Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Broccoli Cheddar Soup is a popular vegetarian soup with broccoli and cheese as the star ingredients. It’s a very comforting, satisfying, and filling soup.

Ingredients: It’s made with pantry ingredients like broccoli, cheddar cheese, veggies, aromatics, milk, and chicken stock.

We like to add our favorite Red Boat 40N Fish Sauce for an umami boost, but it’s optional.

Flavors & Textures: The broccoli cheese soup is creamy, rich, thick, smooth, aromatic, cheesy, and savory-umami.

We used a combination of ingredients and techniques to enhance the depths of flavors, and add body and different textures to make the soup more exciting! So you won’t have to worry it’ll turn out flat, one-dimensional, or boring after a few scoops.

How to Make Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Take this Broccoli Cheddar Soup Instant Pot Recipe to the next level with these few simple techniques:

• Sautéing the aromatics and veggies
• Using 2 types of freshly grated cheese
• Balancing flavor profile & adding layers of flavors with high-quality fish sauce
• Adding some broccoli florets near the end for a more satisfying mouthfeel and better presentation

What You Need to Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Here are the ingredients for making Broccoli Cheddar Soup in Instant Pot:

Potatoes

We decided to incorporate potatoes in this broccoli cheddar soup recipe because the potatoes can add more body to the soup.

What types of potatoes are best for this soup?

We developed this broccoli cheddar soup recipe with Yukon Gold potatoes. Russet potatoes and white potatoes will work great as well.

Freshly Grated Cheddar Cheese

Pre-shredded cheese contains cellulose powder that doesn’t break down or allows smooth melting. So, it’s best to use freshly grated cheese because the cheese will melt better than pre-shredded cheese.

How to avoid graininess in broccoli cheddar soup?

If you use freshly grated cheese, your soup will have a smoother texture. It’ll be more work, but it’ll be worth it! But if you prefer using pre-shredded cheese, it’ll still work for this recipe.

Unsalted Chicken Stock & Unsalted Butter

We prefer to develop recipes with unsalted ingredients because we can better control the flavors of the dish.

Whole Milk

You can substitute the whole milk with 2% or 1% milk for this Broccoli Cheddar soup.

Fish Sauce (Optional)

Fish Sauce may sound strange or unusual as an ingredient for Broccoli Cheddar Soup. But if you’ve been following Amy + Jacky’s recipes, you’ll know we love Fish Sauce!

Don’t worry! A high-quality fish sauce doesn’t make the soup tastes fishy at all! Avoid using a poor-quality fish sauce though.

We’re not sponsored or affiliated with Red Boat, but this Red Boat 40N Fish Sauce is still our favorite. Three Crabs Brand Fish Sauce is also another solid brand.

We’re using it to balance the flavor by significantly cutting down the cheddar cheese’s sharp aftertaste. As a bonus, it builds an extra layer of umami flavor into the soup. But if you want to skip the fish sauce, the soup will still be tasty.

Tools for Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

• Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
• Immersion Hand Blender – very handy tool to help you blend the broccoli cheddar soup into a smooth consistency.
• Wooden Spoon
• Pyrex Measuring Cups

Saute Onions & Garlic in Instant Pot

First, press “Saute” button to “Sauté More” function to heat up your Instant Pot.

Note: It’ll switch to “ON” on the screen.

Wait until it says “HOT” on the screen. This takes roughly 8 minutes.

Now, add 3 tbsp (42g) unsalted butter or olive oil in the Instant Pot’s inner pot. Make sure you cover the whole bottom with oil.

Add chopped onions to Instant Pot.

Lightly season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Then, saute onions for roughly 2 to 3 minutes until softened but not browned.

Add chopped garlic in Instant Pot, then saute for 30 seconds.

Saute Broccoli & Veggies

Add in about 16 broccoli florets, then saute for roughly 2 minutes until it smells earthy.

Add in chopped carrots, diced potatoes, and 1 tsp ground mustard, then saute for another minute.

Deglaze Instant Pot

Pour 1 cup (250ml) unsalted chicken stock in Instant Pot.

Then, completely deglaze the bottom of the pot by scrubbing the flavorful brown bits with a wooden spoon.

Pressure Cook Broccoli Soup in Instant Pot

Now, add the remaining broccoli, 2 cups (500ml) unsalted chicken stock, and optional 2 tbsp (30ml) fish sauce in Instant Pot.

With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position.

• Pressure Cooking Method: Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 3 minutes, then Natural Release for 10 minutes

After 10 minutes, carefully release the remaining pressure by turning the Venting Knob to Venting position.

Blend Broccoli Soup

Scoop up and set aside 16 to 18 broccoli florets from Instant Pot for later. 

Pour 2 cups (500ml) whole milk in Instant Pot to slightly cool down the broccoli soup.

Then, blend the broccoli soup in Instant Pot to your desired consistency with an Immersion Hand Blender. 

Melt Cheese and Make Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Add a handful of grated cheddar cheese at a time, then stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the cheese fully melts into the broccoli soup.

Add the previously set-aside broccoli florets in the broccoli cheese soup in Instant Pot, then break them down a little with a wooden spoon.

Season & Serve Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Taste the broccoli cheddar soup, then season with salt & ground black pepper.

Garnish with more cheddar cheese on top. You can also add some toasted breadcrumbs on this tasty broccoli cheese soup.

What to Serve with Broccoli Cheddar Soup

You can serve Broccoli Cheddar Soup with a wide variety of delicious side dishes. This rich and creamy soup goes well with sides that are lighter, can soak up the flavorful soup, or sides with a more refreshing flavor profile.

• Bread, Sandwiches, Crackers: Serve this broccoli cheddar soup with a slice of bread like Artisan No Knead Bread, sandwiches like Grilled Cheese Sandwich, toasted garlic bread, or saltine crackers.
• Salads: This creamy soup goes well with simple salads like green salads (i.e. Caesar salad), Instant Pot Potato Salad, Instant Pot Egg Salad, Greek salad, or other vegetable salads.
• Potatoes or Sweet Potatoes: Enjoy this broccoli cheese soup with your favorite potatoes or sweet potato sides like Instant Pot Roasted Potatoes, Instant Pot Baked Potatoes, or Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes.
• Vegetables: You can also serve this soup with some simple veggies like Instant Pot Corn on the Cob, Instant Pot Zucchini, Instant Pot Beets, or Buttery Sweet Carrots.

Enjoy Creamy Rich Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup!

Other Comforting Creamy Instant Pot Soups

• Instant Pot Potato Soup
• Instant Pot Tomato Soup
• Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
• Instant Pot Wild Rice Soup
• Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
• Instant Pot Clam Chowder