Instant Pot Whole Chicken Soup
This instant pot whole chicken soup recipe couldn’t be easier. Just place the ingredients in your pressure cooker, set the timer and you’ll be slurping down this delicious and comforting soup in no time.
Everyone knows that chicken soup is great for you when you are feeling under the weather. They also can appreciate that it’s comforting and can be eaten year round, even when you’re at perfect health.
But one tends to forget how delicious it is. And the beauty about this recipe is it’s super easy to make.
Want to learn how to use an instant pot? Click here to read my article about the presser cooker.
Don’t have an instant pot? Try my stovetop chicken soup recipe.
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Helpful tips
- Buy organic free-range chicken. There are no hormones or added antibiotics, which experts have written aren’t good for us. It’s not that much more expensive than conventional chicken but tastes so much better and is probably healthier.
- I love using a whole chicken in my soup because of both the dark meat from the chicken thighs, but you can also have the white meat from the chicken breast.
- They’ve changed their recommendation on whether to wash poultry before cooking it. They now say that washing chicken increases the chances of getting food poisoning and of cross contaminating other things, like tools, surfaces and utensils in the kitchen. Here are two websites that talk about it.
- What I do is unwrap the chicken, drain the liquid straight down the drain and pat the bird dry with a paper towel, both inside and out.
- If your chicken comes with a bag of giblets in the cavity, like mine did, you can add them to the instant pot insert along with the rest of the chicken and throw away the bag. Love me some giblets!
- I recommend using chicken broth because it enhances the flavor, but if you don’t have any on hand, use water instead.
- The best chicken broth I’ve ever had (other than homemade), is Trader Joe’s organic, free-range broth. The end.
- You can use any soup pasta in this recipe. I use orzo because I find it very satisfying but ditalini is also good in this soup.
- Even though I use an instant pot, any pressure cooker will work.
- If you are used to peeling your carrots, try washing them and leaving the skin on. You will get more nutrients from the peels.
- To do a quick release of pressure, first wait for 10 minutes then don an oven mitt and either tap the venting knob gently until the pressure has fully released or turn the knob to the venting position, which will then take an additional 3 – 5 minutes to release the pressure. Please be careful as you can get scalded by the steam.
- Make sure the silver pressure indicator has dropped before you open the lid.
- When the instant pot is as full as it is with this recipe and you are adding an extra ingredient past the regular cooking time (in this case, orzo), it can sometimes be difficult to replace the lid on all that pressure now generated by the heat and steam of the contents. Here’s my work-around: press the cancel button and unplug the IP. Place the lid on it (it may take you a few tries) and lock it – then you can plug it back in and continue with the recipe.
- You can store any leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also place it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to make instant pot whole chicken soup
Pre-step
Get your instant pot or pressure cooker out. Unwrap the chicken and pat dry both inside and out with a paper towel.
Step one
Gather the vegetables – onions, carrots, and celery.
Step two
Cut the vegetables in chunks and get the chicken broth. (1)
Step three
Get the dried herbs – basil, tarragon, and parsley. (2)
Step four
Place chicken in the instant pot insert, along with the giblets, if they came with your chicken. (A)
Step five
Add the veggies on top. (B)
Step six
Add chicken broth, water, herbs, salt, black pepper, and garlic paste. (C)
Step seven
Place the cover on the instant pot and lock it in place. Make sure the venting knob is in the sealed position and press the pressure cooker button. The settings should be on normal mode and high pressure. Set the timer for 27 minutes.
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Since the instant pot is pretty full, it will take up to 25 minutes to come to pressure. Don’t worry, that is normal.
Step eight
After the instant pot beeps that it is done, let it rest for 10 minutes before doing a quick release. (See helpful tips above for how to do that.)
Step nine
Open instant pot. (D)
Take out chicken and set it aside. Add orzo or other soup pasta. (E)
Step ten
Replace the cover on the instant pot, seal it and make sure the venting knob is again in the sealed position. Press the pressure cooker button again and set the timer to 6 minutes.
The instant pot will only take a few minutes to get back to pressure.
Step eleven
After 5 – 10 minutes (see tips again) do a quick release.
Step twelve
Start removing the chicken skin and breaking it up into smaller pieces. It will be hot so be very careful not to burn yourself.
There will be a lot of chicken meat. I never use the meat from the whole chicken in the soup, but set aside some of the breast meat to make chicken salad.
Replace chicken into the IP insert and stir. (F) You can also save the bones to make bone broth.
Step thirteen
Either serve the instant pot chicken soup straight out of the insert or transfer to a big enough serving bowl or pan as I did.
Ladle chicken soup in a few bowls and get some bread.
How about a closer view?
I hope you enjoyed this instant pot whole chicken soup recipe as much as we do.
I hope you all stay well and don’t ‘need’ to eat this soup, but WANT to eat it. Stay safe out there!
Other delicious soups
And as always, may all your dishes be delish!
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Instant Pot Whole Chicken Soup
Ingredients
- 3.25 pound whole chicken (pat dry with a paper towel, inside and out)
- 2 medium onions (chopped)
- 5 carrots (sliced)
- 2 stalks celery (sliced)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1.5 cups water (or 2 – do not go over the maximum level line in the instant pot)
- 2 teaspoons garlic paste (or two cloves – chopped)
- 1 teaspoon basil (dried)
- 1 teaspoon tarragon (dried)
- 1 teaspoon parsley (dried)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup orzo (or other soup pasta)
Instructions
- Place chicken, breast side up (and giblets if they came with the chicken) in the instant pot.3.25 pound whole chicken
- Add the rest of the ingredients (other than the orzo).2 medium onions, 5 carrots, 2 stalks celery, 4 cups chicken broth, 1.5 cups water, 2 teaspoons garlic paste, 1 teaspoon basil, 1 teaspoon tarragon, 1 teaspoon parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Cover the IP and lock it. Make sure the venting knob is set to sealed and press the pressure cooker button. Make sure the settings are in normal mode and high pressure. Set the timer to 27 minutes.
- When IP beeps, either do a quick release after 10 minutes (see notes on how to do that) or let it release the pressure naturally but that will take up to 30 minutes.
- Open IP and carefully remove the chicken and set aside.
- Add orzo, stir and cover the IP again and lock it. Make sure the venting knob is set to the sealed postion and press the pressure cooker button again. Set the timer to 6 minutes. (The IP will not take as long to come to pressure – probably around 5 minutes).1 cup orzo
- Once the IP beeps again, do a quick release after 5 – 10 minutes.
- Remove the skin and break the chicken apart in smaller pieces. Please be careful not to burn yourself at this point as the chicken will be hot. You won't need to use all the chicken in the soup; I separate the breast meat and pack it to make chicken salad. There will be enough chicken for the soup.
- Return the chicken to the IP and either serve it from there or transfer to a big enough bowl or pan.
- Serve, smile, and enjoy.
Equipment
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- Buy organic free-range chicken. There are no hormones or added antibiotics which have been written by experts that they aren’t good for you. It’s not that much more expensive than conventional chicken but tastes so much better and is healthier for you.
- They’ve changed their recommendation on whether to wash poultry before cooking it. They say that washing chicken gives you a higher chance of getting food poisoning. And a chance of cross contaminating other things like tools and utensils in the kitchen. Here are two websites that talks about it.
- What I do is unwrap it, drain the liquid straight down the drain and pat it dry with a paper towel, both in the inside and out.
- I’ve been noticing that chickens aren’t coming with that bag of giblets in the cavity. This chicken had them inside so I added the giblets in the instant pot insert along with the whole chicken. Love me some giblets!
- You don’t need to use chicken broth but it does enhance the flavor. But if you don’t have it on hand, you can use water instead.
- The best chicken broth I’ve ever had (other than homemade), is Trader Joe’s organic, free-range broth. The end.
- You can use any soup pasta in this recipe. I use orzo because I find it very satisfying but ditalini is also good in this soup.
- Even though I use an instant pot, any pressure cooker will work.
- If you are used to peeling your carrots, try washing them and leaving the skin on. You will get more nutrients from the peels.
- To do a quick release of pressure, first wait for 10 minutes and then don an oven mitt and either tap the venting knob gently until the pressure has released or turn the knob to the venting position. It will take an additional 3 – 5 minutes to release the pressure. Please be careful as you can get scalded by the steam.
- Make sure the silver pressure indicator has dropped.
- When my instant pot is as full as it is with this recipe, and you are adding an ingredient like orzo, sometimes it is difficult to replace the lid to let the added ingredient cook.
- Here’s my work-around: press the cancel button and unplug the IP. Place the lid on it (it may take you a few tries) and lock it – then you can plug it back in and continue with the recipe.
Super comforting and great for freezing large batches at a time! I love that you use the holy trinity of carrots, onion, and celery, so much flavor! Great recipe.
Thanks Paula. I use the holy trinity a lot in my cooking. Thank you for your comment!
First time cooking a whole chicken to prepare soup and this doesn’t disappoint. So comforting and full of flavors, exactly what we all need right now.
Thanks Anita! I love cooking it like this because all of the chicken stays moist. I don’t like dry breast meat so it’s a great way for me to have it. Thank you for your comment.
I love this recipe! I love that it uses a whole chicken (even the giblets) and it’s so easy. Thank you so much for sharing.
I’m so lucky that hubby doesn’t like giblets. Yay! Thanks for your comment and I hope you enjoy it, Krissy!
I always buy a whole chicken – this is a perfect way to enjoy every part of it. Delicious soup!
I prefer it with the whole chicken, that way I can eat the meat I want and hub can eat what he wants too! Thanks for your comment Karen!
The perfect comfort meal. Your chicken soup was perfect. Definitely a keeper.
Thanks Denise! It’s in my top 5 soups that I love to eat! 🙂
Oh, I love comfort food and I love this recipe, it’s easy, delicious and healthy meal to make for the whole family. Thanks for sharing this with us.
You’re welcome Amy! Thank you for your comment!
This was the best chicken soup i have had! It was really easy to make, with an amazing result!
I’m so happy to hear that. I make it all the time myself, even in the summer. 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment Farrukh!
The taste of this soup is outstanding!!
I’m so glad you think so Geoff. It’s my favorite soup and I’m actually making it tonight for supper. Thanks for letting me know.
Very good!
I added turmeric & Tony’s More Spice, but did everything else the same…Yum!
Oh, added a bit of Apple Vinegar too!
That sounds awesome, Desere. I’ve never put turmeric in the soup and now I have to. I also have to find Tony’s More spice as I’m intrigued. Thanks for your comment. I appreciate it.
I’ve made a lot of soup in my 70 years but none as good as this! Kudos!!! 5 star plus!
You made my day, Tony. Thank you so much. I’m glad that you enjoyed it.
In looking for a recommendation on how to long to Instantpot a chicken I was using for a curry, your recipe came up. How you came up with the exact number of 27 minutes is beyond me, but IT WORKED PERFECTLY for chicken that was cooked, easy to pull of the bone but still had taste and texture. My curry came out great. Thanks so much! I have bookmarked this to come back to both for the chicken cooking time and to try the soup. I’m sure the soup recipe is great because you sure know how to cook the chicken.
Your comment made my day, Michael. Thank you. I’m glad that the chicken (and the curry) came out great! I appreciate you letting me know.
Delicious! I’ve made it twice so far and it’s my hubbys favorite chicken soup I make. I love the fact it uses the whole chicken for nutrients. For some reason when I release after adding the orzo it makes a huge mess. The pot is a little over the half full line and I’m not sure why it does this. Should the orzo be done on low or high for 6 minutes? I’m wondering if I should do it on low or maybe I just let it naturally release?
Thanks, Jen. I’m happy to hear that you and your family have enjoyed the soup. Bummer on the mess. I’ve always done the orzo on high, but you can try it on low and see how it goes. And alternately, as you say, you could let it release the pressure naturally. We’re usually in a rush to get it in our tummies. 🙂
Hi Elaine,
I’m making this recipe for the first time and wondering if I can substitute barley for orzo instead. How would I change the cooking time? or should I cook it separately? Hubby has a new cold- and is snoozing so I thought I’d surprize him with this comforting soup!
Hi Debi, sorry that I didn’t see this until this morning and I hope your hubby feels better soon. I’ve never cooked barley in an Instant Pot, but I did some research. They say it’s usually a 20 minute cook time, so I think it’s probably safe to put the barley in when you put the rest of the ingredients. I’m wondering if it will get a little mushy but I’m not sure (since the chicken takes longer than 20 minutes. But, if it were me, I would cook it separate and add it when the soup is done.
Great recipe. Only comment is why on earth would you pat the chicken dry when it is going into the instant pot with added water or broth? Patting meat dry makes sense when attempting to brown it, but when simmering or pressure cooking? A waste of paper towels, time, and another way to cross contaminate countertop, cutting board, utensils etc.
I pat it dry because if there is any blood, I like to take it off. It makes me feel better and it’s just my way. And I don’t cross contaminate. I get the paper towels ready before I open the chicken, then I hold it in my hand over the sink as I pat it down. Thanks for liking the recipe, Paul. Cheers.
Would a couple of bay leaves work in this? I normally use bay leaves and thyme, but wanted to try something new. It seems like a very different flavor profile. Your thoughts?
It would definitely work. I just prefer my souop without, but my sister makes it with bay leaves. Thanks for your question, Alex!
Easy recipe, however, I didn’t care for the tarragon. Ruined it for us. Will make again and omit it next time.
Thanks, Dawn. I’m glad you found it easy and that you’ll make it again. In my family, I’m known for my love for tarragon. Thanks for your comment and honest review.
As soon as I add my liquids, I start the pot on sauté. Then chop up my veggies and add them. Saves so much time when I put the lid on and set for manual pressure cause everything has been heating up!
Great idea, Ruth. I never thought of doing that. Thanks for your suggestion!
Everything makes sense except pressure cooking pasta. Once you remove the chicken, switch mode to sauté, then cook pasta as directed on the box.
Glad you found a way to cook the pasta that you like! I always like alternatives to a recipe.