Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup–a creamy tomato soup with tender chunks of chicken, pasta, mozzarella and parmesan cheese. All the flavors from chicken parmesan in a bowl!
Get the SLOW COOKER chicken parmesan soup recipe

Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup
I’m pretty much the biggest fan of tomato soup ever. There’s just something about a creamy soup that has the acidity from tomatoes that bites through and brings so much flavor. There’s also the dipping that happens with tomato soup. Dipping grilled cheese into tomato soup is my absolute favorite.
This Instant Pot chicken parmesan soup is like dinner in a bowl. It has the tomato base but it also has a lot of heartiness thanks to the chicken and pasta and cheese. We served ours with a toasted buttered baguette. It helped with the crispiness factor since chicken parm usually has that breaded crust over the chicken. Your whole family will love this soup!
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Butter–or olive oil
- Diced onion–fresh or frozen
- Garlic cloves–or 1 Tbsp jarred minced garlic
- Chicken broth–or 3 cups water and 1 Tbsp Better than Bouillon
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts–or a combination
- Italian seasoning–or make your own
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
- Crushed tomatoes
- Tomato paste–Pro tip: Freeze your leftover tomato paste in one tablespoon increments to use for future recipes. I use my cookie scooper and scoop the paste onto a parchment lined pan and freeze. Once frozen, I pop off the blobs and freeze in a ziplock bag.
- Ditalini pasta–or another pasta of your choice
- Half and half
- Grated or shredded Parmesan cheese
- Shredded mozzarella cheese
- Croutons–optional
How to make Chicken Parmesan Soup in the Instant Pot
Turn your Instant Pot to the saute setting. When the display says HOT add in the butter and swirl it around until it has melted. Add in the onion and saute for 3-4 minutes. Then add in the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add in the chicken broth and scrape the bottom of the pot.

Add in the chicken, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Don’t stir.

Cover the pot and secure the lid. Make sure the valve is set to sealing. Set the SOUP button to 12 minutes. (If you don’t have a soup button use the manual/pressure cook button.) When the time is up let the pot sit for 5 minutes and then move the valve to venting. Remove the lid.

Remove the chicken and place on a cutting board.
Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. Add in the ditalini pasta and let it simmer in the liquid for about 8 minutes, or until cooked through. Stir every minute or so that the pasta doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Turn off saute setting.

Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and add it into the pot.

Stir a couple cups of the hot soup into the warmed half and half to prevent it from separating. Add the mixture into the pot and stir. Stir in the parmesan cheese and mozzarella.

Ladle into bowls and serve topped with croutons and extra cheese, if desired.

A few notes about the recipe:
Pasta: the pasta will get more and more bloated as the soup sits. If there are leftovers it will suck up all the liquid. If this bothers you then you can cook the pasta until al dente on the stove top and then add a little pasta into each bowl of soup and store it separately in the refrigerator for the leftovers. I choose to throw the pasta into the pot uncooked. It helps to thicken the soup and I don’t mind the pasta getting a little bloated. I used ditalini pasta but you can also use macaroni, orzo, penne, cavatappi, orecchiette, etc.
Can I use cooked chicken? Yes! If you have cooked rotisserie chicken on hand you can totally use it. I would add in the pasta in with the chicken and only pressure cook for 1 minute (soup button). Then you don’t have to shred up the chicken and you don’t have to cook the pasta separately. It will significantly cut down on the overall time of this recipe.
Crushed tomatoes: I love using crushed tomatoes in this soup because they give the soup body and flavor. Crushed tomatoes aren’t chunky like diced tomatoes so kids will like them better too. No need to puree your soup when you use crushed tomatoes.
Equipment I used:
- To make Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. You can also use an 8 quart pot. Halve the recipe for the 3 quart pot.
- I love my wooden saute paddle* for most every Instant Pot recipe I make!
- Make sure to have a nice, grippy cutting board* to chop the onions.
- I love these serrated knives*! They are a game changer.
- Digital scale* to measure the chicken and the pasta. If you don’t have one yet…WHY?!
How to store the leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. The pasta will become bloated and suck up most of the broth. But it will still taste good! Alternatively, you can boil pasta on the stove and store separately. Then add some of the pasta to each bowl of soup.
More Instant Pot soup recipes you’ll love…
Instant Pot Loaded Beef Enchiladas Soup
A fast and easy soup recipe with ground beef, beans, corn, enchilada sauce, tomatoes and green chiles. It’s topped with tortilla strips, cheddar cheese, sour cream and cilantro for a beef enchilada in a bowl meal.
Instant Pot Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup
A creamy tomato based soup that is made from start to finish in 45 minutes thanks to the help of your pressure cooker. This is my favorite soup to make for company. I always get tons of compliments. I don’t believe I’ve tasted soup at a restaurant that is as good as this version.
Instant Pot Bob Evan’s Soup
Bob Evan’s Chicken-N-Noodles Soup is a copycat version of the homey, comforting soup that can be made at home in your Instant Pot or Crockpot!
Instant Pot Oprah’s Tomato Soup
Healthy and flavorful tomato soup recipe (can be vegetarian and dairy free). It tastes amazing with grilled cheese sandwiches!


Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes (plus 5-10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 37 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 servings 1x
Description
A creamy tomato soup with tender chunks of chicken, pasta, mozzarella and parmesan cheese. All the flavors from chicken parmesan in a bowl!
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup diced onion
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 pounds uncooked boneless skinless chicken thighs or breasts (or a combination)
- 1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 3/4 tsp pepper
- 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
- 3 Tbsp tomato paste
- 4 ounces ditalini pasta (or another pasta of your choice)
- 1 cup half and half, warmed
- 1/2 cup grated or shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Croutons, for serving
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to the saute setting. When the display says HOT add in the butter and swirl it around until it has melted. Add in the onion and saute for 3-4 minutes. Then add in the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add in the chicken broth and scrape the bottom of the pot.
- Add in the chicken, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. Don’t stir.
- Cover the pot and secure the lid. Make sure the valve is set to sealing. Set the SOUP button to 12 minutes. (If you don’t have a soup button use the manual/pressure cook button.) When the time is up let the pot sit for 5 minutes and then move the valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Remove the chicken and place on a cutting board.
- Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. Add in the ditalini pasta and let it simmer in the liquid for about 8 minutes, or until cooked through. Stir every minute or so that the pasta doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Turn off saute setting.
- Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and add it into the pot.
- Stir a couple cups of the hot soup into the warmed half and half to prevent it from separating. Add the mixture into the pot and stir. Stir in the parmesan cheese and mozzarella.
- Ladle into bowls and serve topped with croutons and extra cheese, if desired.
Notes
Pasta: the pasta will get more and more bloated as the soup sits. If there are leftovers it will suck up all the liquid. If this bothers you then you can cook the pasta until al dente on the stove top and then add a little pasta into each bowl of soup and store it separately in the refrigerator for the leftovers.
To make gluten free: make gluten free pasta on the stove top according to package directions and stir a portion into each bowl. Do not serve with croutons.
- Category: Soup
- Method: Instant Pot

*Karen Petersen 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.
I absolutely love this soup. Like you I used rotisserie chicken. With the extra pasta I vacuum sealed in portions for more soup later. I’m so glad I found your site. I was a little intimidated with my electric pressure cooker, but no more since I found you. Thanks for all the wonderful recipes.
★★★★★
Cool! I like the idea of vacuum sealing it for later!
Hello!! This is another one of your recipes I can’t wait to try. To cut down on the fat content can I use low fat evap milk? I know it won’t taste as yummy. Or would it better to use fat free half and half?
Thanks
Yes either way! Both of those will work 🙂
I came across this recipe as a reel on Facebook, and it looked good. I finally got around to trying it, and it was incredible!!! I never write review, but I felt I had to after eating this. I love the noodles suggested as I have never heard of them, but they are perfect in this soup. Using croutons instead of crackers is genius. I used garlic and butter flavored croutons. and it was like having a crunchy bite of garlic bread at the same time. I recommend and will make again…and again!!!
★★★★★
THANK YOU!!! I am so glad you tried it and loved it! Thanks for the 5 stars!
I absolutley loved this soup! I will make this again & again!. I cut down on the Sodium and cooked the pasta separately. I like my pasta al dente. Yummy.
★★★★★
Thanks so much for the 5 stars Claudia!
Rather than say how phenomenal this meal turned out, how about if I share that I made it twice within a week? That should say it all, but of course I have particulars to share. This dish has a flavor profile that mimics Chicken Parmesan to the letter! Both times that I made your dish, I opted to cook the pasta right along with everything else, and will do it no other way! Additionally I cut my chicken into large bite sized pieces before adding to the pot…. the only other tweak was that I used a bit more of the tomato paste ingredient….Both times I prepared the recipe in the afternoon, and simply reheated on our stovetop for our dinner. Our company swooned as I pretended to be embarrassed by the attention. The truth is that I loved every ooh and ahh from our guests 🙂 Karen, you are sooo appreciated for sharing all of these amazing dishes. Big thanks from Sherman Oaks, California.
★★★★★
I always love reading your reviews Jeff! The part about pretending to be embarrassed made me laugh out loud! So glad you liked the soup!
I don’t have an instapot. How would you convert for the crockpot?
here is the slow cooker version: https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/slow-cooker-creamy-chicken-parm-soup/
Hello ma how are you doing. I hope you and your family are doing well in the name of Jesus Christ 🙏
Thank you! We are doing great!
Love this so much!!! I did a few things different because I did not have tomato paste. I added a can of italian diced tomatoes and a little tomato sauce. I then added a block of cream cheese since I didn’t have any mozzarella. This was sooooo good!!! Family couldn’t get enough of it.
well that sounds amazing!!
Karen, the print link sends me to a somewhat different recipe than the one shown on this page, with differing cooking times (2 minutes versus 12) and other variations in some of the steps. They both sound good, but I don’t know which one to believe!
Refresh the page…I’ve updated the recipe so perhaps you are looking at a cached version? You can also try reading the page in an incognito browser. Thanks for the heads up!
Karen, the instructions on this web page are different than the instructions in the Print version. Some ingredient amounts are different and the chicken is chunked ahead of time in the print version so the cooking times are also different. Also, the instructions for adding the pasta are different.
Refresh the page…I’ve updated the recipe so perhaps you are looking at a cached version? You can also try reading the page in an incognito browser. Thanks for the heads up!
I don’t know what “incognito browser” means. I refreshed the page and still got a different print version (it says “Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Parm Soup”) than shown on the screen, which is titled “Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup” and has the differences I mentioned. Which one is the more recent version?
I can’t replicate this on my end…not sure what is going on. The Instant Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup is the right recipe.
Well, I guess I need to go through and just note the differences in my printout. Thanks for trying!
Try again. I cleared things from my end. I think it will show up correctly now.
That did it! Thanks so much for following through!
Am Saiedu from West Africa. A chef for two Americans. I love having the chance to be here and of course a lot I have seen and learn. Thanks to everyone for every coprations.🙏🌹🕊️
Can I use frozen chicken? What adjustments would I need to make?
Yes you can. I have used frozen thighs and it worked great. Keep the same cooking time.
I prefer not to use crushed tomatoes. what can I substitute for that?
I would used diced tomatoes. Perhaps I would use a blender to blend them first.
You could but then you wouldn’t be able to cook the pasta at the same time because it would get way too overdone. You could cook pasta on stove separately. Cook chicken for 12-15 minutes.
I want to make this but it is just me. If i halve the recipe, would you make any changes in time or ingredients?
I love your recipes! I am ordering your cookbook soon. Did I understand correctly that it has no pictures?
I would halve all ingredients and keep the cooking time the same. The cookbook has about 50 pictures in it.
I made a slight (incredibly unhealthy) change and used Alfredo sauce instead of half and half. It was absolutely delicious! This is definitely going to be a common recipe for me!
★★★★★
That sounds absolutely amazing!
My whole family thought this was delicious! I’ll be definitely be adding this to the rotation this winter
★★★★★
Glad you enjoyed it Nicki!