This Easy Instant Pot Panera Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup is the best, quick pressure cooker recipe that includes stovetop directions, too. This copycat recipe is actually better than the real thing. Make this dish for meal-prep using fresh or frozen broccoli.
This post contains affiliate links. Please read my full disclosure here.
Since Panera first opened I have always been a fan of their broccoli cheddar soup. I can eat it year round. It doesn't have to be cold outside for me to crave a bite! I'm sharing my favorite homemade version. I prefer to make it in my Instant Pot because it gives the broccoli the PERFECT texture. I have also included stovetop instructions below.
If you are a soup lover you will also love my Instant Pot Split Pea Soup and Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup.
Table of Contents
How to Make Instant Pot Panera Broccoli Cheese Soup
Detailed measurements and full instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Gather your ingredients.
- Saute the onions and garlic.
- Add the chicken broth, broccoli, and seasonings.
- Pressure cook for 4 minutes. Quick-release the steam and add the remaining ingredients.
What Type of Cheese to Use
I like to use sharp cheddar cheese. You can use whatever cheese you wish.
Substitutions and Ideas for Additional Ingredients
- Shredded or Chopped Carrots
- Spinach
- Kale
- Celery
- Crumbled Bacon
- Sausage
- Green Peppers
- Red Peppers
How Many Carbs are in Broccoli?
One cup of broccoli has about 3.5 net carbs. 4 cups of broccoli are used in this recipe, that is divided among 8 servings.
Want to save this recipe for later?
I'll email it to you, so you can come back to it later! You will also get our free digital cookbook with 30-Minute One-Pot Recipes and weekly recipes and tips.
The low carb version of this soup has 6 net carbs per serving.
How Long Will it Last in the Fridge
It will last tightly covered for 3-4 days.
Freezer Tips
I love to use these soup freezer molds from Amazon to freeze the soup. I reheat it using the slow cook function or you can thaw and microwave. It will freeze up to a few months.
You may also enjoy my Keto Cheeseburger Casserole and Keto Peanut Butter Cookies.
Popular Keto Recipes
Keto Bacon Cheeseburger Casserole
Keto Philly Cheesesteak Casserole
Keto Shrimp Alfredo
More Instant Pot Soups
Instant Pot Tomato Soup
Instant Pot Black Bean Soup
Instant Pot Chicken, Seafood, and Sausage Gumbo
Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup with Spinach
Instant Pot Pumpkin Spice Sweet Potato Soup
Creamy Pumpkin Soup with Canned Pumpkin
Also check out our Stovetop Broccoli Cheddar Soup and Slow Cooker Crockpot Broccoli Cheddar Soup.
Instant Pot Panera Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter Divided
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 2-3 garlic cloves Minced
- 2 cups stock or broth I used chicken.
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 cups chopped fresh broccoli florets (with stems) You can use frozen if you wish, the pot may take a little longer to come to pressure.
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 2 cups sharp shredded cheddar cheese I purchase block cheese and grate it. It melts much better than pre-shredded cheese.
Instructions
- Place the Instant Pot on the saute function. Add 1 tablespoon of butter, chopped onions, and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the onions are translucent and fragrant.
- Add the chicken broth, broccoli florets, salt and pepper to taste to the pot. Stir to combine.
- Place the lid on the Instant Pot and seal. Cook for 4 minutes on Manual > High-Pressure Cooking.
- While the soup cooks, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small bowl. Add the flour to the butter and stir.
- When the pot indicates it has finished, quick release the steam and place it on the saute function.
- Open the pot and add the heavy whipping cream and shredded cheddar to the pot.
- Scoop out a couple of tablespoons of the soup and add it to the bowl with the melted butter and flour. Stir and add the mixture back to the pot. This will thicken up the soup.
- Place the Instant Pot on saute for a few minutes until the cheese has melted.
- Serve in bowls.
Stovetop
- Add 1 tablespoon of butter, chopped onions, and garlic to a large pot or Dutch oven on medium-high heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the onions are translucent and fragrant.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add the broth, broccoli, salt, and pepper to taste to the pot. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes or until the broccoli is tender.
- While the soup cooks, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small bowl. Add the flour to the butter and stir.
- When the broccoli is tender, add the heavy whipping cream and shredded cheddar to the pot.
- Scoop out a couple of tablespoons of the soup and add it to the bowl with the melted butter and flour. Stir and add the mixture back to the pot. This will thicken up the soup.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Allow a few minutes for the cheese to melt and the soup to thicken.
- Serve in bowls.
Amy Jones says
Delicious! Love being able to freeze it!
staysnatched says
That's a huge perk for soup recipes!
Carissa says
Meal prepped this for my lunches this week for work. Sometimes I have trouble with xanthum gum but this ratio was just right for the perfect texture. Recipe was so simple and flavorful. Highly recommend.
staysnatched says
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
JJ says
Such an easy to follow and foolproof recipe! After mixing the cream I like to use an immersion blender for a smoother finish. Also for anyone else wondering if you follow the recipe as is you will end up with 6 cups of soup.
staysnatched says
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Cheryl Fuller says
Just made this on the stovetop. Absolutely positively delicious. Can’t say enough about it. Only change I made, I put about 1/2 cup broccoli in a large container. I used my vitamix to blend the rest of the soup. Fantastic
Does anyone have the cookbook?
Wish I could take a put
staysnatched says
Over 50k people have purchased the cookbook. Join them!
Kady says
Help!! My cheese curdled and wouldn’t melt into the soup. What did I do wrong?!
staysnatched says
I don't know. Tell me what you did. It sounds like you didn't use quality cheese. I purchase blocks of cheese and grate them myself.
Rochelle Morgan says
Listen!! This is a staple in my kitchen now. So simple and so good!!!
staysnatched says
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoy the recipe.
Christiane DeSalvo says
This Broccoli Cheddar Cheese Soup is amazing and incredibly simple to make. It was a perfectly cold night last night and this soup hit the spot. For whatever crazy reason, the grocery store was out of Heavy Cream, so I substituted cream cheese and omitted Xanthum Gum due to the thickness and it worked wonders. Brandi did a fantastic job streamlining this Panera favorite into a simple at home staple.
And you know your girl here was heavily influenced because you know I put the leftovers in Souper Cubes to have for lunch next week 🙂
Thank you for this quick and easy lunch/dinner! The flavors are amazing and I will 100% make again!
staysnatched says
Thank you for this thorough review!
Kari says
Just made this tonight in the instapot. Tastes exactly like Panera, it’s delicious and the family loved it too. Thanks again for another great recipe!
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Shannon H says
Just made this soup again and it is so easy! I probably doubled the cheese because cheese! Filled up my belly and my souped cubes.
staysnatched says
Wonderful! Glad you can enjoy the freezer friendly dish!
Shannon says
Super simple recipe to follow and the taste was amazing! For sure adding this to our meatless Monday meals!
staysnatched says
This is great for Meatless Monday.
dawn powell says
So! On! Point! I like it better than Panera because it doesn’t have a processed taste to it! If you’ve made this recipe, you know exactly what I mean. So easy, so good.
staysnatched says
I couldn't agree more!
Nicole says
Love at first bite! This was my first instant pot recipe and it did not fail.
staysnatched says
Glad your first Instant Pot recipe was a success!
Sydney says
Panera who???
This is so easy and delicious
staysnatched says
haha love it! I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Lisa says
Delicious! Wouldn’t change a thing. The recipe came together in under 30 minutes.
staysnatched says
Wonderful! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Sarah says
This was super delicious and came together so quickly! I'm excited to try a few of the suggestions in the comments (cream cheese, potatoes, nutmeg) on my next go-round since I'm not keto - will definitely be making this again. Also, the leftovers fit perfectly in my SouperCubes - I'm excited to see how it heats up!
staysnatched says
Yay! There are so many variations and things to do with this recipe.
Candy says
How much is 1 serving? How many servings per batch? Thank you
Candy says
I can’t find where you say serving size is documented
Candy says
Can’t find serving size per serving
How Many Carbs are in Broccoli?
One cup of broccoli has about 3.5 net carbs. 4 cups of broccoli are used in this recipe, that is divided among 8 servings.
Nutrition (displayed with net carbs)
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 487kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 44g
staysnatched says
The total batch of soup makes 8 servings.
Tiarra says
As the weather has gotten colder, I have had a strong craving for soup. This recipe was absolutely perfect. Quick and super easy to follow! Absolutely delicious!
staysnatched says
Wonderful! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Michelle says
Another great recipe by Brandi, as expected. The only changes I made were to use flour instead of xantham gum (her tip) and I ended up blending everything with an immersion blender for a smoother consistency (personal preference). I think my favorite part of this was how easy it was to put together, even on a weeknight meal. We loved it so much we only had enough leftovers for 1 more meal.
staysnatched says
I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Michelle!
Abby says
Delicious! Perfect soup for any day but especially on this cold and rainy day! Can’t wait to try more recipes
staysnatched says
I hope you enjoy the other recipes!
Sabrina Boucher says
10/10! This is so good! And it legit was so quick to make. Definitely give it a try, you won’t regret it.
staysnatched says
Yay! So glad you enjoyed the soup.
Hailey Graff says
5 STARS. This was absolutely amazing. The flavor is there, 100% and it’s even BETTER than Panera’s! It was quick to make as well. I added half an already cooked rotisserie chicken, shredded, after pressurizing and before cream. Still more than enough of the soup to accommodate the chicken. The rest is going in my soup cubes - which y’all NEED TO BUY! Thank you, Brandi!i
staysnatched says
Yum I love the shredded chicken idea!
Jessica H says
Delicious! Even my 9 year old had a bowl and surprised he was eating broccoli lol!! I got an Instant Pot for Christmas and this was my first recipe to try but definitely will not be the last from Stay Snatched, Brandi is the reason I asked for an Instant Pot 🤣
staysnatched says
Yay! So glad I could convert you!
Monica says
Adding this to my regular recipe rotation! This soup was amazing, and tasted EXACTLY like Panera's! It was super quick to whip up with the instant pot, and I was a little worried about the heavy cream + cheese, but honestly it's so necessary. I wouldn't recommend subbing with non-dairy, because it won't taste anything like Panera's. Thank you, Brandi, for another amazing recipe!
staysnatched says
Thank you for sharing your tips!
Kelly says
I have made this recipe several times and it always delivers! So easy and simple, yet so delicious.I love to make a big batch in the instant pot and then eat off of it for several days! It’s truly ten times better than the Panera bread version!
staysnatched says
Yay! I love to hear that it's better than Panera!
ladye lorenzo says
I did this recipe today, my whole family enjoyed it thank-you Brandy!!!
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm glad the family enjoyed it.
Kathleen Gregorio says
Brandi delivers with ANOTHER flawless instant pot recipe. So good, it does taste like Panara, and it's easy! Will be making this again for sure!
staysnatched says
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoy it.
Sher Monique says
I just bought an Instant Pot and am on my 3rd year of keto, so when I saw this recipe, I made a mental note to refer back to it! Well, a cold, rainy NYE is THE DAY!This was so great and simple and really warmed me up! I WILL be making this again!!!
staysnatched says
Wonderful! Can't wait for you to make it again.
Chelsea Kroes says
AMAZING soup!! I’ve tried at least a dozen different broccoli cheddar soup recipes and this is by far the best flavor of any of them. Added bonus is that this one of the easiest recipes to make — definitely a 5 star favorite we’ll make again and again!!
staysnatched says
Glad to hear this is the one you like!
Shauna says
This is the bomb and so easy to make. Will be in my winter soup rotation for sure. Had to freeze some right away to stop myself from over eating. Ha!
staysnatched says
haha I find myself doing the same thing!
Emily Clark says
Soooo easy and fast to make!!!!! Family devoured it.
staysnatched says
I'm glad the family enjoyed it!
Heather says
Delicious and easy to put together when short on time. I used flour to thicken and it worked great. I'll have to get some xantham gum to try next time.
staysnatched says
Wonderful! I'm glad you enjoyed the soup.
Felicia says
I wanted some broccoli cheddar soup from Panera bread. I had everything on hand to make this. My mom was over and said how good it looked.
This soup is BETTER than Panera Bread. I said it. I always say that Panera’s soup needs a bit more broccoli. This soup has it all. I threw in some shredded carrots too. I also use pre-shredded cheese. Don’t judge me lol. It’s delicious. It’s very few ingredients and came together so fast.
staysnatched says
haha! I'm just glad you enjoyed it.
Jahna says
Great recipe! Easy peasy and yummy! No questions needed! I follow on IG so read recipe, read comments, and viola! 🙂
staysnatched says
haha yes! An easy recipe to follow.
Rachel says
Such an easy to follow recipe! I didn't even realize my pressure cooker had the saute option, but that was super handy to make this a one pot dish. This was delicious as is, but I may add more cheese next time. This is truly my upper Midwestern cheese loving persona talking because the recipe is great as is! I just love cheese!
staysnatched says
Awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed the soup.
Tiffani says
I don't remember what Panera's tasted like, but, this is incredible. Super simple, a much better alternative to everything I wanted to order for delivery, and I'm extremely happy I can freeze the leftovers!!
staysnatched says
haha you won't need it after this!
Jessica says
Amazing! Made this last night and the whole family loved it!
staysnatched says
Yay! I'm glad the family loved it!
Hazel says
So it’s a lil chilly out here in Louisiana so I decided to try out this soup to warm me up and to use it as a meal prep for the week and it was delicious 😋! I was going to wait until Monday to eat a bowl since I already had something planned for this evening, but I chose otherwise! I really love the food and the simplicity of the recipes. Thank you Brandi!🧡
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed the soup!
Quinnisha says
As always, Stay Snatched recipes never disappoint. The flavor is on point and I can eat all day. This will be in rotation from now on! Thank you for creating food to keep us snatched and satisfied.
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Jaymey says
Delish! This is a great low carb recipe, thank you! I froze the leftovers in my Souper Cubes, purchased due to Brandi's influence! 🙂
staysnatched says
Such a wonderful way to enjoy leftovers!
Cara says
This is delicious! The recipe is well developed and easy to follow. The soup was creamy, delicious and cheesy, and the best part is I was able to make with things I already had in my food/pantry. This is a quick and easy lunch if you have an InstantPot. This recipe is probably kid-friendly, but I'll never know, because I'm not sharing!
staysnatched says
haha no sharing! I love that!
Nicki says
My husband and I looked at each other after one bite and said “oh my god” in unison. This is THE BEST broccoli and cheese soup I have ever had. And is so easy to make! Thank you for sharing your ways with us, Brandi!
You all need to go and make this NOW.
Bye Panera.
staysnatched says
haha! Glad you both loved it.
Marsha Patrick says
Made this soup last night for dinner and my daughter who is a huge Panera Bread broccoli and cheese soup fan said " Panera who?". I didn't use an instant pot but used my dutch oven instead. It still came out amazing and it's really one of the easiest recipes I've made. Made easy by the simple and clear instructions by Brandi. All tips and tricks in the detail are appreciated. Thank you Brandi for another great low carb go to for the winter months!
staysnatched says
You're welcome! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
Susan says
So quick.
So easy.
And most importantly... SO delicious!
There are a lot of broccoli cheese soup recipes out there... THIS is the one you should make.
staysnatched says
Yay! Thank you so much for that!
Lindsay says
Delicious! We added smoked paprika, mustard powder and a pinch of erythritol to counter the broccoli's bitterness.
staysnatched says
I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Nidia Us says
I made this for dinner the other night and my 7yr. old loved it. She is a big time panera soup fan and she said it smelled and tasted just like it. This recipe is definitely a winner!
staysnatched says
Glad to hear it's a winner!
Christina Keliikoa says
I’ve only used my instapot once before. And this recipe was easy to follow and tasted just like Panera’s Broccoli Cheddar soup. But it’s so much better when your in control of the ingredients put into it. It’s so important to know what you’re eating and it tastes so much better. Use the block cheese as suggested and shred it yourself. Not only does it melt better like Brandi says but she has also said pre-shredded cheese is filled with preservatives. Get yourself a food processor for shredding! Enjoy! Thank you Brandi for another bomb recipe!
staysnatched says
Yay! I'm glad that worked out for you.
Brooke says
This recipe is quick and easy plus it comes out delicious! Have to be careful to not keep going back for more!
staysnatched says
haha I have the same problem!
Jeannie says
SO easy and delicious! I used the stovetop instructions and flour instead of xantham gum (thanks for including these options!). Purchased some souper cubes that Brandi recommends as well - excited to use them for the first time with this soup and have an easy go-to lunch!
staysnatched says
Wonderful! I'm so glad you enjoyed the soup!