Instant Pot Chicken, Bacon, and Potato Soup

Nothing beats a hearty bowl of homemade chicken soup with bacon. This recipe utilizes the Instant Pot for all day flavor in less than an hour!

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It’s no secret that I’ve been obsessed with my Instant Pot. It’s been one of the most versatile items in my kitchen arsenal. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen that I made my first batch of homemade yogurt in it this week. It was seriously amazing!

I have so many Instant Pot recipes to share, but I’ve been making things faster than I can get them written up.

It’s a good problem to have, I suppose!

This soup is one that I made a while back. I saw it in an issue of Cooking Light billed as a slow cooker recipe, and thought it would be fun to Instant Pot-ify it.

That’s totally a real term, right? No? I’m going to roll with it anyway.

Getting this soup on the table in under an hour instead of over 4 sounded like an awesome idea, too.

Plus, in my version, you can do it all in one vessel – no need to dirty a skillet and a slow cooker. I also used already boneless, skinless thighs for this recipe to save even more fuss.

The meat was so tender that I was able to shred it right in the insert – no need to remove it and cut it up or remove any bones.

A quick note about leeks: they’re dirty. You need to make sure you clean them well before cooking with them, or you’ll end up with grit in your food.

My favorite method is to use the my salad spinner, which, it turns out, I use mostly for cleaning leeks!

This soup turned out so wonderfully! It was hearty yet light, and had just enough bacon to make it feel a little indulgent.

It was a big hit with my whole family.

You may need a little extra salt and pepper at the end – go with your instincts here. My husband tends to like things a little more seasoned than I do, but it’s always easier to add a little more than take it down a notch.

One word of warning – the potatoes will be like molten hot lava pretty hot when you go to serve this soup.

The roof of your mouth will thank you for proceeding with caution before diving into your bowl.

Looking for more Instant Pot comfort food? My Instant Pot Herbed Pot Roast is fan-freakin-tastic! And my Instant Pot “Baked” Beans make a great side dish! And if you’re looking for a tasty appetizer, my Chicken Quesadillas with Chipotle Ranch Dip are a great choice.

Looking for more comfort food favorites? Check out these 5-star recipes:

• Sausage and Peppers
• Latin-Spiced Pork + Squash Skillet with Chili Lime Cherries
• Ravioli Lasagna
• Instant Pot Herbed Pot Roast
• Grilled PB&J Sticks
• Garlicky Littleneck Clams with Bacon + Wine Over Sautéed Spring Veggies
• Waffle Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict
• Skillet Lasagna with Lamb, Ricotta + Mint
• Roast Chicken with Dijon Root Vegetables
• Our Favorite Sloppy Joe Sandwiches
• Roasted Garlic Gruyère Pull-Apart Bread
• Rosemary Beef & Peas Over Grits
• Bar-B-Q Pulled Pork Fries with Cole Slaw
• Spicy Turkey Three-Bean Chili
• Buttered Pasta with Peas, Egg and Garlic

What are your favorite types of soup? Do you think they’d be a good fit for an Instant Pot conversion? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section below!

Instant Pot Chicken, Bacon, and Potato Soup

★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen - Ashley Covelli (adapted from Cooking Light)
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 50 minutes
• Yield: 6 Servings 1x
• Category: Main Dish
• Method: Instant Pot
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Nothing beats a hearty bowl of homemade chicken soup. This one utilizes the Instant Pot for all day flavor in less than an hour!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 center-cut bacon slices, diced
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 teaspoons 2 teaspoons salt-free garlic-and-herb seasoning blend (I used 1 1/2 teaspoons Penzeys Bavarian Seasoning + 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
• 2 cups thinly sliced leeks (about 2 large)
• 1 cup sliced carrot (about 2 large)
• 1 cup sliced celery (about 2 large stalks)
• 12 ounces baby potatoes
• 4 cups unsalted chicken stock, divided
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 5 thyme sprigs
• 2 cups coarsely chopped baby spinach

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Instructions

1. Set Instant Pot to “Sauté” and adjust to “Normal”. Once its hot, add bacon and cook until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove bacon to a plate and set aside, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings in Instant Pot.
2. Sprinkle chicken with seasoning blend. Add chicken to bacon drippings in Instant Pot and cook 8 minutes, browning on all sides. Transfer chicken to the plate with the bacon, reserving any drippings in the Instant Pot. Add leek, carrot, and celery to drippings and sauté 5 minutes. Stir in 1 cup stock, scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Add chicken, bacon, potatoes, remaining 3 cups stock, salt, pepper, and thyme sprigs.
3. Close the lid set it to high pressure for 20 minutes. Once the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before manually releasing the remaining pressure and carefully opening the lid.
4. Remove thyme sprigs and shred the chicken right in the Instant Pot. Add spinach, stirring until spinach wilts down into the soup.

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Notes

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light – October 2016

Keywords: Instant Pot, easy soup, potato soup, cold weather dinner

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