Soup Season
It’s getting cold out, and nothing screams warm and cozy dinner like an inviting bowl of soup. One of my favorite ways to make soup is with my Instant Pot! Many people respond to that last sentence with, “Oh, yeah, my (insert relative here) bought me one for Christmas a few years back, but it’s still in the box. I’m afraid to use it.” I respond with a little laugh and explain how great they are, but I doubt the poor thing still ever sees the light of day. I hope to entice a few folks to rip that box open and try out a few soups this season!
Here are a few things that make a multi-cooker (Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, etc.) so awesome:
1. It’s an all-in-one pot! – Maybe this one is obvious, but it is! You can saute like you would a skillet or boil like a pot, use it like you would a crockpot/slow cooker, AND the best part: a pressure cooker, which means that things take just a fraction of the time to cook! Most recipes, if they are written correctly (I’ll get to recipes in a bit), will put everything in the order that you’ll need to cook them so that it can all be cooked together in the same pot even if you’re using different functions, so WAY LESS DISHES!
2. It’s faster. As I mentioned above, pressure cooking saves so much time, so many recipes only call for partially cooking the meat before pressure cooking or letting you use partially frozen meat which helps you save tons of time.
3. Cheap-especially since the fad has kind of worn off, you can get these things for way under $100. I definitely recommend going with a 6qt model because most recipes are standardized to that size pot. If you go above that, things can take way longer to cook or come to pressure, and if you go below that, you can mess up the recipes when you try to pare down the ratios. You can always add fancy things like air fryer lids and silicone trivets, but all base models should come with what you need for most recipes and all the recipes I’m sharing in this article.
I like to research a lot before I try new things just to make sure I’m buying the right things, so when I bought my Instant Pot a handful of years ago, when they were really popular, I found a lot of recipes online. Some recipes were good, some were not good, so I started looking for groups on Facebook of people who had recipes they liked and recommended. I stumbled upon this group and one of the guys who would post a lot had videos of some of his recipes (which I find super helpful when I’m going to try something new-Hello, Millennial!) His website is Pressureluckcooking.com, and you can find tons of different types of recipes (not just soups) with videos, step-by-step pictures, and full recipes. He also has great books if you’re interested in something more tangible. I have 3 of his 4 books, and they are great, too, with even more recipes than what he has on the website. The step-by-step pictures make it much less daunting to tackle.
Here are three of my favorite soup recipes from Jeffrey Eisner’s books/website in order of difficulty (in my opinion only).
Easy
Chicken Tortilla Soup
From The Step-by-step Instant Pot cookbook by Jeffrey Eisner, page 68, and… https://pressureluckcooking.com/instant-pot-chicken-tortilla-soup/
Prep time 5 min
Saute time 5-10 min
Pressure building time 10-20 min
Pressure cook time 14 min
Total time 45 min
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
2T Vegetable oil
1 Yellow onion, diced
2 Jalapeno peppers, diced
3 Cloves garlic, pressed or minced
5c Chicken broth (I use chicken bouillon cubes and water)
1-14.5oz can Diced tomatoes, with their juices
2 Limes juiced
2T Hot sauce
2T Salsa Verde
1T Dried cilantro
1T Ground cumin
2lb Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
1/2c Sour cream
Suggestions to add when serving:
Chopped fresh cilantro
Freshly sliced avocado
Shredded Mexican cheese
Tortilla Strips
1. Pour the oil into the Instant Pot, then hit saute and adjust so it’s on the high or more setting. After 3 min., when the oil is heated, add the onion and jalapenos and cook for 3-5 min., until softened. Add the garlic and saute for 1 min. Longer.
2. Add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, lime juice, hot sauce, salsa verde, dried cilantro, and cumin. Stir well.
3. Add the chicken breasts, secure the lid, move the valve to the sealing position, hit Keep Warm/Cancel, and then hit Pressure Cook or Manual on High Pressure for 14 minutes. Quick release when done and let the soup cool for 5 min.
4. Meanwhile, use tongs to remove the chicken. Place in a mixing bowl and shred with two forks (or a hand/stand mixer for ease), and set aside.
5. Once the soup has slightly cooled, whisk in the sour cream until totally melded. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and stir.
6. Serve topped with some fresh cilantro, avocado, shredded cheese, and tortilla strips.
Medium
White Chicken Chilli
From The Lighter Step-by-step Instant Pot cookbook by Jeffrey Eisner, page 62 and… https://pressureluckcooking.com/white-chicken-chili/
Prep Time 10 min
Broiling Time 12 min
Saute Time 10 min
Pressure Building Time 15-20 min
Pressure Cook Time 5 min
Total Time 55 min
Ingredients
2 Large poblano peppers, seeded and
roughly chopped
1-7oz can Green chillies, with juices
2T Extra-virgin Olive oil
1T Pure maple syrup (trust this one)
2Tbutter
1/2t Liquid smoke
1 Large spanish or yellow onion, diced 2-15.5oz can White beans (Cannellini, great
northern or navy beans) drained and rinsed
3 Cloves garlic, pressed or minced
3T Cornstarch
2.5lbsBoneless, skinless chicken tenders,breasts or thighs, cut into bite-sizepieces
3T Cold water
4c Chicken broth (I like to throw bouillon
cubes in and pour in water to volume
the broth makes inside the pot)
1-10oz Package frozen corn (can also use a
can of corn)
1c Salsa verde
1/4c Plain Greek yogurt
2t Ground cumin
2t Seasoned salt
1tChili powder
1tBlack pepper
1Lime, juiced
Optional add for garnish:
Shredded cheese, I like Monterey Jack
Chopped Cilantro
Lime juice
Directions:
1. Toss chopped poblano pieces with oil and spread onto baking sheet and pop under broiler for 10-12 minutes or until they are blistered, you can also use an air fryer or air fryer top to an instant pot, cooking times may vary, so keep an eye on them. This step will add a lot of flavor to the end soup.
2. In the Instant Pot hit Saute and adjust so it’s on the more or high setting. Add the butter to the pot. Once it’s melted and bubbling add the onion and poblano peppers, saute for 3 minutes and then add garlic and saute for another 1 min.
3. Add the chicken pieces and saute, stirring constantly for another 3-4 min, until it turns pinkish white (it will not be fully cooked yet, but that’s ok).
4. Add the broth, salsa verde, cumin, chili powder, pepper, lime juice, green chiles, maple syrup, and liquid smoke and stir. Finally, add the beans on top and, rather than stirring them in, lightly smooth them out so they’re just below the broth.
5. Secure the lid, move the valve to the sealing position, hit Keep Warm/Cancel, and then hit Manual or Pressure Cook on High Pressure for 5 min. Quick release when done.
6. Mix together the cornstarch and cold water to form a slurry. (For a thicker chili, you may double this slurry mixture.)
7. Hit keep warm/Cancel followed by Saute again. Once it begins to bubble, add the corn (if using). Stir in the slurry for 30 seconds and then hit Keep Warm/Cancel. Stir in the yogurt and seasoned salt and let set for 2 minutes.
8. Serve with a sprinkle of cheese and cilantro, if desired.
Medium to High difficulty
Chicken Gnocchi Soup
This is my new favorite soup! It is so hearty and flavorful it checks all the boxes for me for sure. It calls for a lot of very heavy ingredients like heavy cream, gnocchi, which is an italian potato dumpling and Jeffrey’s favorite flavor enhancer-Boursin cheese. In my opinion it can go without some of that, I like to use the Boursin bites which are little bits so it’s easier to only use a dab instead of an entire brick, I use a splash of milk or half and half instead of cream and you could even cut out the pancetta or bacon if you’d like to. I have also made this recipe with boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of a whole chicken before and it was great.
From The Simple Comforts Step-by-step Instant Pot cookbook by Jeffrey Eisner page 78 and… https://pressureluckcooking.com/instant-pot-chicken-gnocchi-soup/
4T Salted butter
2t Dried thyme
8-10oz Pancetta, diced or 1/2lb bacon cut into bits
1t Dried oregano
1 Medium yellow onion, diced
1t Italian seasoning
2 Medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 Whole Chicken (4-5lb) chopped into quarters
3 Ribs celery, diced (leafy tops reserved)
8-10oz Baby spinach or chopped kale
3 Cloves garlic, pressed or minced
2c Heavy cream or half-and-half
1/2c Sherry wine (optional)
1/2c All-purpose flour
5.5c Garlic broth (Garlic Better than
Bouillion and water)
1-2lb Store-bought packaged gnocchi
usually found in the pasta aisle
1T Seasoned salt
1/3c Grated parmesan cheese
1t Black pepper
1-5.2oz Package Boursin or any spreadable
herb cheese cut into small chunks (optional)
1. Add the butter to the instantpot, hit saute, and adjust so it’s on the More or High setting.
2. Once the butter’s melted, add the pancetta or bacon and saute for 6-8 minutes, until cooked and slightly crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined bowl and set aside, but lease the bacon grease and melted butter in the pot.
3. Add the onion, carrot, and diced celery to the bacon grease and saute for 3 minutes. Deglaze/scrape the bottom of the pot and get browned bits up. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute longer.
4. Add the Sherry (if using) and let simmer for 1 min.
5. Add the broth, seasoned salt, black pepper, thyme, oregano and italian seasoning. Stir well.
6. Add the Chicken and make sure it’s submerged in the broth. Top with the spinach but do not stir. Secure the lid and move the valve to the sealing position. Hit cancel and then hit Presure Cook or Manual on High Pressure for 10 minutes. Quick release when done.
7. Using tongs, slide the spinach off the chicken and into the soup. Transfer the chicken to a bowl and let cool for 10 minutes. Pull off the meat and discard any cartilage, skin and bones.
8. Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together the cream and flour until thickened (it should look a little curdled and slightly lumpy). Add to the soup and stir for about a minute to get any small lumps out. The flour will cook from the heat of the soup and smooth the lumps out.
9. Hit cancel, then hit Saute and adjust so it’s on the More or High setting. Once bubbling, add the gnocchi and let boil for 2-3 minutes, until the gnocchi float or tender. Hit cancel to turn the pot off and switch to keep warm.
10. Add the pancetta or bacon, the shredded chicken, and the reserved leafy tops from the celery, parmesan, and boursin (if using) and stir until the dairy is melded into the soup. Ladle into bowls and enjoy with some crusty bread!
Now that you’re comfortable making soups with your multi-cooker, you can do anything! Check out all sorts of recipes online. The sky’s the limit. My favorite Jeffrey Eisner recipes from Pressureluckcooking.com are listed below, and they are definitely a crowd-pleaser in my house! Be sure to let us know if you try out any of the recipes from this issue and share pictures on our Facebook page.
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Submitted by Nikki Eddy