Description
Reminiscent of Panera Bread’s broccoli cheddar soup this pressure cooker version has chopped broccoli, shredded carrots and celery simmered in a velvety smooth cheese sauce. I believe this version is just as good or better than you could order at any restaurant! Try it for dinner this week.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 or 3 celery ribs, diced
- 2 or 3 carrots, match-stick style or grated or diced
- 4 cups coarsely chopped fresh broccoli florets
- 3 cups chicken broth (or 3 cups of water and 3 tsp of Better than Bouillon Chicken Base)
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 (8 oz) block of sharp cheddar, grated
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Optional: cornstarch and water
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to the saute function (“more”) and melt the 1 Tbsp of butter. When the butter is melted add in the diced onion. Saute for 3 minutes.
- Add in the celery, carrots, broccoli and chicken broth.
- Cover the Instant Pot and lock the lid in place. Make sure valve is on “sealing.” Set the manual button (or pressure cook button) to 1 minute.
- While the pot heats up and reaches pressure melt your 1/4 cup of butter in a glass dish in the microwave (you can also melt in a pan on the stove). Slowly whisk in the flour until a creamy mixture is formed. Set aside. If desired (to speed up the process) you can also heat up the milk at this time. Grate your cheddar and set aside.
- When the timer beeps indicating the time is up on your Instant Pot let the pot sit there for 5 minutes and then move the valve to “venting.” Remove the lid when you can.
- Turn the Instant Pot back to the saute function. Whisk one cup of the broth from the soup into the butter and flour mixture. Then add that whole mixture into the pot. Stir until the soup thickens. Stir in the milk, until it heats through (this is why heating it beforehand can speed up the process). Stir in the cheese, until it melts. Stir in the salt and pepper. If you want a thicker soup you can mix 2 Tbsp of cornstarch with 2 Tbsp of cold water in a small bowl and then stir the cornstarch slurry into the pot. This will produce a nice, thick soup.
- Ladle into bowls and serve. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Although I personally haven’t tried freezing this soup, I believe that it would freeze well.
Notes
I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*
- Category: Soup
- Method: Instant Pot
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup of soup
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 6 g
- Sodium: 630 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Carbohydrates: 15 g
- Protein: 16 g