I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a huge fan of squash in general (when I was a kid, not even all the Jem Dolls in the world could convince me to have a taste). But there’s something absolutely magical about it when it’s transformed into a soup.
If you’ve tried my winning Acorn Squash Soup, you’ll know it’s a wonderful sweet and savory soup that warms the soul and is the perfect soup for the fall. And so, since so many requested I make Butternut Squash Soup (which is the nuttier version of Acorn Squash Soup), I decided it was time.
Butternut Squash soup has a slightly sweet, nutty, crisp and comforting taste that will make you want to sit in a giant cornucopia as you slurp it. And t’s SO easy and quick to make right in your Instant Pot. The PERFECT Thanksgiving/Fall/Winter soup!
Here’s How I Made It!:
Begin with some butternut squash (even easier if you can find it already diced up).
Add the trivet and some water to the pot.
…followed by resting the squash on top of the trivet. Secure the lid and cook at high pressure.
When done, take a slotted spoon…
…and transfer the squash to a bowl. Set aside as we’ll come back to that in a bit.
Now take a few shallots…
…and dice ’em up!
After removing the trivet and draining the water that steamed the squash, add in some butter…
…and some oil. Give the pot some heat.
Once the butter’s melted and the oil’s sizzling, add in the shallots and sauté for a few minutes.
Don’t forget to add in a little garlic too!
Sauté together for another moment longer.
And now, let’s add in some chicken broth or garlic broth (or both! Also feel free to use just garlic or vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian)…
…seasoned salt…
…black pepper…
…white pepper…
…nutmeg…
…rubbed sage…
…dried thyme…
…and stir until well combined. Secure the lid and cook at high pressure.
When the lid comes off, it’ll look like this.
Go back to the squash which has been waiting so patiently…
…and add it to the soup.
Now take an immersion blender (which is one of the best and most convenient inventions ever)…
…and blend until puréed.
Finish it off by adding in some Worcestershire sauce…
…heavy cream or half & half…
…grated parmesan cheese…
…and sugar.
Give it all a good final stir…
…until everything’s nice and melded together. And just look at that consistency – not too thick, not too thin – just perfect!
Ladle some into bowls…
…sprinkle on a little more rubbed sage and thyme (and perhaps even top off with some reserved toasted seeds from the squash if you didn’t buy it pre-cut).
Taste it…
…and give thanks on a job well done and for having taste buds that know what a good soup tastes like! This will be a huge hit – even with the pickiest of squash eaters!
Enjoy!
Advertising Disclosure: Jeffrey Eisner/Pressure Luck is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com
At the time of this post, Pressure Luck exclusively uses Better Than Bouillon/Southeastern Mills for all soup bases and bouillon
Instant Pot Best Butternut Squash Soup
This is the perfect soup for the autumn. I made sure my Butternut Squash Soup has the perfect consistency (I don't care for it when it's as thick as baby food) while remaining top-notch in that grand, nutty and sweet flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs of butternut squash, cut either in half with seeds and inner stringy-ness removed OR cut into cubes also with the seeds and skin removed (some markets sell it pre-cut)
- 1 tbsp of olive oil
- 2 tbsp of salted butter
- 3 shallots, chopped
- 1 tbsp of crushed garlic
- 2 cups of chicken broth (I used 2 tsp of Chicken Better Than Bouillon + 2 cups of water)
- 2 cups of garlic broth (2 tsp of Garlic Better Than Bouillon + 2 cups of water, but you can use 4 cups of chicken broth if you cannot find this OR 4 cups of vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian)
- 1 tbsp of seasoned salt
- 1 tsp of black pepper, plus some for garnish
- 1/4 tsp of white pepper
- 1/4 tsp of nutmeg
- 1 tsp of rubbed (dried) sage, plus some for garnish
- 1 tsp of dried thyme, plus some for garnish
- 1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
- 1/3 cup of grated Parmesan cheese, plus some for garnish
- 1/2 cup of heavy cream
- 1 tbsp of white sugar
Instructions
- If your squash isn’t already pre-cut, using a good knife, (carefully) cut the butternut squash in half from the top to the bottom and use an ice cream scooper to scoop out the seeds (you can either discard them or save them for toasting and perhaps even use the toasted seeds a a garnish at the end – see the yellow “Jeffrey Sez” section how to do this!)
- Add the trivet and 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot and rest the halved (or pre-cut/cubed) squash on top of it so that it fits. Secure the lid and hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 6 minutes. Quick release when done and hit “Keep Warm/Cancel”Carefully remove the cooked squash with tongs and set aside to cool. Remove the trivet and liner pot, rinse it out, dry it off well and then return the liner pot to the Instant Pot
- Hit “Sauté” and Adjust so it’s on the “More” or “High” setting. Add in the oil and butter and once melted and bubbling, add the shallots. Cook for about 3 minutes in the oil/butter until a softened and a little browned and then add in the garlic and stir for another minute
- Next, add in the chicken broth, garlic broth, seasoned salt, black pepper, white pepper, nutmeg, dried sage and dried thyme. Mix well, secure the lid, hit “Keep Warm/Cancel” and then hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 3 minutes. Quick release when done
- While the broth is cooking, the squash will have cooled down. If you used cubed squash, you’re good here. But if you used whole squash that you halved, using the ice cream scooper, scoop the soft meat out of the squash and place all the scooped meat into a bowl, leaving the skin out. Also, don’t worry about scooping out any tough portions of the squash. We only want the soft sections and we will have plenty. Discard the skin and tough portions of the squash when done scooping
- After quick releasing the broth and when the lid comes off the Instant Pot, add in the scooped squash and then take an immersion blender (or a regular one, but an immersion blender is SO much easier for this so you don’t have to transfer the soup to a blender and then back into the pot) and blend everything in the pot together for about a minute until it’s puréed. The soup will thicken up from this
- Lastly, add in the Worcestershire sauce, Parmesan cheese, heavy cream, sugar and stir until well combined
- Ladle into bowls and top with some extra sprinkles of rubbed sage and thyme and maybe a few additional dollops of cream (AND/OR use some reserved seeds from the squash that you’ve toasted/roasted too)
- Enjoy!
Jeffrey's Tips
Want it vegetarian? Sub vegetable or garlic broth for the chicken broth. Want it vegan? Use vegan-friendly margarine and sub almond or cashew milk for the cream.
This is totally optional, but when you’re just about to serve and if you want to give it an extra “harvest-like” kick, feel free to stir in some other spices to the pot, such as some pumpkin spice or cinnamon. Start with 1/4 tsp and then add more to taste.
If using a whole butternut squash to cut up yourself, feel free to reserve the seeds, lay them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil, drizzle on a little olive oil (or mustard oil for a kick), sprinkle on some salt and pepper and roast in the oven at 300 degrees for about 15-20 minutes (keep an eye on it as all ovens vary). You can then sprinkle the seeds on top of the soup at the end for a lovely additional garnish or just serve as a snack!
Debbie
I make this soup frequently. It’s one of our favorites!
Jeffrey
I’m so glad you enjoy it!
Alexandra
Just made this soup for the first time yesterday. OMG, said my husband…. this soup has amazing taste. Score!
I didn’t have an immersion blender so had to use a regular blender. UGH. I ordered the one you suggested immediately. Great recipe.
Jeffrey
Fan-freaking-tasted! Love!
Charlotte Bailey
I made this soup this evening for my card-playing friends, and it was a huge hit. I made it from my garden-grown butternut squash! And I did roast the seeds for a garnish as you suggested – pretty darn amazing! Until this recipe, I had never really cared for the thick butternut squash soup I had had, but this is just friggin’ delicious! No one could ever be disappointed with this recipe. Thanks Jeff – you made me look good!
Phil
Fold in a can of lump crabmeat at the end. It takes a great soup to a new level.
Suzanne McGuire
Just as a suggestion, I add carrots, celery and even potatoes to my squash soup. It will all be pureed at the end. Then once done I add a cube of cream cheese, some shredded cheese, let it all melt and then I chop up a package of Johnsonville sausage to it. Yum!
I like the fact you add thyme and worstershire sauce. Something I hadn’t thought about but will try when I make my soups this Fall. Thanks for the tips.
Jennifer S
This. Was. Amazing. Thank you!
Macy Smith
Great soup! I agree with other reviewers that it was thin. We didn’t have a lot of food around so we skipped the ginger and curry powder and subbed the heavy cream for coconut cream to make it vegan. It was too thin at the end so I put the instant pot on the sauté setting to let it evaporate a bit. In the end it was great and my sister who’s a very picky eater and almost always refuses to eat any food with vegetables in it went back for seconds! We didn’t even mind that it was really thin. We will definitely make this again!
J
Would this work with frozen butternut squash? I can’t find it pre-cut in my local stores, but found bags of frozen cubed butternut squash (I’ll use fresh if I have to just thought about making it easier).
earl shearin
Made this last night, and although I enjoyed it my partner did not – which kinda made me mad. I know he loves Butternut and Pumpkin soups, however his complaint was the Sage and peppery taste, not very creamy and thin. I must admit it was strong on the sage and pepper however I enjoyed it, especially after is sat a bit and thicken up. I will try this again with no sage and less to no pepper and maybe add more cream. Love the channel on YouTube
Jon
Would this work with frozen cubed butternut squash?
Rachel Wolfe
I’ve made this soup at least 5 or 6 times now and it is fantastic every time! Recently I started roasting the squash, onions, and garlic in the oven and making the soup on the stovetop instead of in the Instant pot (nothing really beats that authentic roasted flavor). But even so, this recipe is the only one I use because its the most delicious soup recipe I’ve ever made!
Jo
Wow I love this recipe but I love it more when I had to cook up some Italian sausage that was in fridge for a couple of days. Was eating them separately and was thinking not sure if will add the parm cheese to soup. Thinking the next time I would taste it before adding the parm. Well while eating it added small piece of sausage into the soup and then I was in food heven. So decided to cut up the rest of the sausage and added it to the soup along with a bit of the sausage drippings. This is going to be a wonderful fall/winter soup that I will cook several times also keeping the parm in. Saving this to my favorite recipes to keep forever. FYI made almost exact except for using all chicken broth. Going to try your Butternut Sausage Soup Recipe I’m sure I will love it.
Jo from NM