
Second to steel cut oats, I think soup is the thing I have made most in my Instant Pot so far. It makes incredible batches of hearty, nutritious soup that taste phenomenal. I just can't bring myself to buy canned any longer since I know I can whip up a huge pot of homemade for fractions of the cost with way more flavour and texture.
Starting with stock from bones, the pressure cooker makes fast and easy work of this worthwhile task. If you enjoy a roast chicken or turkey, a rich stock is only minutes away. I toss the bones in the cooker with water and veg (carrot, onion, celery, garlic) and in under half an hour, it's done. My usual crock pot recipe cooks all night and while the house smells incredible, garlic and chicken is not really what I want to smell over breakfast! With either method, I could not ever throw away meat bones again and if I'm too busy to make the stock I put them in the freezer for when I have time. There is a pre-set program for soup on the Instant Pot or you can use the manual setting; no matter which, it only takes about 20-25 minutes to have a long-simmered tasting stock or soup.
I have made a wonderful turkey soup using the stock and the leftover meat, minestrone, standard chicken noodle or barley (the most amazing chicken soup ever), carrot and leak, butternut squash, incredible lentil, and my current favourite - roasted red pepper and cauliflower. There is something about the pressure cooking that yields the most amazing flavour. With the thick, puréed soups I simply prepare the soup and then blend it right in the Instant Pot stainless steel insert using an immersion blender. It comes out incredibly smooth because the vegetables are so tender.
There are no limits to the varieties of soups you can make in a short amount of time and it's easy to create a unique batch using what's in the fridge and cupboard (I will sometimes use a dry bean mix, lentils, split peas, barley, rice, or pasta; various meats like poultry, ham, beef, or even sausage, and of course, as many vegetables as will suit). The large quantity means there is lunch ready all week and I usually freeze a few containers for another day. It's so healthy, easy, tasty, and cheap!