Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

The easiest soup ever--this Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup is as easy as dumping everything in the pot and then stirring it all up in the end. So creamy and cozy, and packed with broccoli, but only a matter of a few minutes to prep!

Soup is one of my favorite things to make in the Instant Pot. Dump all the ingredients into the pot and come back to soup ready to go in no time.

I love this potato leek soup so much in the pressure cooker, so naturally a broccoli cheese variation was necessary--and it is all the cozy deliciousness but with such minimal time and effort!

Why you will love this soup:

• This is the easiest soup EVER--totally dump and go! No sautéing necessary. Just dump the ingredients into your Instant Pot and then let it pressure cook for 1 minute. Yes, you read that correctly! (Allowing for pressurizing time as well.) Then stir in the cream, cheese and slurry, heat a bit longer and you have a cozy bowl of soup!
• A great kid friendly recipe--who doesn't love broccoli and cheese?! If you are aiming to get the family to eat more veggies, this could be the answer. You can blend the soup up even so no broccoli is detected if you really want to be sneaky.
• It is a great recipe for meal prepping. This is the perfect Sunday meal prep soup. If you tend to have lots going on in your oven and on the stove, utilize your Instant Pot and get another thing done. It takes very little time and you won't have to watch over it much.
• A cozy and comforting bowl of soup. There is nothing like comfort food on a cold day. Soup is where it's at. This Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup is like a warm hug--you just didn't have to put all the effort into it!

Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup Ingredients:

• broccoli: fresh or frozen will work. I prefer fresh just to be able to chop it very small for my Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup
• cheddar: for the creamiest, cheesiest soup, shred your own cheddar from the block. Pre-shredded cheese doesn't melt quite as well, however it will still work. We use sharp cheddar in ours.
• carrots: shredded or small chopped, I have found shredded carrots in a package at the grocery so that saves a lot of time!
• butter: unsalted preferred
• onion: white or yellow
• half and half: you can use a combo of milk and cream if preferred. Heavy cream will be richer and thicker, almost too much for my liking. But it will certainly work!
• broth: I opt for chicken broth, low sodium, but for vegetarian, use vegetable broth
• garlic: freshly minced is ideal, but you can sub for about ½ to 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• corn starch and water: this will make a slurry to thicken the soup. If you don't have corn starch, you can opt for flour as it will work as well.
• seasoning: very basic seasoning in this soup. A touch of paprika, salt and pepper is it. Adjust to your own taste!

How to make this recipe:

1. Chop up the veggies and toss them into the Instant Pot. Add in the broth, butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and paprika. Stir to combine.
2. Close your pressure cooker, lock it and turn the vent to "sealing." Set to pressure cook on high for 1 minute--yes, that is correct, just one minute. When the cycle is complete, do a quick release and open the lid.
3. Add the half and half and cheese and stir to melt the cheese. Whisk together the water and corn starch until smooth and lump free to make a slurry.
4. Set the Instant Pot to "saute" and slowly stir in the slurry. Stir the soup frequently and allow it to thicken, coming to a very slight boil.

Allow your soup to thicken to your liking, and then you are ready to serve! Adjust seasoning, salt, pepper or even add more cheese if preferred!

Recipe Notes and Tips:

• For a thicker soup, decrease the amount of broth you use. You can start with 3 cups for a nice thick and creamy soup. It is still easy to adjust in the end if you find it too thick.
• You can blend part of this soup for a creamier, less chunky version. You are welcome to use an immersion blender to make the soup more creamy. Another option is to transfer a few cups of the soup to a blender, blend until smooth and stir back into the soup. Adjust your Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup to your liking!
• Storing leftovers: One of my favorite things about this soup is how easily it freezes. Store it for up to 3 months in the freezer in a freezer safe container. I love to put single servings into small containers so that I can easily grab a meal for myself on the go. The soup will keep for about 5 days in the refrigerator.

Can you use frozen broccoli?

You can easily swap out frozen broccoli in place of the fresh broccoli in this Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup. I suggest getting broccoli florets if opting for frozen.

The only difference you may notice is that the time your Instant Pot takes to pressurize may take slightly longer. Other than that, you will be just fine.

I do like the fact that when using fresh I can chop the broccoli very small versus the larger pieces that frozen broccoli comes in at times.

What to serve with this soup:

I am a big fan of soup and a loaf of crusty bread. Since this pressure cooker broccoli cheddar soup is pretty heavy, a nice fresh salad pairs really well. We love this simple Spring Green Salad with Sourdough Croutons.

Grilled cheese is also a perfect match--more cheese? Always! Havarti Avocado Grilled Cheese is a great option as well. I also ramdomly love these Pesto Turkey Pinwheels with this soup!

Other than that, crackers and more cheese go a long way as well!

What pressure cooker do I use?

I use the Instant Pot Duo and love it. Simple to use and always does the trick. Mine is the 6 quart and its the ideal size pot for soup making especially. If you have a 3 quart pressure cooker, you may need to adjust the soup to about ½ of the recommendations.

Other Instant Pot Recipes:

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