Easy and delicious Broccoli Cheddar soup that can be ready in minutes in the Instant Pot. I used to have this soup at cafe’s and wondered how they make this creamy comforting soup. Ooooh…the yummy broccoli and carrots in a delicious cheesy base. Now I make this soup in the comfort of my home in the amazing Instant Pot! You could very much call this a Panera Copycat Broccoli Cheddar soup.
With the fall weather in full swing, I have been craving soup. What could be better than this delicious cheesy goodness. You know what I mean if you love cheese…and soups!
Even thought the name of the soup is broccoli cheddar, I adds carrots and onions too. I love the added nutrition from all the veggies disguised in this creamy soup.
This is a super quick recipe, just make sure you have cheddar cheese at home. I made this soup in an Instant Pot, but it can easily be made in a normal pressure cooker or in a pot on the stovetop, just allow a extra time to make the soup creamy.
Try this recipe and let me know if how you like it.
Blast from the past:
- Recipe posted 3 months ago: Beet Pilaf / Rice
- Recipe posted 6 months ago: Thai Panang Curry Chicken
- Recipe posted 9 months ago: Bulgur or Broken Wheat Pilaf
★ DID YOU TRY THIS RECIPE? Don’t forget to give a ★ rating. Just click on the stars in the Recipe Card to rate!
A comforting Creamy Broccoli Cheddar soup loaded with veggies and cheddar cheese made in the instant pot.
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Red Chili Flakes
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp All purpose flour
- 1 cup Cream heavy whipping or Milk
Start the instant pot in SAUTE mode and melt butter in it. Add diced onions and minced garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
Add broccoli, carrots, seasoning and broth. Mix it all well. Press Cancel and close the instant pot lid with vent in sealing position.
Set the instant pot on MANUAL or pressure cook mode at high pressure for 5 minutes.
When the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid.
When the pressure cooking is done, melt butter on a stovetop saucepan. Add the flour and saute for a minute until it is cooked. Whisk in the cream/milk, a little bit at a time, until you have a smooth thick consistency.
Change the instant pot to SAUTE mode. Stir in the sauce you prepared on stovetop. Add the cheddar cheese gradually, stirring continuously, until it melts. Press Cancel.
Soup is ready to be served.
- I have used Better Than Bullion base to make broth. It is just easier to keep at hand for all my cooking.
- I used only cheddar cheese in this recipe. If you like, you can add other cheeses you love.
- No Flour / Gluten-free variation: Skip the all-purpose flour to make this soup gluten-free. Add the extra butter in step 1 to the instant pot and cream/milk after pressure cooking is done.
- No cream variation: Some readers have tried this soup with milk, in place of cream and they loved it. It was a thinner consistency, but the same great taste.
- This recipe was created in a 6qt Instant Pot DUO60 Multi-use Pressure Cooker.
- This recipe has been updated to not cook flour under pressure. The previous recipe instructions were requested by some readers, so I am sharing the changes here -
- In step 1, add all the butter (including what is mentioned in stovetop section). Add diced onions and minced garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
- Add flour and saute for a minute until it is cooked. Add the broth and mix it well with the flour to a smooth consistency. Add broccoli, carrots and seasoning.
- After this follow the steps to close the lid and pressure cook. Stir in the cream after releasing pressure. Stovetop steps can be skipped.
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Check out other soups made in the instant pot –
Hi, I made the soup many times and my husband and I Love it. Thank you for the best recipe. Can I double it in 6 at. Pot? Thank You, Barbara
Hey Barbara, Thank you so much for sharing your review. I am always very happy to hear such kind works. I think it will be okay to double the recipe in a 6qt. Just make such you don’t go above the pot being 3/4 full, which I don’t think will be the case for this soup.
Hi Meeta. Thanks for this recipe! I’ve tried a few Panera Copycat Broccoli Cheddar Soup recipes and this one is the best! I really appreciate that you include the tool for changing the number of servings — it allowed me to double the recipe so that I would have some leftover. My daughter took a thermos of soup to school for lunch today. 🙂 Thanks so much for the time and effort you put into this site.
This is a delicious keeper!! I have the 8qt Instant Pot, so I guesstimated and upped the minutes to 7 and it was perfect. Also, you were right. Using milk in place of cream really works. I used whole milk, and I added 1 Tbsp extra flour when making the roux to compensate for not using cream. We so enjoyed it. Thank you!!
Hey Tami – Glad to hear you all enjoyed the soup. This is my favorite creamy soup. Thank you for sharing your review 🙂
Does the cheese sharpness matter or if you use frozen broccoli?
Hey Sapana – I have not tried, but I think frozen broccoli would work too as broccoli cooks very quickly. I used medium cheddar, but feel free to use the cheese based on your taste. Hope you enjoy it!
Was this recipe updated? When I previously made it I seem to recall making the roux then adding onions, sautéing, adding veggies/spices/broth, then pressure cooking. Did the recipe used to follow that method?
Hey Marisa – Yes, I mentioned in the recipe notes that I updated the recipe as Instant Pot recommended to not cook flour/thick liquids under pressure. The taste will still remain the same. I hope you continue to enjoy it!
My boyfriend and I loved this recipe! Almost just like Panera’s! The one thing we felt was that it was a bit rich. I don’t want to substitute butter in the roux, but I’m assuming it would still taste fine if we sautéed the onion with less butter in the beginning or is there a possible substitute? I also used sharp cheddar cheese, I’m wondering if mild cheddar cheese would have made a difference as well. Which do you recommend? Either way we still enjoyed it! ????
Heyt Chelsea – Glad you enjoyed the soup. Many other readers have substituted milk in place of cream to make this soup lighter. Hope that helps!
Thank you for that great recipe. I read a bunch of broccoli soup recipes and people were complaining about the cheese separating. This didn’t happen with your recipe. I’m glad I tried it and we loved it. So easy and I followed it exactly as written.
Hello Michaela – So happy to hear you enjoyed this soup. Thank you so much for sharing your review 🙂
Can you use 1/2 and 1/2 instead of the milk or cream?
Hey Lisa – Yes, I have seen people use milk in place of cream, however I think half and half would work too. Please do share how if you try!
The soup is addictive! I used Creme Fraiche instead of heavy cream.
Hey Marcie – I am glad you are enjoying the soup 🙂 Thank you for sharing your review!
I made this tonight, my daughter thought it was from Costco, haha! That’s a compliment from her. I used whole milk, let the butter/milk/flour boil for a min or two…just like making a roux. It was nice and thick. Very good! Thank you!
Hey Jessica – That is certainly a compliment 🙂 So happy your daughter enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing your review!
This is my favorite broccoli cheddar soup recipe out of the several I have tried. I double it to make sure we have leftovers. But it’s a little thinner than we’d like. Any suggestions on thickening it up, without reducing the liquids?
Hello Danielle – I am glad you liked this broccoli cheddar soup. My suggestion would be to add a little more flour to the butter when making the roux, to thicken the soup. Hope that helps!
I make a lot of soups in my Instant Pot but this was the first broccoli cheddar soup that I made and I need look no further. It is so delicious and came together so quickly! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Hey Chari – So happy to hear you enjoyed the soup 🙂
Broccoli Cheddar is my daughter’s favorite soup, and we’ve found a keeper with this recipe! I’ve made it twice: once with celery and once without. My family prefers it without. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Joy – So glad to hear that your family enjoyed the soup. Thank you for sharing your review!
The soup is delicious. Thanks for the recipe. If I want to double the amount, do I need to increase cooking time?
Thank you, Anna. Glad you enjoyed the soup! If you double the recipe, the cooking time will remain the same. Instant pot will just take longer to come to pressure.
Delicious soup! I made it with almond milk and increased the chicken stock, broccoli and onions by about a third. YUM.
Happy to hear you enjoyed the soup 🙂
This was a great recipe! Thank you for sharing it. I was so scared the cheese would curdle but it didn’t, yay! It has a little something missing, and I can’t put my finger on it, but it’s not missing enough to make me not make this again. It was great and the whole family ate it. Thank you again!
Hi Leah – Glad to hear your family enjoyed the soup. I would love to hear if you figure what is missing in the soup 🙂
I’ve always used a small amount of dry mustard in my broccoli cheddar soup. Maybe you could try that? Just a suggestion, this soup is fantastic.
Thank you and great suggestion, Kimberly. I hope that is the missing ingredient for Leah.
Just made this and my family and I loved it! I tried to follow the ingredients exactly, but I didn’t have cream so I used 2% milk. It still turned out amazing! Thank you. Will definitely make again.
Hey Lisa – Using milk works too. Many readers have used milk in place of cream in this recipe. So happy you and your family enjoyed the soup 🙂
I just made this. Followed directions. Set it on pressure cook high as it states. I have a IP80. The line underneath also was high. Should it be on normal? The display read “burn” so naturally I had to end the cooking process. I just got this cooker and this is only my3 3rd meal. Tastes good and thankfully not burnt. Can I doubles the receipt with not going above the lines it states in the inner pot? I don’t understand it is soupy (cliquid) and not dry. What did i do wrong? Thank you. Please just email me the solution.
Hey Barbara – I am glad you liked the taste of the soup. I created this recipe in the 6qt, and I have been hearing that the newer instant pot versions are more sensitive and that the 8qt needs more liquid, so that may be the reason for the Burn sign. I believe it will be okay to double the recipe in an 8qt instant pot.
Great thank you. I will experiment to get the right combinations
Hi! When you sauté, are you using the high setting? My pot defaults to the lowest and I wasn’t sure if I should be bumping it up hotter?!
Soup was amazing.. I halfed it for my mini and ended up eating the whole thing myself lol
Hey Karli – I usually keep mine on Saute (Normal), but feel free to use the setting that works. IF you are monitoring it while on saute, go for the (More) setting too. Happy to hear you enjoyed the soup!
Followed the recipe exactly and it was fantastic! However, it says 6 servings which I thought was a bit high. I had to add in another 2 cups of chicken stock and a half of cup of milk as well as more cheese at the end to feed my family of 5. I’ll just double the recipe next time!