Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa Veggie Soup
This delicious and comforting Instant Pot chicken quinoa vegetable soup comes together in under 10 minutes. A filling and hearty meal in no time!
Chicken Quinoa Vegetable Soup
You know you have a keeper when you resort to making this soup as soon as you make a fresh batch of homemade chicken stock. I have made this soup several times and I absolutely love it. It’s hearty, filling and everybody gets to eat quinoa. Win, win!
Truth be told, not everyone in my household likes to eat boiled quinoa. It’s an acquired taste. I first bought quinoa to replace rice in my diet. And it seemed easy to cook and pack for an office lunch for my husband. Then I was giving him a quinoa lunch regularly. He politely let me know he was not a fan. There goes the ease of making lunch out the door!
My kids didn’t like them either. They’d have a few mouthfuls of the quinoa and ask for something else at dinner. In the end, I was the only one in the household eating quinoa.
When I came across a quinoa soup recipe I marveled at the idea. The quinoa cooked in a spiced delicious soupy broth seems more inviting than a plate of quinoa in front of you, right? I could get my kids to eat any soup with chicken in it. So why not try adding chicken to a quinoa soup. They didn’t go berserk over it but they didn’t ask for any other meals either. You get the idea! This mom can live with that.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa Soup
This is the kind of soup that you eat sitting on a comfy couch, a warm cozy blanket around you and you finish reading that book from cover to cover. It’s filling, warm, and keeps you satisfied.
It has
- Shredded chicken
- Beans
- Veggies
- Greens
- Quinoa
- Homemade spiced chicken stock
Instant Pot to the rescue
I have made this on the stove and the Instant Pot. I like the Instant Pot version better. It needs less stock and the Instant Pot locks in the flavor. And it’s fast, you guys! If you have all the ingredients in hand you can get this soup on the table in no time. Trust me!
How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa Vegetable Soup
It’s so easy to make this soup in the Instant Pot.
Once you heat the Instant Pot, add oil. When the oil is heated saute the chopped onion and garlic.
When it’s fragrant you add the carrot, tomatoes, coriander, cumin, salt, and saute until the tomatoes become soft.
Add the chicken that’s cut into three large chunks. Cook for 2 minutes. Add the quinoa and broth.
Cover the instant pot with the lid and cook in high pressure for 7 minutes. Once the time is up, manually release the pressure.
Remove the chicken, shred and add it back to the pot. Add the beans and spinach. You can either press the “Saute” button and heat up the soup or let the residual heat warm up the beans and spinach. I do the latter.
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Best Tips
- White quinoa – for fast cooking.
- Rinse the quinoa – on a strainer under running water to get rid of the saponins which cause the bitterness. I used organic white quinoa which isn’t bitter at all.
- Chicken thighs or breasts – I used chicken breasts. Cut the breast to at least 3 pieces to cook evenly with everything else.
- Let it rest – for a few minutes. Quinoa absorbs water like crazy. If you still want a brothy soup after that you can add more stock.
How To Store and Reheat
To store the soup, ladle it into an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for 3 days.
Reheat in the stovetop or microwave until warm through.
Can You Freeze Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa Veggie Soup?
Yes, you can freeze this soup. They are great for meal prep. Simply pour it into freezer-safe containers or zip lock bags and place it in the freezer. Don’t forget to write the name and date on the container.
Freeze it for 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge overnight. You can reheat it in the microwave or stovetop.
What Can You Substitute White Beans With?
If you don’t have any white beans on hand, you can use canned chickpeas. Black-eyed peas will work as well. Or any bean medley or use your favorite beans. Rinse the canned beans and drain well before using them.
To use freshly cooked or home-cooked beans instead of canned, use about 1 cup of drained beans.
Recipe Variations
You can use turkey instead of chicken in this recipe.
Use zucchini instead of carrot.
To increase the spiciness, add half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
More Soup Recipes You’ll Enjoy
Instant Pot Thai Curried Butternut Squash Soup
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Recipe
Instant Pot Chicken Quinoa Veggie Soup
Equipment
- Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 carrot diced
- 1 tomato chopped
- 2 chicken breast
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1.5 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup white quinoa rinsed and drained
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 can(540ml) white kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1/2 tsp crushed black pepper
Instructions
- Press the ‘Saute” button in Instant Pot. When it reads ‘Hot’ add oil.
- Add onion,minced garlic and cook until soft. Add tomatoes, carrot, cumin, coriander and salt. Cook till the tomatoes become soft.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 3 chunks each and add to the pot. Mix and cook for 2 more minutes. Add rinsed and drained quinoa. Pour in the broth.
- Lock the lid in place and make sure the valve is closed. Cancel the Saute funtion and press the ‘Pressure Cook” button. Set the timer for 7 mins.
- When the timer is up, release the pressure manually by turning the valve to vent position.
- Remove the chicken and shred. Return to the Instant Pot.
- Stir in the rinsed and drained beans, spinach and black pepper. You can press the saute button and heat. Or let the remaing heat warm the beans and spinach.
Notes
- For more broth, add extra stock and warm it up.
- Store – in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days.
- Reheat – in the microwave or stovetop until warm.
- Freeze – in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat.
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Delicious! We swapped out the white kidney beans for chick peas and added mushrooms. Will definitely be making it again.
Thank you, Jackie! That’s great! Thanks so much!
I love this recipe! Easy and so tasty! I used a quinoa and rice mix that was amazing in this recipe!
I plan on making this for family, will be 6 people so maybe a double or triple batch.
Is there a specific direction to follow to double or triple the batch?
Thank you!
Thanks Cassandra! I would double the recipe for 6 servings or more.
This is so yum! I just bought an instant pot and this was the first recipe I used, and I’m in love! (With both instant pot and your dish) This is gonna be a major repeat dish in our household. Thanks so much for this!
Made tonight for a meal train. Easy, quick ,and looks pretty, but a tastes bland. Def needs more seasoning.
So do you use the pressure cooker bottom or the soup button?
(Altho I don’t know what the difference is on the instapot.)
What a cosy, comforting and wholesome soup for a chilly night, instant pot makes everything so easy!
True that! IP makes everything easy.
I’m literally printing this right now! I SO needed an easy recipe for this week! I didn’t get to plan like I wanted to this week and this recipe is perfect!