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Instant Pot Best Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup

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“Jeffrey! WHEN are you going to make a Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup?!” they’ve been asking me (for years). 

Well, today folks, consider me your Genie because your wish is my command. Quite simply put, this is the most phenomenally perfect Broccoli Cheddar Soup in the galaxy. And if anyone tells you different, never trust them again. The Instant Pot does it again! 

Here’s How I Made It! (scroll to the bottom for the fully-written recipe): 

Begin with a red onion… 

…and dice it up. 

Take a red bell pepper… 

…and dice it up. 

Then, a few carrots… 

…and peel ‘n dice. 

Lastly, some celery ribs… 

…and dice those up too! (There’s so much dice here, it feels like a casino) 

Now, take a stick of butter, add it to the Instant Pot and give it some heat. 

Once melted and bubbling… 

…add in the onion, pepper, carrot and celery. 

As a fantastic touch, I suggest adding in mushrooms (don’t worry – even if you hate them, you won’t even know they’re in there. Trust me.) 

Sauté the beautiful, colorful veggies for a few minutes… 

…until they begin to soften and cook down. 

Then, add in some flour… 

…and stir until all the veggies are coated with it. 

Now, pour in some broth… 

…and stir (scraping the bottom of the pot to make sure any flour that may be on it is cleared). 

Now take some frozen or fresh broccoli florets (there’s really no difference)… 

…and add it to the pot. Secure the lid and pressure cook at high pressure. 

While the soup’s cooking, take MORE broccoli, place it in a microwave-safe bowl, add in some water… 

…cover with plastic wrap… 

…and microwave. It will be the perfect texture after! Set aside (and feel free to cut into smaller pieces if you desire). 

When the lid comes off, it’s not quite going to look like Broccoli Cheddar soup…YET! So let’s add the finishing, transformational touches! 

Add in some cream… 

…dried thyme, garlic powder, seasoned salt and Creole/Cajun/Louisiana seasoning. 

Give it all a stir. 

Then, let’s get cheesy! Take some (okay, a bunch of) shredded, sharp Cheddar cheese… 

…add it to the pot, in batches… 

…and whisk until combined into the soup. 

Now, take an immersion blender (SO much easier, quicker and less messy than transferring to a blender in batches – but, of course, you can do that too)… 

…and purée that soup! (See? You’d NEVER know there were mushrooms in there!) 

If you want an extra fantastic touch, add in some Boursin (or any spreadable herb cheese)… 

…and blend once more. 

Lastly, toss in some Worcestershire sauce (the one I can’t pronounce)… 

…and the broccoli that we microwaved. 

Give it all a final stir… 

…ladle into bowls… 

…and feel free to top with some delicious croutons! 

Bring it to your mouth… 

…slurp up the comfort… 

…and enter a food orgasm. .

THIS SOUP WILL ‘BROC’ YOU!

Instant Pot Best Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup
Yield: 6

Instant Pot Best Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup

Instant Pot Best Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup

Personally, I feel like Broccoli Cheddar Soup is THE best soup to have on those frigid days and nights. This one is going to take it to the next level.

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Total Time 27 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
  • 3 ribs celery, diced
  • 8 ounces baby Bella mushrooms, sliced (optional, but adds some serious flavor)
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 48-ounces (3 pounds) frozen or fresh broccoli florets, divided (1 pound before pressure cooking and 2 pounds after)
  • 6 cups chicken, garlic or vegetable broth
  • 1 cup heavy cream or half & half
  • 1 tablespoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons of either seasoned salt, Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning or 1 teaspoon of each
  • 16 ounces (4 cups) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (you can even add up to one more cup if you want it crazy, crazy cheesy)
  • 5.2 ounce package of Boursin spreadable herb cheese (any flavor and also totally optional for extra flavor)
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • Croutons, for topping (I like pumpernickel and/or rye)

Instructions

  1. Add the butter to the Instant Pot, hit Sauté and adjust so it’s on the More of High setting. Once the butter’s melted, add in the onion, pepper, carrot, celery and mushrooms (if using). Sauté for 7 minutes, stirring often. Then, add in the flour and stir well so it coats all the veggies.
  2. Once the veggies are coated with flour, immediately pour in the broth and stir well, scraping the bottom to make sure no flour is stuck on it. Then, add in 16 ounces (1 pound) of broccoli florets (either frozen or fresh). Secure the lid, move the valve to the sealing position, hit Keep Warm/Cancel and then hit Manual or Pressure Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes. Quick release when done.
  3. Meanwhile, as the soup is cooking, take the other 16-32 ounces (1-2 pounds) of broccoli florets, place in a microwave-safe bowl, add 1/4 cup water, cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 9-10 minutes if frozen and 3-4 minutes if fresh. When done, remove the plastic wrap, drain and set aside. If you want smaller pieces of broccoli, simply cut them into the desired size.
  4. When the lid comes off the pot, give everything a stir. Pour in the cream, add the seasonings and then, in batches, whisk in the Cheddar until nicely combined. Then, take an immersion blender (or, in batches, transfer to a blender) and blend everything until it becomes silky smooth.
  5. If you’re using the Boursin (which I suggest for even more outrageous flavor), add it now and give it a final blend with the immersion blender.
  6. Add in the Worcestershire sauce along with the other 1-2 pounds of microwaved broccoli florets and stir well.
  7. Ladle into bowls topped with croutons, if desired.

Jeffrey's Tips

If you love making soups, I cannot suggest owning and immersion blender enough. They’re highly affordable and cut ANY mess of having to transfer the soup to a blender to purée. Not to mention, this also saves you time and it’s all done directly in the Instant Pot’s liner pot.

If you want it cheesier, add in up to another cup of shredded sharp Cheddar in Step 4.

The reason we add in some broccoli before pressure cooking and after is all to the benefit of the soup. You definitely want 1 pound of florets before pressure cooking because that’s going to set the texture for the soup once puréed with the other veggies. In the final step, we want to add in our microwaved broccoli to give the soup plenty of volume with broccoli we can bite into. How much you wish to add at the end is up to you but I strongly suggest 2 pounds (and definitely nothing less than 1 pound). So you’re looking at 2-3 pounds of broccoli total in the soup.



© Jeffrey
Cuisine: American / Category: Soups & Stews

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Laura Medill

    Delicious & so easy! I doubled up on the mushrooms since I needed to use what I had on hand. The immersion wand makes this a seamless production. I added the flour/slurry after the quick release. I feared a possible burn alert. I would have loved to serve this in a bread bowl!

    Reply

    • Crystal Ahlemann

      This recipe is so amazing!!
      And the reason I bought an immersion blender lol. The first time I made this I transferred in batches to a regular blender and it was just a hassle and messy! I’m making this again next week while my daughter is home for Christmas 🤗🤗

      Reply

  2. Karin Sanders

    Don’t go to Costco hungry! We just came home with a 3 lb bag of broccoli florets. As I’m putting away groceries….I’m asking myself “what the heck do I do with all this flippin’ broccoli?”

    We’re jumping in…..and…..OMG….turned out great!!

    Reply

  4. Cristal Cloud

    Good gravy this is delicious! My only suggestion is to do a cornstarch slurry after pressure cooking. I got the dreaded burn notice but managed to just leave it on sauté for 15 minutes with the valve open and that worked.

    Reply

  5. AnnMarie

    Hey, Jeff! I really love broccoli and cheese soups but I’m also starting keto. Do you have any recommendations as to what keto-friendly flour(s) would work for this recipe?

    Reply

  8. Janelle Weaver

    Stopping by to say thank you for this amazing recipe. I cooked it ahead this morning and unexpectedly, 6 teenagers descended from somewhere and loved it! (I saved the bread bowls for me & husband). I was shocked when my broccoli hating daughter said it was amazing. Great directions and method. Thank you!

    Reply

  10. Courtney

    Love the soup! Only thing that I hate is that when we do the quick release, soup goes everywhere!! It’s sprays out with the steam release! Is there anyway to avoid that?!

    Reply

    • Trisha

      I made this tonight and it turned out terrific! I didn’t have any cream so I’m sure it would be even better.
      I added just a little bit of nutmeg also
      Thanks!

      Reply

    • Amy

      Don’t quick release soup! Release the pressure gradually in spurts, waiting a minute or more between each controlled release.

      Reply

  11. Gail

    Made this today. Soooo good on this very cold day.
    No Boursin cheese, no nasty mushrooms (!), no Creole spice or croutons. Did not use immersion blender, either. Wanted to have all the yummy veggie pieces in the soup. It was fantastic. The thyme really added some nice flavor.

    BTW, it’s pronounced Woorsh-teh-shure, 😊

    Thanks so much for this tasty recipe.

    Reply

  13. Dianne

    Do not add flour before pressuring the veggies. It burns! Use a slurry afterwards. I don’t usually follow recipes that closely but I followed this one. Mediocre at best.

    Reply

  14. Becky

    You can also air fry the broccoli instead of microwaving it, and layer on top of the soup after – it just gives it that extra crunch! I’m working through all your recipes by the way, having just got my pressure cooker about a month ago, and they are all amazing, thank you so much!

    Reply

  15. Billie Williams

    I was afraid to follow the recipe because of previous comments. I then decided Jeffrey has not disappointed me once when I use his cookbook and online. I followed the recipe exactly. I did not get the dreaded burn and the soup was amazing! We used bread bowls, but I won’t next time. It’s just filler and I want more soup!! Thank you Jeffrey.

    Reply

  17. Christana

    This soup is to die for! Absolutely delicious and amazing. My husband said it’s the best broccoli cheddar soup he’s ever had, and I agree. Thank you for this recipe!

    Reply

  19. Corinna Rhoden

    Amazingly good! Made a few adjustments due to what I had available, instead of mushrooms, I used Trader Joe’s Mushroom Unami seasoning (2 teaspoons)cut the thyme done to 1 teaspoon and added 2 teaspoons of marjoram. I did add the flour as written and no problems with a burn notice. Asked the family if they could guess what the secret ingredient was and they all said “Boursin”. Guess it’s not a secret ingredient anymore. 😀. Thank you for a great dinner.

    Reply

  21. Trisha

    This recipe was delicious on a stormy winter evening. I had doubts about the flour because I thought I might get a burn notice, but Jeffrey has never let me down. So I went for it and we weren’t disappointed. I only used 2 lbs of broccoli because that is what I had and I didn’t want to go out.

    Reply

  23. Amanda

    If you accidentally used your Boursin on unplanned sausage and shells (cause cravings!) can you sub cream cheese? Does it need the extra cheese or was the Boursin added for that flavor?

    Reply

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