that being said, this recipe is flexible and the exact amount of potatoes won’t matter too much. 🙂
This soup is amazing! I added some jalapeños (the garden produced so many this year!) and it turned out so well. I left out the cayenne since I used jalapeños. We will definitely be making this over and over.
My hubby loves it. This is my go to potato soup from now on.
I love this recipe. I have made it at least 10 times! We like it best with russet potatoes – I tried Yukon gold and didn’t like the flavor. Personal preference. We also add 2 ribs of celery to the soup too. It adds a little something to the flavor. We top the soup with sour cream and shredded cheese snd serve it as a meal with a side of garlic bread. My kids ask for this regularly. Thanks for sharing!
Is this made using the 3 quart instant pot? If not do I need to cut the ingredients in half? Thank you
Hi Pam,
My recipes are sized for the standard 6 quart Instant Pot and have not been tested in a 3 quart pot. Many recipes can be made in a 3 quart pot as long as the maximum fill line in the pot is not exceeded. Otherwise, the recipes should be halved.
Made on this cold afternoon with some cornbread and loved it! Definitely a keeper.