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Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese soup is a creamy, flavorful soup that is literally ready in minutes! The cheesy soup base pairs perfectly with tender broccoli and matchstick carrots. This soup will be your family’s new favorite, goodbye Panera Bread, hello Instant Pot!
Love Soup? Try my Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup and Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup!
Broccoli Cheddar Soup (Instant Pot) – Better than Panera!
True Fact: I was a picky child. I know, I’ve talked all about that here before but it is so true and relevant to this recipe I have to bring it up again.
Also true fact: I was probably in my teens before I even tried this soup. Really. (I know, was I living under a rock? No, just picky and stubborn. ?)
Then, I was pregnant with Chase and I craved it. I even went to Panera with some friends and got this soup! I was shocked. It was kind of like an out of body experience because I just couldn’t believe myself.
You know what I didn’t believe even more? I liked it. Really liked it! And I had missed out on it my entire life!
I didn’t think in a million years I’d say it, but the Cheese and broccoli go together like a PB&J. They are meant for each other and they are meant to go into the Instant Pot!
Are you ready for your mind to be blown away? It couldn’t be easier.. or faster!
Instant Pot Broccoli Soup ingredients
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cups minced yellow onion
- 4 cups broccoli florets
- 1 1/2 cups matchstick carrots
- 1 tsp minced garlic, dried
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 cup mild cheddar cheese
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water
How to make Cheddar and Broccoli Soup
1 – Toss (literally ?) chicken broth, minced onion, broccoli, matchstick carrots, minced garlic (I always use the dried stuff!), salt and pepper into the Instant Pot.
Notice that the broccoli isn’t broken down extremely small. I just washed and cut the broccoli into it’s natural florets. They are abut the size you would serve on a veggie tray.
2 – Cook on Manual (or pressure cook) HIGH for 2 minutes, NPR 3 minutes before releasing the pressure manually.
3 – Stir in heavy cream. Set the Instant Pot to saute LOW and bring the temperature back up to an almost simmer.
4 – Gradually stir in your cheese. I like to use a little mild cheddar and parmesan cheese.
5 – Once the cheese has completely melted into the soup, make a cornstarch and water slurry. Slowly add it to the soup stirring until it thickens to your liking.
6 – Serve hot! But don’t burn your mouth on it, like I did. ?
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup FAQs
Either one will work. The time will change though – You’ll want to cook the soup for 0 minutes if using frozen broccoli! Nope, not a typo, promise!
You can, but be aware that the pre-shredded cheese sometimes leaves a grainy texture. Every now and then it has a hard time melting into the soup and will clump together and sink to the bottom. I would suggest grating your own if possible!
Don’t fear!! Turn your Instant Pot onto saute and heat everything up again until boiling, stirring the entire time. This should be enough to get that cheese melted. *Note: do not bring the soup up to boiling if you’ve used anything other than heavy cream.*
You can, but you’ll need to be extremely careful. Milk will curdle if poured into the hot broth and broccoli. You’ll either need to temper the milk before adding it or let the Instant Pot contents cool down before adding. Once the milk or half n half is added, do not bring the soup up to a full boil, again it will curdle.
If your soup separates and becomes curdled that is because you have boiled it after adding in the cheese. Try to avoid letting the soup boil after this point, just heat until hot, not boiling.
There are several ways to thicken broccoli and cheddar soup. One option is to use a thickener such as flour, cornstarch, or potato starch. To do this, mix a small amount of the thickener with a little bit of cold water to form a slurry. Slowly stir the slurry into the soup, then bring the soup to a simmer and cook for a few minutes until it has reached your desired consistency.
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Try these other great recipes:
- Tomato Tortellini Soup
- Chicken Noodle Soup
- Cauliflower Cheese Soup
- Chicken and Dumplings
- Instant Pot Beef Stew
- Chicken Pot Pie
- Alfredo Sauce
- Stuffed Shells
- Mississippi Chicken Sandwiches
- Instant Pot Chicken Tenders
- Crack Chicken Bombs
- Creamy Ziti
- Teriyaki Chicken Bowl
- Chicken Lo Mein
- Chicken Lettuce Wrap
Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cups minced yellow onion
- 4 cups broccoli florets
- 1 1/2 cups matchstick carrots
- 1 tsp minced garlic, dried
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
- 1 cup mild cheddar cheese
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Add the chicken broth, onion, broccoli, carrots, garlic, salt and pepper to the Instant Pot.
- Cook on Manual (or pressure cook) HIGH for 2 minutes. Allow for a 3 minute NPR before releasing the pressure manually.
- Remove lid and stir in the heavy cream. Set the Instant Pot to Saute LOW and heat until it almost begins to simmer. Turn the Instant Pot off.
- Once heated, gradually stir in the parmesan and cheddar cheeses.
- Make a slurry with the cornstarch and water. Slowly add it to the soup until it thickens to your liking.
- Serve hot!
“1 cup milk cheddar cheese” — am I correct I’m my interpretation:
1 cup milk
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
? I think I’m on the right track ? Thanks!
Thank you that’s a typo I missed! That is supposed to read ‘mild cheddar cheese’! I’ll go fix that now.?
Super excited to give this one a try! Question for you I have an electric pressure cooker not instant pot (got it before the instant pots became big and normally feel like I can do the same thing with a different button or manually). But I also have frozen broccoli, so 0 minutes? Is that so it just builds to pressure then releases basically? 🙂 Looks awesome and just what i’m craving these days!
Yes! That is exactly right. Give that a shot!
That worked beautifully! Thanks for another easy and amazing recipe! In the past ive always done it in a stock pot and it takes a lot of effort this was easy 🙂 and i’ve never added parmesan just chedder in my recipes and I feel like the depth of flavor was way better this way! Seriously where have you been all my life?
Oh, Allie! You are making me blush! I am so glad it was delicious! Just keep on coming back for more recipes! ?
My cheese is not melting. I used black cheeses that I grated. I turned it back on but no luck.
Hi Jen, did you add it in slowly? Or all at once? Keep stirring, I like to use a silicone spatula to stir the cheese in, that’s seems to work better than a spoon also. Since you have heated the liquid back up you can now turn the Instant Pot off and continue to stir as it cools, it should thicken up. Hope this helps!
This soup is the bomb. My husband has long been convinced that if I’m going to poison him, it’ll be in the vegetables, so he avoids them at all costs. But even he couldn’t resist this soup. He had 3 bowls and then groaned for hours about how he ate too much but wanted more anyway. It came together so quickly and cooked for just long enough that I had time to grate the cheese while the veggies were under pressure. Karli you are a superhero around here!
This comment made my night! I’m glad to hear that the soup is officially husband approved, usually the toughest critic! ? YOU are superwoman! Thanks for taking the time to comment, means the world!! ❤️
So easy and so delicious. We added crushed red pepper flakes since Hubby likes hot foods. Also added shredded chicken before adding the cheese. Hubby added cooked rice to his bowl since he doesn’t care for thin soups. Easy to change up to your own tastes. Thanks for the great easy recipe! ❤️
Yum!! Love those additions! Glad you guys enjoyed the recipe. ❤️
can i freeze this in individual containers if so what kind of container and defrost method
thank you for your reply. jack
Hi Jack- yes, you should be able to freeze it. I would suggest a plastic Tupperware container. When reheating, I would suggest running the Tupperware under hot water until you can pop the frozen soup out into a microwave safe bowl and then I would microwave until heated through. Hope this helps!
How much does this make? I have a family of 5z I am wondering if I should double the receipe.
Hi Gina! If the soup is going to be your main item I would double it. Hope this helps!
Hi im wondering if i double the recipe should i double the time? may sound stupid but im new to this whole instant pot world… Thanks!
No question is a stupid one around here!! Because we are working with pressure, doubling the recipe does not change the cook time. ? hope you love it!
Please clarify Step 3 and 4.
Step 3, at the end, reads, ”…turn IP off.”
Step 4: “Once heated; gradually …”
The IP got turned off, only to heat it up again? What am I missing?
Hi! So on step 4, ‘once heated’ could also read ‘now that it is heated.’ Hope this helps clarify.
OMG I made this today and it is absolutely delicious! Thank you for another incredible Instant Pot recipe. xoxo
Sandra
Yay! So glad you loved it, Sandra! ❤️ this is one of my favs, too. ?