Instant Pot Tomato Soup

1. Gather your ingredients together.

2. In the bottom of the Instant pot with the setting on ‘SAUTE’ melt 1 tbsp butter, and add 1 chopped onion, and 3 stems of celery (sliced), and saute until golden brown. Add 1 cup finely chopped spinach and 1/2 cup Italian flat leaf parsley, and cook until wilted and a little brown.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper (to taste). Turn SAUTE setting off, and add 1 tbsp fresh thyme.

3. Stir in 4 cups chicken broth, and add 2 cans (14.5 oz cans) stewed tomatoes, 1 can (28 oz) tomato puree, and 1 can (6 oz) tomato paste, and stir well until tomato paste is melted into soup. Add 2 cups water, and stir.

4. Add 1 tbsp Italian seasoning, 1 tsp oregano, 3 tbsp coconut sugar (optional or brown sugar). Stir well to blend all ingredients. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, and make sure the pressure valve is set to ‘SEALING’. Press the Manual setting (high pressure) for 15 minutes. Remember it takes the Instant Pot about 10 minutes to come to pressure.

5. When the Instant pot is done, beeps, and goes to OFF, do a quick release by turning the pressure valve to ‘VENTING’ – making sure you use a pot holder or oven mitt to turn the valve. When all the pressure has been released, and the float valve is down, remove the lid to the Instant pot, and stir the soup.

6. Add 1.5 cups cream, and stir well, and add 1 tbsp minced garlic and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately with your favorite soup toppings.

Stovetop Option

While cooking in the Instant Pot doesn’t necessarily reduce the cooking time for this recipe, I love it because it’s more hands-off than cooking on the stovetop where I need to keep stirring and babysit the soup. But if you don’t have an Instant Pot or want to cook this over the stovetop, here’s an easy step by step tutorial on how to do that.

1. Place a large pot on the stove. Over medium heat, melt butter, and add onion,and celery. Saute until golden brown. Add spinach and Italian flat leaf parsley, and cook until wilted and a little brown. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper. Add thyme.

2. Stir in chicken broth, stewed tomatoes (with the juice), tomato puree, and tomato paste. Stir well until tomato paste is melted into soup (about 2-3 minutes). Add 2 cups water, and stir again.

3. Add Italian seasoning, oregano, and coconut sugar (optional or brown sugar). Stir well to blend all ingredients. Place a lid on the pot, and allow to simmer on low-medium heat for about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking on the bottom of the pot.

4. Add cream, and stir well, and add the minced garlic and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately with your favorite soup toppings.

Slow Cooker Option

1. In a slow cooker, add butter, onion, celery, chicken broth, stewed tomatoes (with the juice), tomato puree, tomato paste, water, Italian seasoning, oregano, and coconut sugar (optional or brown sugar). Stir well.

2. Cook on low heat for 4-5 hours or high heat for 2-3 hours.

3. When done, add spinach, Italian flat leaf parsley, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir well and let simmer for a couple of minutes.

4. Add cream, and stir well, and add the minced garlic and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately with your favorite soup toppings.

Best Toppings for this Tomato Soup

This Creamy Tomato Soup in the Instant Pot is warm, hearty and so delicious. You can change it up each time you serve it with these great soup toppings:

• Pesto
• Pinenuts
• Freshly grated or shredded Parmesan cheese
• Drizzle of olive oil

I like to do all of these together. So I drizzle on a bit of olive oil over the soup and then top with pesto, pinenuts and Parmesan cheese. It’s got a great Italian Florentine flavor to it that elevates this soup as the main dish.

What to Serve with this Instant Pot Tomato Soup

The best side dish for this recipe is a side of grilled cheese to dip into this soup. Use this gluten-free bread to make the most delicious gluten-free grilled cheese. We like to use cheddar cheese or colby cheese to make grilled cheese with a generous heaping of butter on the bread slices. Or you can even cut the grilled cheese into cubes and make grilled cheese croutons to top the soup. We do this all the time and it’s delicious.

And you can even serve it up with your favorite French bread or baguette. If you’re gluten-free, there are several brands like Udi’s that have French rolls in the frozen section of the grocery store.

Can I make Instant Pot tomato soup thicker?

I think if you follow the recipe you will end up with a soup that has a a great consistency. However if you want your soup thicker, you can reduce the broth by 1/2 cup before cooking. This will help the soup to reach a thicker consistency.  If you want the soup to be thinner you can add additional broth to the soup until the desired consistency is reached.

Is this tomato soup vegetarian?

This creamy tomato soup can be made vegetarian if you substitute the chicken broth for vegetable broth for chicken broth, and if you omit the the heavy cream and substitute it for coconut cream. It will change the flavor a bit with a slightly coconut flavor. You could try it with your favorite non-dairy milk or cream.

How long can I store this soup in the fridge?

Leftover tomato soup will last in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. I prefer to store food in plastic free containers but any airtight container will do.

Can I make tomato soup ahead of time and freeze it?

Yes. This soup is great for meal prep as you can batch cook several portions and freeze for later. Or save any leftover Instant Pot tomato soup in the freezer. Allow the soup to cool fully before transferring to an airtight container and freezing for up to 3 months. Note, do not freeze with the toppings. The toppings should be made when you’re ready to serve it.

How do I reheat tomato soup?

I actually got rid of my microwave, but you may prefer to use one to reheat tomato soup or check out my guide of ways to reheat food without a microwave. You can also reheat using the Instant Pot, or warm tomato soup on the stove until hot through. If you find the soup has thickened when you reheat, add a splash of broth to thin it out.

Top Tips for This Instant Pot Tomato Soup

• Use good quality stewed and pureed tomatoes like Del Monte or San Marzano brand (my favorite).
• You can can omit the spinach from this recipe and it’ll still be delicious. Or even replace with kale (just be sure to remove the ribs).
• Make the grilled cheese while the soup is cooking in the Instant Pot so it’ll be ready at the same time.
• Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5 days, or in the freezer for up to two months.

More Instant Pot Meals

• Instant Pot Minestrone Soup Recipe {Pressure Cooker, Gluten Free}
• Instant Pot Creamy Cauliflower Soup
• How to Make Homemade Broth

Did you try this Instant Pot Tomato Soup? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and comment below to let me know how it went. You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.