Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup

This Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup is unbelievably delicious and is a breeze to whip up with the Instant Pot! This makes for a wonderful, comforting dish to enjoy during this cozy season.

I am giddy about this soup. The idea for this recipe came straight from the fact that I (almost always?) crave loaded potatoes. Goodness, I love a loaded potato. I love the potato-ness, the cheese, the bacon, the sour cream, and the green onion. I also have a really fond childhood memory of attending Wurstfest in New Braunfels, TX as a kid, where my love of potato soup was born. Though that German-style potato soup was a little different than this variety, it was still comforting potato goodness.

This recipe goes to a whole new level of awesomeness in that we're using the Instant Pot to pull it together! Only a handful of ingredients and one-pot brings gets this soup on the table for a deliciously comforting dinner.

Loaded Potato Soup Ingredients

• Bacon – be sure to get your bacon nice and crispy, as it makes for a great crunch in contrast to the rest of the soup. Also, leaving 1-2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the Instant Pot creates such a depth of flavor!
• Potatoes – you’ll use 3 pounds of peeled and roughly chopped baby gold potatoes. I like this potato variety because, once blended, they make for the perfect creamy potato soup texture.
• Chicken Broth – you’ll use a 32-ounce carton of chicken broth that will be blended with half of the cooked potatoes as the base for your soup.
• Sour Cream – the final ingredient that contributes to the delicious creaminess of this soup. You’ll stir 4 ounces of sour cream right into the soup, and top with additional sour cream if desired. See dietary swaps below if you’re dairy-free.
• Lemon Juice – lemon juice adds a brightness to this soup that really sets it apart from other loaded potato soup recipes.
• Seasoning – garlic powder, onion powder, dried thyme, dried sage, sea salt, and black pepper give this soup such a warm, comforting flavor.

How to Make Potato Soup in the Instant Pot

The beauty of this recipe is that it can all happen in just one pot! We’ll utilize the saute and pressure functions of the Instant Pot for this one.

1. 1. Crisp the bacon. Use the “saute” function on the Instant Pot to crisp half of a pound of diced bacon. Once finished, remove the bacon, set aside, and remove all but 1-2 tablespoons of bacon grease.  
   2. Add the potatoes and broth. To the bacon fat, add the potatoes and broth, place the lid on the Instant Pot, making sure it is set to “sealed”, and set to cook for 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, manually release the pressure valve and open the lid.
   3. Blend. Remove about half of the potatoes from the Instant Pot. Using an immersion blender, blend the remaining potatoes with the broth. This Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup is smooth with bits of potato chunks mixed in, just how I like it. If you prefer a completely smooth base, blend all of the potatoes together!
   4. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Once blended, stir in the seasonings, sour cream, lemon juice, cooked bacon pieces, and reserved potatoes.
   5. Spoon + Serve. Spoon the soup into bowls, add your favorite toppings, and enjoy!

Ways to Top Your Soup

I like my potato soup with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese, the crispy bacon pieces, sour cream, and green onion. If you’re looking for a fun twist on the original, shredded chicken + a drizzle of buffalo sauce, or chopped BBQ beef + pickled jalapenos would be really tasty!

Dietary Swaps

Don’t shy away from this soup if you’re dairy-free. These are some great swaps that’ll make it equally as yummy as the original: 

• Skip the store-bought sour cream and make your own dairy-free version instead. There's a GREAT recipe for paleo sour cream in my book!
• Omit the cheese topper and add some cheesy flavor with a sprinkle of nutritional yeast in or on the top of your soup! It's delicious, trust me.

How long does potato soup keep?

Potato soup will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Be sure to let the soup cool to handling temperature before transferring it to the container.

Can you freeze potato soup?

You can! This Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup freezes well and should last for up to 5 months in the freezer. Freezing soup in gallon Ziploc bags and stacking them in your freezer makes for a real space-saving solution!

How to Reheat Potato Soup from Frozen

The stovetop is the best way to reheat frozen potato soup. Add the frozen soup to a pot and heat over medium heat until warmed through, stirring frequently. 

Tip: If you feel like your soup is not coming together, stir in milk or cream until it reaches the right consistency. 

What goes good with potato soup?

Potato soup is certainly filling enough to be eaten on its own, but a fresh side never hurts and packs an added nutritional punch! This simple arugula salad pairs great with potato soup.

Slow cooker or Instant Pot?

I've gotten this GREAT question a couple of times: if you're looking to buy an Instant Pot *or* a slow-cooker, which would you choose if you only had space for one? As much as I love my stove top-friendly slow cooker, it's my belief that the Instant Pot can't be beat when it comes to functionality. You can sear, slow-cook, OR pressure cook all with one single device. So, the Instant Pot would get my vote!

I hope you love this Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup and that it helps curb your comfort food craving in this cozy season.

Our Favorite Cozy Soup Recipes

• Healing Chicken Soup with Ginger and Turmeric
• Loaded Cauliflower Soup
• Squeaky Clean Chicken and Veggie Soup
• Creamy Kale and Sausage Soup
• Thai Curry Chicken Soup
• Creamy Chicken Enchilada Soup
• Paleo Minestrone Soup
• Creamy Cauliflower Leek Soup
• Creamy Pumpkin Soup
• Healthy Soup Roundup

More Instant Pot Recipes

• Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala (w/ freezer meal directions!)
• Instant Pot French Onion Pot Roast
• Rustic Instant Pot Short Ribs
• 20 Best Instant Pot Soup Recipes

Loaded Instant Pot Potato Soup

★★★★★

5 from 3 reviews

This creamy potato soup is loaded with bacon, sour cream, cheese, and chives and comes together in minutes in the Instant Pot!

• Author: Cassy
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 45 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
• Yield: 12-14

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound of bacon, diced
• 3 pounds baby gold potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
• 32 ounces chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 8 ounces sour cream
• juice of one lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

For Toppings:

• 4 ounces sour cream
• 1/2 cup cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives

Instructions

1.  Set Instant Pot to ‘saute' mode and add bacon pieces. Cook for about 5 minutes until bacon is crispy and fat is fully rendered. Turn off the pot and remove bacon and excess bacon grease, leaving 1-2 tablespoons.
2. Add the potatoes, chicken broth, and salt to the Instant Pot. Place the lid on the pot and ensure the pressure valve is closed. Press the ‘manual' button and set to cook for 15 minutes. The pot will have to come up to pressure and then the countdown will begin.
3. Once the timer goes off, manually release the pressure valve carefully. Once the pot has stopped releasing steam, open the lid.
4. Remove about half of the potatoes from the pot and place in a medium sized bowl.
5. Puree the remaining potatoes and broth with an Immersion Blender. Then, stir in the sour cream, lemon juice, and remaining seasonings.
6. Stir in the cooked bacon pieces and potatoes, then taste for seasoning and add more if needed.
7. Serve alongside additional sour cream, cheese, and chives for topping.

Notes

For dairy free:

Substitute with Paleo sour cream recipe from the Fed & Fit Book and top with nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor.

To make in the slow cooker:

1. Crisp bacon on the stove in a pan over medium-high heat. Remove bacon and set aside. Add 1-2 tablespoons bacon grease to slow cooker along with potatoes, chicken broth, and salt.
2. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
3. Follow the recipe from step 4 onward.