Welcome soup seasonal with this comforting, veggie-packed, healthy and delicious pressure cooker Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup. Instant Pot recipe
Update 1/2018: Check out the new video below on how to turn this soup into my favorite freezer meal of all time. More details here.
From the moment September shows up on my calendar, my food brain makes a switch to all things pumpkin, squash, and apple. I’m not one that mourns the passing of summer. I always love the idea of summer, but then there is the HEAAAAT, and oh yeah, sunscreen makes me break out, and, oh I forgot about how much I loathe yard work and bugs and fair rides that make me nauseous… It’s kind of like the time I told my husband (then boyfriend) how much I loved the idea of camping…
So to break into fall right, I’m showing you how to make one of my family's favorite recipes that I’ve adapted to the pressure cooker. It’s jam packed with all the best end of summer produce and the toppings (love my toppings!) are diverse and customizable. This recipe originally came from an AMAZING food blogger named Mel, over at melskitchencafe.com. Mel puts out some delicious food and this enchilada soup, that is so not the same ol’ enchilada soup, is one of my favorites from her site.
Quite honestly, you won’t be saving much cooking time from the original recipe, but the fact that I could throw it all in, push a button and walk away (and also completely forget about it because I was getting a princess makeover from my daughter), makes this amazing recipe move to the top of the charts!
Since I love to sidetrack, let's talk about veggies and kids for a second. While I’m not into hiding my kid's veggies in their food, I’m 100% into pretending I don’t understand or hear the question, “So what exactly is in this?” until after they've tried their food and decided they like it. Which is how this soup experience went down.
Butternut squash, onions, chilies, red bell peppers, garlic, and potatoes get blended into the base until it’s so perfectly silky and rich (with absolutely no cream!). All my kids see are white beans and juicy chunks of chicken. Top it with cheese and crushed chips and they’ll eat three bowls of it! Of course, my bowl tops out at ten veggies after I add pico de gallo, avocado, corn, sour cream, cheese, hot sauce and crushed whole grain tortilla chips! Heaven in a bowl right there!
And if you’ve ever debated whether an immersion blender was worth owning, this recipe, that you will likely make again and again, will be the perfect time to take that plunge. I’ve had this blender for years, and I love it so, so much. You can totally blend the soup in batches in a blender (kind of a pain), but for real, an immersion blender is where it’s at!
And since enchilada soup wouldn't be the same without an insane amount of toppings, let's take a moment to break it down a little. Our base layer is veggie packed and contains my favorite white cannellini beans and juicy chunks of chicken.
Then to make it magical, we first add cheese (so it can melt over top the hot soup), then juicy gems of barely cooked fresh corn, fresh pico de gallo, creamy cool avocado, and finally a handful of crushed salty goodness (i.e. whole grain tortilla chips).
Then if you're like my crew, you take it a bit too far by adding a huge dollop of sour cream and half a bottle of Cholula! Yum!
Enjoy this break into fall soup and get ready for cool nights, colorful mountains, and the smell of cinnamon everywhere you go!
*Recipe adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.
PrintPressure Cooker Creamy Enchilada Soup
Easy, delicious, veggie packed soup to warm you up on the cool evenings ahead.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 8 Servings 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Pressure cooker
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 3 medium size boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 (3.5 ounce) can chopped green chilies
- 1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
- 3 large russet potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and coarsely chopped
- 4 – 5 cups peeled, cubed butternut squash
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (store bought or homemade recipe to follow)
- 2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- Additional toppings: pico de gallo, sour cream, shredded cheese, fresh or canned corn, diced avocado, Cholula hot sauce, whole grain tortilla chips, etc
- Homemade Taco Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Whisk together taco seasoning ingredients if using homemade version.
- Add chicken broth, chicken, green chilies, onion, potatoes, pepper, squash, garlic, salt, cumin, tomato sauce and 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning to the pressure cooker pot and gently stir.
- Secure the lid and turn pressure release knob to a sealed position. Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes.
- When cooking is complete, use a natural release. 10-minute natural release can also be used and then release any remaining pressure.
- Remove chicken and place on a cutting board, cover with foil. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until very smooth. This can also be done in batches with a blender. Be careful not to overfill the blender! Place a towel over the lid and gently pulse before turning the speed up to blend. Chop or shred chicken and return it to the pot of soup. Add cannellini beans and stir.
- To serve, ladle soup into a bowl, immediately sprinkle with cheese and top with desired toppings.
Freezer Meal Instructions:
- To a freezer safe gallon size ziplock bag or glass container that is the same size as your pressure cooker pot, add chicken (in a flat layer on the bottom), green chiles, onion, potatoes, pepper, squash, garlic, salt, cumin, tomato sauce and 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning; seal the bag. Label the bag with the recipe, date, and contents. Freeze inside pressure cooker pot until solid then remove the bag from the pot and place back in the freezer until ready to use
- When ready to cook, add chicken broth to the pressure cooker pot. Cut down the sides of the ziplock to remove and place the frozen ingredients into the pot
- Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes then proceed with the directions in step 4
Keywords: instant pot soup, comfort food, creamy soup
Hi Marci,
This soup was a big hit in our house. The butternut squash made it so creamy and tasted like fall. Will be making this again soon.
★★★★★
Beth, I’ve got this on the menu for next week. It’s possibly the only soup everyone can agree on. I’m glad you guys loved it!
This was absolutely delicious! My husband doesn’t like squash and didn’t notice the taste at all. Love a healthy recipe that the whole family enjoys. Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Catherine, it’s a good one, huh?! It’s one of the few meals that makes every single person happy, and the fact that it’s loaded with veggies just makes it that much better!
IP newbie so I’m still figuring things out. Can I use frozen chicken breasts for this or should I thaw them first? Thanks in advance!!
Kimberly, Frozen works! I always do 1 1/2 the time for frozen so cook this one for 30 minutes if you’re using frozen chicken
I mad this for my family a few weeks ago and we all absolutely LOVED it!! My wife even took some in to share with her coworkers and they all raved over it. Going to make it again this week for everybody and we are all looking forward to it. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Paul, This one is always a big hit with my friends and family too, and so many vegetables! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I made this tonight and it was DELICIOUS! Thanks for the great recipe!
Kelly, I’ve made it so much, I keep thinking I’ll get sick of it, but it’s so heartwarming and delicious every time! I’m so glad you loved it!
What’s the recipe for your homemade taco seasoning?
Thanks!
Stacy
Never mind! I Just saw it!
🙂
Is the 8 cups of cubed butternut squash a typo?? I checked Mel’s Kitchen’s recipe calls for 3-4 cups. My Instant Pot Duo 60 is full to the 2/3 line (the maximum) as I used 5-6 cups of butternut. There is absolutely no way your recipe can accommodate the mid-size Instant Pot as written. Please double check your quantities. Even the video where you show how to freeze the ingredients for use later, shows a small amount of butternut squash dumped into the 1 gallon freezer bag. I am making one soup for now, and bought enough ingredients to also prep for one frozen soup for later, and my 1 gallon bag is literally bursting at the seems…again, I used less butternut squash than your recipe states, more than Mel’s. Please check because it would be a real shame if my soup doesn’t turn out due to a typo, which I’m pretty sure there is….
Maria, I often times buy the already cubed up butternut squash from the produce section at the grocery store and between 2 bags, it contains 6 – 8 cups. I’ll be making this again next week and will double check my amounts. I’ve made this so many times, using the recipe from my cookbook that calls for the same amount. I’ll check back next week!
So I’m pleaseto report that the soup turned out and tasted excellent, especially with the addition of suggested toppings! I will definitely be keeping this recipe, however modifying it to accommodate no more than 5 cups fresh peeled and chopped butternut squash, which is about one medium squash.
This soup is somewhat spicy and hence likely not suitable for many young children, such as my own.
★★★★★
Maria, Thanks for letting me know your experience! I decreased the amount of squash written in the recipe for now, and will be experimenting with it next week to be sure.
Marci,
I’m not a fan of squash, but would like to make this soup to get the health benifits and also find a way to enjoy it! Is the squash taste detectable or do the other ingredients cover it up? Thanks for your great recipes!
Constance Mattson
Constance, I’m also on the fence with squash, especially butternut, and my children won’t go near it. So will you like this? YES! I don’t notice the squash taste, but it makes it so creamy
What pressure cooker do you own? I don’t own one and am looking for a recommendation.
Michele, I have a few different Pressure Cookers but my favorite 2 are hands down the Instant Pot Duo60 and the Fagor Lux Multicooker. You can’t go wrong with either of those! I really like having the 8 quart size, but most people I find have the 6 quart.
I have the cosori brand 6qt and love it
Why not pinto beans? Wouldn’t that be more in keeping with the Mexican flavors?
Pam, you could use black, pinto, kidney, etc. Whatever you like best!