The Absolute Best Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Name: Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 7 min
Total time: 23 min
Ingredients: 1.25 lbs chicken thighs (boneless, skinless); 3 each carrots (Large, chopped in 1 inch pieces); 2 each celery (Stalks, chopped in 1/2 inch pieces); 1/2 each onion (medium yellow, chopped); 3 cloves garlic (minced); 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 each Bay Leaf; 6 cups low sodium chicken broth; 3 each Chicken Bouillon Cubes; 3 cups Egg Noodles; 2 tbsps Parsley (finely chopped); Salt & Pepper (seasoning)

A hearty classic chicken soup that has the flavors of slowcooked ingredients but can be made in minutes in the Instant Pot.

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There might not be a better meal on a cold day or when you are under the weather than homemade chicken noodle soup! What could be better you ask? Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup! Yes! You can make soup in the instant pot, easily! The flavor of slow-cooked ingredients in a matter of minutes instead of all day! This will soon become a family favorite recipe.

Easy Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup - Teal bowl of soup with colorful polka dot plate underneath. Spoon and celery in background

THIS POST CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING

How to Make IP Chicken Noodle Soup
How to Deglaze a Pan
Tools Needed
Tips for the Perfect Instant Pot Soup
FAQs – frozen chicken, storage, reaheating, freezing
More Instant Pot Recipes

The Best Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

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I am just going to say upfront that I really like a hearty soup! This recipe does not fall short on shredded chicken or egg noodles, and it’s packed with veggies such as carrots, celery, and onions. So this recipe is hearty! Don’t worry, you won’t be sorry!

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I will also tell you that I do add bullion cubes to this soup. Some people say that is cheating, I say it is flavor enhancing. You can use the cubes I used or you can use those concentrated gel things. Knolls make some jelly-like ones that melt in your soup and those are really good too! I have used them before. I had cubes today so that’s what I used today!

Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup in a blue bowl on a polka dot plate

How to make Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

For this recipe, I use the Saute feature to get a nice golden brown crust on the outside of the chicken thighs. Not only does this lock all the juices in the chicken while it cooks but it adds a ton of flavor!

You can also use chicken breasts for this recipe, I do prefer the darker meat in my soups but use what you have on hand!

If you are worried about dried-out chicken have no fear. The browning combined with cooking the chicken in the broth yields juicy, tender, pull apart chicken! I easily used two forks and zero effort to shred this!

Chicken thighs that were cooked in the instant pot and now shredded on a cutting board with 2 forks.

My rule with using the saute function is you must always deglaze the pot. This scrapes up all those cooked flavorful bits and puts them back into your soup instead of stuck on the bottom of the pan. Don’t skip this!

Ladle full of chicken noodle soup over held over the instant pot pot

How to Deglaze a Pan

After searing or browning meat you are often left with brown bits stuck to the bottom of your pan. Deglazing lifts all these flavor-filled bits and adds them back into your recipe!

To deglaze, add about 1/2 cup of liquid (whatever your recipe calls for, water, broth, wine, etc) to your hot pan and then scrape the bottom of the pan with a flat-edged wooden spoon. You will see the browned bits release from the bottom of your pot and back into your dish!

Deglaze the inner pot of the pressure cooker the same way as a stovetop pot or pan.

If you are worried about dried-out chicken have no fear. The browning combined with cooking the chicken in the broth yields juicy, tender, pull apart chicken with tons of flavor! I easily used two forks and zero effort to shred this!

Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup in the instant pot pot, top down view

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Kitchen Equipment for Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

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Common Questions about Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Is it Safe to Cook Frozen Chicken in an Instant Pot?

Yes! Pressure cookers cook the chicken so quickly that it avoids the “danger zone” that is commonly associated with cooking chicken in slow cookers. When in a slow cooker the chicken thaws/cooks slowly allowing the risk of harmful bacteria to multiply. Pressure cooking is fast enough to avoid that “danger zone” and safely cook frozen chicken.

How do you cook frozen chicken in the Instant Pot?

Cooking frozen chicken in the Instant Pot is one of my most favorite time-saving tricks the Instant Pot has to offer!

For frozen chicken, you will need more cooking liquid and more time than what your recipe calls for. For the liquid, you want the chicken to be completely covered by the liquid. The liquid acts as a heat conductor and ensures even cooking. In regards to the cook time, my rule of thumb for cooking frozen chicken in a pressure cooker is to increase the time by 50%. For example, if you were cooking bone-in chicken thighs and the recipe calls for 10 minutes, you would cook frozen bone-in chicken thighs 15 minutes.

Why does this recipe use Quick-Release vs Natural Pressure Release?

I often reiterate that when cooking meats in a pressure cooker you want to use the natural pressure release method (pot comes to atmospheric pressure on its own as the temperature lowers). This is because the Natural Pressure Release allows the juices within the meat to redistribute so when you cut the meat the juice stays with the meat and not all over your cutting board.

However, this recipe calls for Quick Pressure release (carefully and manually moving the pressure relief valve from sealing to venting) because since this is a soup and the meat will be swimming in liquid, there is no need for the juices to redistribute!

Always use extreme caution when using the quick-release pressure option!

How to Store & Rewarm Chicken Noodle Soup

You can store this soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

To rewarm you can use the saute feature of the Instant Pot when reheating the entire pot. You can also use a stovetop or microwave for smaller single bowl portions. Warm until the chicken and vegetables are warmed through.

Can Chicken Noodle Soup be Frozen?

Yes! Let the soup cool a bit and add to a freezer Ziploc bag or a Sealed storage container. Freeze. For the Ziplocs, I like to free them flat so they fit easily in my freezer.

When you need to eat it, you can defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat with the above directions! Easy Peasy!

Tips to Make Chicken Noodle Soup in an Instant Pot

To get an extra layer of flavor, use the Saute feature to brown your meat before cooking. Adds a whole new layer of flavor
Season each layer. This is where soups often fall short, on real flavor! Season the chicken layer, and the vegetable layer and teh broth layer! Don’t be afraid of good ‘ole salt and black pepper!
Two ways to add the noodles. If you cook the noodles in the instant pot as I specify below, it often will make the broth of your soup a bit cloudy from the released starches. If you do not want cloudy broth, you will need to cook the noodles separately on the stove top. For me, a bit of cloudiness is worth the ease of one-pot cooking!