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.)
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”!
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…
…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).
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!
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
Ingredients
- 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
- 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”.
- 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.
- Remove and discard the sage. Stir in the coconut milk.
- 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.
- Serve warm, with optional garnishes if desired.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Can you substitute the coconut milk with almond milk?
This was so so delicious! I was amazed how good it tasted without having to add heavy cream. This will be a new Fall staple meal.
This was amazing. The apple and cayenne really wake it up, and the broth keeps it light.
Made this tonight and it was delicious! Perfect texture and flavour was spot on.
I changed vegetable stock out for chicken broth, also left out the sage as it’s not a favourite flavour.
Highly recommend this recipe
Had some overripe pears I needed to use, so skipped the carrot and apple and threw the pears in. WOW. Best soup ever.
I make this for my daughter often. It’s very yummy!
I am just eating my first bowl of this fresh out of the IP and it is SO darn good! I will definitely be making this again, it is EXCELLENT!
This is a must try recipe. The soup is so delicious, all the spices come together to a yummy taste, it’s very creamy…just so good. It’s a little spicy, so you might want to start with a little less cayenne pepper. Just depends how 🔥 you like it. To be honest I was a little sceptical at first, but ohh my goodness, it pays off to try new recipes. It takes a few minutes to chop up all the ingredients, but then in only a few minutes you have a delicious meal. Even on weekdays can be done easily. I am impressed how few and normal ingredients it takes to make such tasty soup. Also very well explained recipe and beautiful pictures. This is my favorite soup now! Thank you!😃
A medium-sized butternut squash should weigh around 3-4 pounds. Is that once peeled etc?
Fantastic! Best butternut squash soup I’ve every had. The apple and pinch of cinnamon make it special.