Creamy Instant Pot Zucchini Soup

Learn how to make quick and easy Instant Pot zucchini soup that is creamy and flavorful, yet light on the calories. If you've never made zucchini soup in the Instant Pot, make sure to give this recipe a go! It's vegetarian, gluten-free, low-carb and keto-friendly. Great as a starter or a main dish! 

Why We Love This Creamy Zucchini Soup

• This bowl of goodness will warm your body and soul and can be served with croutons or some crusty bread to dunk in the soup.
• It's smooth, silky, and creamy, yet this zucchini soup is healthy and low in calories (only 180 calories per serve and even less if you skip the cream or use low-fat).
• It can be made without cream or with coconut cream for a vegan version. Or, for a more decadent version, you can melt in some Parmesan or Cheddar.
• This recipe makes a pretty big batch of zucchini soup. It freezes well (hold back the cream!) and is a must recipe when zucchini is in season or is on special.
• It's fabulous as a cold zucchini soup in the summer! 

Learn how to make homemade croutons here.

How To Make Instant Pot Zucchini Soup

This zucchini soup recipe is super easy! You only need a handful of ingredients and the dish comes together in under 30 minutes. Here is what you need for this cream of zucchini soup: 

• Zucchini - we used about 1 kg/ 2lb of zucchini, also known as courgettes in the UK. Zucchini is available all year round and is often very affordable. It might seem like a lot of zucchini but it cooks down to soft and whizzes up into a silky, smooth, thick soup. The cream is there mostly for flavor!
• Important: Zucchinis come in different sizes and shapes so make sure you use close to 1 kg/2 lb of zucchini for the amount of liquid in the recipe. If using a smaller amount, reduce water or you might end up with thinner soup consistency.
  Stock - you can use ready-made vegetable stock or water and stock cubes. Make sure the stock/water just barely covers the zucchini as the vegetable will give out a lot of moisture during cooking.
  Cream - you can add half and half, low-fat cream regular thickened cream or sour cream; yogurt would also work well here.

• Step1. Dice the onions, garlic and zucchini; roughly is fine as the soup will be pureed at the end.
• Step 2. Saute the onions in olive oil for 4-5 minutes on the Normal Saute setting, until softened. Stir a few times.
• Step 3. Add zucchini, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Add water and crumbled stock cubes or ready-made vegetable stock. Stir through. The liquid should just barely cover the zucchini as the vegetable will give out a lot of moisture during cooking.

• Step 4. Pressure Cook for 2 minutes on HIGH pressure. Pressurizing will take about 12 minutes, and then the 2-minute timer will begin. Once the timer is done, manually let off the remaining steam (quick release).
• Step 5. Use an immersion stick blender to puree the soup directly in the Instant Pot or cool it off slightly and transfer it to a standing blender or a food processor in batches.
• Step 6. Return pureed soup to the pot. Stir in the cream and lemon juice. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust seasoning if needed.

Serve with fresh herbs, scallions or chives and croutons or crusty bread on the side. You can also top it with shaved or grated Parmesan cheese or any other cheese you like.

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Creamy Instant Pot Zucchini Soup

You will love this creamy zucchini soup Instant Pot recipe. It's silky and smooth, delicious yet low in calories even with a touch of cream swirled in. This Instant Pot zucchini soup recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free and great as a starter or a main dish.

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Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Servings: 5 servings

Calories: 179kcal

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter
• 1 large onion diced
• 2 lbs. zucchini diced into cubes or half circles
• 3 cloves garlic diced
• zest of ½ lemon
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 cups water 750 ml
• 1.5 stock cube
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• ½ cup cream

Instructions

• Prep. Dice the onions, garlic and zucchini; roughly is fine as the soup will be pureed at the end. 
• Saute. Turn the Saute function on and once heated, add the olive oil and onions. Cook for 4-5 minutes on the Normal setting, until softened. Stir a few times. Press Cancel to stop the function.
• Add ingredients. Add zucchini, garlic, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Add water and crumbled stock cubes or ready-made vegetable stock. Stir through. The liquid should just barely cover the zucchini as the vegetable will give out a lot of moisture during cooking. 
• Set & cook. Secure and lock the lid; make sure the pressure handle is pointing to Sealing. Select Manual/Pressure Cook and adjust the timer to 2 minutes on HIGH pressure. After a few seconds, the ON sign will come on, indicating the pressure is building (you might also hear 3 beeps on some models); pressurizing will take about 12 minutes, and then the 2-minute timer will begin.
• Once the timer is done, manually let off the remaining steam (quick release).
• Blend. Use an immersion stick blender to puree the soup directly in the Instant Pot or cool it off slightly and transfer it to a standing blender or a food processor in batches. 
• Finish with cream. Return pureed soup to the pot. Stir in the cream and lemon juice. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust seasoning if needed. 
• Serve with fresh herbs, scallions or chives and croutons or crusty bread on the side. You can also top it with shaved or grated Parmesan cheese or any other cheese you like. 

Notes

• Zucchini is also known as courgette in the UK, You will need about 1 kg/ 2 lb. (6 medium ones (about 20cm/8" long, 4cm / 1.5" wide), or 8 small ones, or 3-4 large ones)
• The cream is used to add some richness and flavor, you can use regular or low-fat cream, half and half, creme fraiche, sour cream, or even mascarpone or cream cheese. Or just a bit of butter will do.
• To puree the soup, you can use an immersion stick blender or a standing blender. In this case, cool the soup slightly before whizzing the soup in 2-3 batches. Then return to the pot to stir in the cream and to taste for seasoning.

Nutrition

Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 550mg | Potassium: 557mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 714IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 1mg

CourseSoup

CuisineFrench

Keywordcourgette, Gluten-Free, Instant Pot, Low-Carb, Pressure Cooker, Soup, Vegetarian, Zucchini

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