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Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup

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This Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe is super quick and easy to make in the pressure cooker, it’s naturally gluten-free and vegan, and it’s full of the best fall flavors that everyone will love! (This post contains affiliate links.)

Seriously the BEST Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe! It's easy to make in about 30 minutes from start to finish, it's naturally gluten-free and vegetarian and vegan, and it's packed with feel-good veggies and flavors that everyone will love. My kind of fall comfort food!

This one goes out to all of my Instant Pot fans out there!

We’ve had loads of requests ever since this magical pressure cooker hit the market for tips on how to adapt my favorite Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Soup recipe for the Instant Pot. And with good reason — why wait 4-8 hours for this cozy soup to cook when it could be ready from start to finish in about 30 minutes instead?!

Like I said…magic. ✨✨✨

Seriously, this continues to be one of my all-time favorite soup recipes, and thousands of readers have made it over the years and agreed as well. So grab your pressure cookers and let’s make a batch…in an “instant”!

Seriously the BEST Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe! It's easy to make in about 30 minutes from start to finish, it's naturally gluten-free and vegetarian and vegan, and it's packed with feel-good veggies and flavors that everyone will love. My kind of fall comfort food!

This butternut squash soup recipe actually hails from my mom, who first made it for our family when everyone was back home in Wichita a few Thanksgivings ago. It’s loaded up with lots of fall favorites — hearty butternut squash, tart Granny smith apples, a (surprise!) carrot, and some extra garlic and sage for seasonings. It’s also made extra creamy with coconut milk, although you’re welcome to sub in heavy cream or any other kind of milk that you prefer.

To make the soup in the Instant Pot (<– this is the model I own), just pop the beginning ingredients in there together and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Then, there’s no need to wait for the natural release. Just (very carefully) turn the valve to “venting” for a quick release. Then remove the sage, add in the coconut milk, puree with a blender (or immersion blender) until smooth and creamy, taste, season…

Seriously the BEST Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe! It's easy to make in about 30 minutes from start to finish, it's naturally gluten-free and vegetarian and vegan, and it's packed with feel-good veggies and flavors that everyone will love. My kind of fall comfort food!

…and if you feel like adding an extra touch, drizzle some extra coconut milk on top and sprinkle with some fresh herbs or pumpkin seeds or a sprinkle of seasoning (smoked paprika, cinnamon, cayenne, you pick).

Seriously the BEST Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe! It's easy to make in about 30 minutes from start to finish, it's naturally gluten-free and vegetarian and vegan, and it's packed with feel-good veggies and flavors that everyone will love. My kind of fall comfort food!

And within about 30 minutes, this gorgeous meal will be yours to enjoy. It’s so warm and hearty and comforting, it’s full of ingredients you can feel great about, and it is just SO amazingly good.  Every time.

Enjoy, everyone!

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Pressure Cooker Butternut Squash Soup Recipe

Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 235 reviews
  • Prep Time: 12 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 28 minutes
  • Yield: 6 -8 servings 1x

Description

This delicious Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup recipe is quick and easy to make in the pressure cooker, it’s naturally gluten-free and vegan, and it’s SO comforting and delicious!  Feel free to add in more cayenne if you would like an extra kick.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 carrot, peeled and diced
  • 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced
  • 1 medium (uncooked) butternut squash*, peeled, seeded and diced
  • 1 sprig fresh sage
  • 1 white onion, diced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper, or more to taste
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or more to taste
  • pinch of ground cinnamon and nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup canned (unsweetened) coconut milk
  • optional garnishes: extra coconut milk and a sprinkle of smoked paprika (or cayenne pepper)

Instructions

  1. Add vegetable stock, garlic, carrot, apple, butternut squash, sage, onion, salt, pepper, cayenne, cinnamon and nutmeg to an Instant Pot pressure cooker.  Toss to combine.  Close lid securely and set vent to “Sealing”.
  2. Press “Manual”, then press “Pressure” until the light on “High Pressure” lights up, then adjust the +/- buttons until time reads 8 minutes.  Cook.  Then very carefully, turn the vent to “Venting” for quick release, and wait until all of the steam has released and the valve has dropped.  Remove the lid.
  3. Remove and discard the sage.  Stir in the coconut milk.
  4. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth.  (Or you can transfer the soup in two batches into a traditional blender, and puree until smooth, being very careful when working with the hot liquid.)  Taste, and season with additional salt, pepper and cayenne if needed.
  5. Serve warm, with optional garnishes if desired.

Notes

*A medium-sized butternut squash should weigh around 3-4 pounds.

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321 comments on “Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup”

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  1. I am looking forward to making this wonderful soup again tonight. Each time I have made it, it has received glowing reviews. I think I’ll leave out the carrots this time as I found it slightly sweet and will add an extra garlic. Such a warm, fall soup that makes me feel cozy even when the wind and rain are blowing. Thanks for a great recipe.






  2. I NORMALLY DONT REVIEW THINGS BUT THIS IS ONE OF MY MOST FAVORITE RECIPE I HAVE EVER MADE!!! I bought my squash from a local small farm and made this later!!! SO EASY! So flavorful!! So filling!!! I served it with flakey bread! I used sweetened condensed milk instead of coconut! I also added raw unrefined sugar (aka jaggery or panela) and it was INCREDIBLE!!!






  3. Could you please tell me the Nutritional value and calories in this soup? I log everything I eat.

    • 1 fat
      15 carb
      1 protein

      Per serving if it’s 6 servings. I use MFP and when I created a recipe for it, this is what I got.

  4. LOVED THIS! It was so easy to make and soooooo yummy!! Even my picky toddler ate her whole bowl, winning!! 🙌🏼

    Thank you for sharing the recipe. This soup is perfect fall soup!

  5. I need to remember to put just a smidge less cayenne for my liking, but otherwise this soup is perfect. Love it!






  6. Planning to make this for Thanksgiving. Looks so good. Can I simply double the recipe with the same Instapot 8 minute cooking instructions? Or should I cook in 2 separate batches. Im a novice at pressure cooking. Thanks!

    • Made this and agree for at least my kid’s sake I’ll use less cayenne next time. I ended up adding brown sugar since it seemed like it was missing sweetness. I also used more garlic than listed and thought it was not too overpowering. Great soup for anytime!

    • I’m about to find out…. doubled the recipe…we’ll see what happens!!

  7. Came out really good. My husband loved it. Garnished with sweet corn and corn chips for crunchiness  !!






  8. Simple and easy, nice balance of sweet and spicy. I used butternut squash and a hot pepper from my garden instead of ground cayenne.

    If you use butternut squash and want to make peeling super easy:
    Cut the ends off
    Cut it in half cross wise
    Stand each section on end and cut in half
    Remove seeds
    Pressure cook on a trivet with 2 cups of water for 6 minutes, quick release. The squash will be firm, but very easy to peel.






  9. Family loved it! Used chicken stock as I didn’t have any veggie on hand and used leeks from my garden instead of an onion. Sautéed the leeks, garlic and added a teaspoon of fresh ginger first. Great recipe!






  10. This recipe is a keeper! Easy with pre peeled squash. I didn’t have any sage and skipped the cayenne. So flavorful. I love that you don’t have to saute the onion. Definitely one for week night meal rotation. Highly recommend. Thanks!






  11. I have made this so many times. I’ve topped it with bacon, I’ve topped it with chili oils and pumpkin seeds.
    Always a hit.






  12. My family and friends are obsessed with this soup when I make it. I roast the butternut squash in the oven first. Before adding it to the soup

  13. Easy, quick and delicious. Used peeled, cubed butternut squash. Cayenne pepper bumped the flavor profile. Thank you for sharing this recipe!






  14. I have made this recipe about 1000 times already, and is def my go to. Last time i substituted the broth completely and just added unsweetened coconut milk. It came out too sweet for my taste. Today i added one of each (one of broth and one of unsweetened coconut milk) and came out delicious. This is my go to every time for butternut squash soup.






  15. Great recipe! Took me over 30 minutes to dice all the veggies!






  16. I like it better with a little bit of brown sugar, but this is pretty good.






  17. Accidently forgot to add a carrot and added a whole can of coconut milk. Even with those OOPS issues turned out fantastic! Made 8 cups about 215 calories per cup. Likely would have been much less calories if I did not put in all the coconut milk from a can as recommended.






  18. Wowza, this was crazy good. I made it to use up a butternut squash in my fridge, and it was amazing. I didn’t have an apple, so threw in a turnip, just to keep the volumes consistent (it still came out deliciously sweet). I loved making everything in one pot, could not have been easier. My only complaint is my family didn’t leave enough for leftovers, so next time I’ll double the recipe.






  19. I really want to try this dish! Is it essential to use veggie stock instead of broth for this dish? Can they be used interchangeably?

  20. Fantastic recipe! Tasted perfect and so easy with the instant pot






  21. My first Instant Pot recipe I ever made. The soup turned out great!!






  22. Fall is in the air and I craved butternut squash soup..I made your recipe with some changes only because I didn’t have some items and I had others. This was delicious and I will make again..

    My changes for ideas:
    Used 2 boxes of precut butternut squash
    4 cups chicken stock
    Added fresh thyme and a dried bay leaf.grated fresh ginger and grated fresh turmeric
    Omitted the coconut milk since I didn’t have
    I used Better than Bouillon and that has sodium so I omit the salt and taste when finished.

    I always take a little time to sauté the onion, garlic and ginger, etc. then add the rest of the ingredients.

    Thank you and Happy Fall






  23. Just perfect, and tasted even better reheated the next day. I added some chilli powder as well as cayenne as I love heat and substituted allspice for nutmeg. This was delicious and so easy to make. I have frozen my leftover sage so I can make this recipe again and again!






  24. Can I do this in a slow cooker? I like to prepare in the morning and eat when I’m home from work. Love my planners been using for years! Maybe the instant pot makes the Christmas wish list. 🙂

  25. Yes, Best squash soup ever. I made several mistakes (lost my coconut milk, used peanut butter instead, started with cooked squash, found coconut milk) still great soup. If you use cooked squash, a minute with a potato masher will do instead of a blender. A teaspoon or two of peanut butter will do if no coconut milk/ cream etc in the house.






  26. Delicious recipe, made it for a potluck and everybody loved it! Here are some notes that others might care about (I prepared the 2x portions):

    – Used 3/4 the can of coconut milk instead of the full can
    – Didn’t add cayenne pepper
    – Because I only had vegetable broth (not stock) with 800mg sodium per cup, I didn’t see the need to add any additional salt
    – I ran the pressure cooker for 8 minutes, but then kept it running for an additional 8 minutes (slow pressure release)
    – Ended up adding more cinnamon and nutmeg than just the 2x pinch (I didn’t keep track of how much more)
    – I diced everything very finely (~1/3 inch cubes) except for the butternut squash
    – I roasted the butternut squash in the air fryer before adding it in

    Maybe what I did wasn’t right per-se, but it certainly didn’t go wrong! A recipe that’s resilient to modifications is always welcome in my cookbook.






  27. LOVE LOVE LOVE this soup!! It’s filling, healthy, super easy, and my favorite soup to make when butternut squash is in season. Thank you for this recipe!!






  28. Insanely under seasoned. Yikes, there was no coming back from the lack of seasoning






  29. This is my go-to butternut squash recipe. So good 100% of the time.






  30. This is the best butternut soup recipe out there!! Thanks for posting this!






  31. Super easy and wonderful! I did add about 4T of brown sugar for a little more sweetness.






  32. This is an amazing recipe. So easy, can be made ahead of time and so delicious. I’ve made it even creamier by using coconut cream. I also use my immersion blender before adding the coconut milk – I find it easier to blend smoothly because there is less liquid. I’ve made it several times and have shared the recipe with multiple friends.






  33. Made this tonight, it’s was a hit. Especially wonderful with crusty bread 🤗






  34. So delicious and easy to make!






  35. I would give this recipe 10 stars if I could! Have made it tons of times, fed my family, friends, potlucks, retreats! I usually round up with everything, go big with cinnamon, full can of coconut milk. Thank you for this recipe! It’s a Paleo family favorite… Even for the family members that aren’t Paleo. 🥰






  36. This was so delicious! And easy to make.
    I am so excited that there were leftovers because I can freeze it and enjoy the goodness on a cold night!

  37. Delicious! I subbed the Granny Smith for honesycrisp because it’s what I had. Added a bit more coconut milk, and no herbs because I don’t like their flavor. I may try lightly roasting the squash next time to give it a slightly different flavor, but without roasting it’s still amazing! Easy and quick! I added oyster crackers :)






  38. This is my favourite Butternut Squash soup using Instant Pot…never go wrong with this …thank you!






  39. I will definitely be making this multiple times weekly. I can’t believe how easy it was (especially with pre-cut squash) and so healthy and nourishing! The green apple gave it a really lovely tartness. I added a bit of fresh ginger, a touch of curry powder and maple syrup. Thank you for this recipe!






  40. Yum

  41. What if I used frozen vubed butternut squash? How much time would you suggest I add to instant pot?

  42. Delicious! My new go-to recipe for butternut squash soup. I was reluctant to add the nutmeg and cinnamon, but approximately 1/8 tsp of each was very well balanced.






  43. Made this tonight. Very good! Nice fall treat! Thanks for the great recipe