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!
Don’t want cheese? Check out this Thai Butternut Squash Soup and this Vegan Cauliflower Soup.
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 extra time to make the soup creamy.
Try this recipe and let me know if how you like it. If you are looking for more soup options, check out this collection of 17 Instant Pot Vegetarian Soup recipes for more delicious soups!
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
Broccoli Cheddar Soup - Instant Pot
Ingredients
Seasoning (adjust to taste)
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Red Chili Flakes
For stovetop
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp All purpose flour
- 1 cup Cream heavy whipping or Milk
Instructions
- 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.
On Stovetop
- 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.
Mix it together
- 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.
Notes
- 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.
Nutrition
Check out other soups made in the instant pot –
Have you tried this with frozen brocolli? I want to make this, but I would prefer to use frozen. Would you cook it longer/thaw it first?
Hi Julia – I have not tried, but I think frozen broccoli would work too as broccoli cooks very quickly. The same cooking time will work and thawing before is not necessary.
We’ve only used frozen broccoli for this recipe but we had to lower the cooking time to 2 mins or the broccoli disintegrates. Thank you for posting this recipe! It has become one of our favorites.
I made broccoli cheddar soup very first time in instant pot, came out very good. We had it with round bread, used as bread bowl. Very delicious, we like Panera’s soup, being my husband vegetarian, can’t eat it from there. I used vegetable broth and its good as Panera’s. Thank you Meeta for recipe.
Hi Shah – Glad to hear you enjoyed the soup. I did not know that Panera uses a meat based broth for their soup. My husband is a vegetarian too, and we love to make this soup at home. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Amazing , creamy well seasoned and delicious recipe ??
Hi Darina – So glad to hear you enjoyed the soup!
OMG!! This soup is amazing! I have never left a rating before, but felt compelled to because of the delicious taste. Made as written except used half and half. Will make again and again.
Hey Barbara – Thank you so much for coming back to rate the recipe. I am so happy to hear you enjoy it so much!
This is absolutely delicious! My family loves it (and I have 2 teenage boys!)
Hey Jennifer – So glad to hear you all enjoyed the soup!
I’m new to Instant Pot. What’s the concern with using the flour in the pot (old recipe)?
Hey Janis – Instant pot recommends to not use thick liquids in the pot, hence flour or roux is not a good idea in under pressure. Hence I updated the recipe.
This recipe is a keeper! Used my 8 qt InstantPot. I doubled the recipe exactly and cooked for 7 minutes, as recommended by someone in the comments section. We ate it immediately and the flavor was so good! Two days later the flavor is really enhanced. This soup was a wonderful meal idea with a salad and fresh bread on a cold Ohio winter day!
Hey Mary – So glad to hear you enjoyed the soup. With a side of salad and bread sounds perfect!