Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup with cheddar cheese is creamy, thick and delicious. An easy soup recipe you can make in about 30 minutes.
If you're looking for a quick and easy homemade soup recipe, you're going to love this thick and hearty broccoli cheddar soup. This Instant Pot recipe is a lot like the popular Panera Bread version, only better!
I love making soup in the pressure cooker! During soup season, I make soup several times a week for either lunch or dinner. Some of our favorite Instant Pot soup recipes include Zuppa Toscana, Kielbasa Cabbage Soup, Creamy Lasagna Soup and Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup.
Broccoli soup is perfect for Meatless Monday or whenever you want a lighter vegetarian soup. It's definitely comfort food in a bowl, and even my picky eaters love it!
How to Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup in the Instant Pot
This recipe does require a little bit of prep work, but it all comes together quickly. To make prep even easier, you can use prepackaged cut broccoli and matchstick or grated carrots.
First, you sauté chopped onions and celery in some butter. Then, you stir in your chopped broccoli, grated carrots, and seasoning.
You don't have to chop the broccoli that much because it will break down while cooking. I like to have different sizes so the larger pieces will hold up better after cooking, but it's just a personal preference.
Next, add a carton of chicken broth or vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian. You can use 4 cups of homemade chicken broth or Better than Bullion and water.
The pot will take about 10 to 15 minutes to reach pressure. After that, it's just 2 minutes for the actual pressure cooking time.
Do a quick release, and break up the cooked broccoli into smaller pieces. Turn your Instant Pot to Sauté mode. Then, stir in a cornstarch slurry, and let the soup cook for a minute and thicken up.
Slurry is just a mix of equal parts cornstarch and cold water. If you don't have any cornstarch, don't worry. It's not absolutely necessary, but it does help to thicken the soup.
Now, stir in a cup of heavy cream and then, stir in a cup of cheese at a time. I've used prepackaged cheese, but grating your own cheese is so much better and melts better, too.
You can use mild cheddar or sharp cheddar for extra flavor. You can also mix in Colby or Monterey Jack for extra creaminess.
Serve the broccoli soup with more cheese on the side and maybe homemade Rosemary Beer Bread or breadsticks. Yum.
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Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup Recipe
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup chopped onion 1 small
- 1 celery stalk chopped
- 1 large carrot peeled and grated
- 4 cups broccoli florets
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika or regular paprika
- 32 ounces low sodium chicken broth 4 cups or vegetable broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 ½ cups cheddar cheese grated
Cornstarch slurry
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ¼ cup cold water
Instructions
- Press Sauté on the Instant Pot, add the butter, and sauté the onions and celery until slightly soft
- Stir in the broccoli florets, grated carrots, salt, garlic powder, pepper and smoked paprika
- Hit Cancel to turn pot off, then add broth, and place lid on pressure cooker, and make sure valve is at sealing position
- Hit Pressure Cook for 2 minutes. The pot takes about 10 to 15 minutes to reach pressure. After pressure cooking, do a quick release after pot beeps.
- When pin drops, remove lid, break up broccoli with a spoon, and hit Cancel. Then, hit Sauté, and mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl until well blended. When soup starts to bubble, stir in the cornstarch slurry and allow to cook for a minute
- Hit Cancel, then stir in the heavy cream, and 1 cup of cheese at a time until well blended. Use Keep Warm setting until ready to eat or serve immediately. Soup will thicken even more as it cools down
Notes
Nutrition
Soup Storage and Reheating
Store the broccoli soup in a covered container for up to 4 days. Reheat in your microwave in individual bowls or in the Instant Pot on the Sauté setting.
Freeze the soup in a freezer safe container or freezer safe storage bags for up to 3 months for best taste and quality.
More Instant Pot Soup Recipes
James says
Starting to cool down here so we tried this for dinner last night. Simple and boy was it great! Kids even loved it. Going to make this all the time now.
Dee says
Thank you so much, James! I'm happy you all liked the soup!
Toni Dash says
I love how comforting this is!!
Dee says
It's definitely comfort food. Thank you, Toni!
Beth says
This is one of son's favorites!
Patricia says
One of my all-time favorite soups! Nothing better when there's a chill in the air!
Dee says
Thanks, Patricia! It's one of my favorites, too!
Erin says
This Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup looks so delicious!
Amanda says
Perfect for those crisp fall evenings!
kerri says
this looks incredibly delicious - screams comfort!!
Jamie says
This was easily one of favorite soup recipes!
Dee says
Awesome! Thank you so much, Jamie!