Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup is a delicious way to enjoy your next winter squash. It’s warm and comforting, and the pressure cooker makes the process as easy as possible!
Why You’ll Love It
You’ll minimize the mess. Unlike working with a slow cooker, you can saute the aromatic ingredients directly in the Instant Pot, so there’s no extra saucepan to clean when you’re done. The pressure cooker will even keep your soup warm for serving!
It tastes amazing. This butternut squash soup is loaded with flavor, thanks to simple ingredients like onion, garlic, and curry powder. It tastes like it was simmered for hours, but doesn’t require nearly as much time.
It’s allergy-friendly. Made with coconut milk instead of heavy cream, this recipe is dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan friendly.
It’s ultra comforting. With a creamy texture, this velvety soup is perfect anytime you need to warm up from the inside out. Pair it with an Apple Walnut Salad for a light, yet nourishing meal.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You can use fresh or frozen butternut squash, as long as you keep the weight the same. The 2 pounds is measured after the squash has been peeled and cut, so you can use pre-cut squash from the store, or frozen squash to cut-down on the prep work.
If you prefer a sweeter soup, you can also add in a granny smith apple to cook along with the squash, or add a small amount of maple syrup or brown sugar at the end, for a touch of sweetness.
If you would like to try another Butternut Squash Soup variation, be sure to check out my stove top recipe, which is made with apple and cinnamon. You can also use chicken broth instead of water, but keep in mind that you’ll need to cut-back on the salt in that case, since prepared broth will already have extra sodium.
How to Make Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
1. Saute.
Press the Sauté button on the Instant Pot and wait 1 minute for the bottom of the pot to warm up.
Add in the olive oil and onion, and cook until the onion softens, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add in the garlic and curry powder, and stir for 1 more minute, just until they smell fragrant.
Press the “Off/Cancel” button to turn off the sauté function and add 1 cup of water to help prevent the garlic from burning. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape the bottom of the pot, to make sure nothing is stuck. (This will prevent a burn error later.)
2. Pressure cook.
Add in the remaining 2 cups of water, the butternut squash, and the salt and pepper. Secure the lid and move the steam release valve to sealing.
Use the Manual or Pressure Cook button to cook at high pressure for 15 minutes. It will take roughly 10 minutes for the pot to pressurize, so the screen will read “ON” until then.
When the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes. (This means you don’t have to do anything until the screen reads L0:10.)
When the time has passed, move the steam release valve to venting to release any remaining pressure. When the floating valve in the lid has dropped, it’s safe to remove the lid.
3. Blend.
Transfer the soup to a blender and carefully blend until it’s smooth. For safety, be sure to remove the vent in the blender’s lid and cover it with a thin towel to let steam escape. (This way the lid won’t blow off your blender from the steam pressure.)
You can work in batches, if you need to, or you can use an immersion blender to puree the soup directly in the pot.
Return the soup to the pot, and stir in the coconut milk. Adjust any seasoning to taste, adding more salt, if needed. You can also add a splash of maple syrup, if you prefer a sweeter tasting soup.
4. Enjoy!
Ladle the butternut squash soup into bowls, and serve warm with any garnishes you like. You can drizzle the top with extra coconut milk, or add some roasted butternut squash seeds and a sprinkle of freshly chopped cilantro or black pepper. You can also use store-bought pumpkin seeds as a crunchy topping.
Leftover soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or you can freeze it for up to 3 months. It’s easy to reheat again, directly from the fridge or freezer, on the stove top or in the microwave for a quick meal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Using a store-bought broth isn’t necessary when you use sufficient seasonings, but you can use chicken stock or vegetable broth in this recipe, if you prefer. Just be sure to cut-back on the salt, in that case, since most broth will already contain sodium.
You can make this pressure cooker butternut squash soup on the stove top instead, by sauteing the onion in a pot over medium heat on the stove. Then add in the garlic and curry powder and stir for 1 more minute. Add in the butternut squash, water, salt, and pepper, and bring the liquid to a boil. Then cover the pot with a lid and lower the heat, so the soup can simmer until the squash is very tender, about 25 to 30 minutes. You can proceed with blending the recipe from there!
If your butternut squash is on the small side, you can make up the rest of the weight by using some peeled and cut carrot, instead.
You can use heavy cream, instead, or you can use another non-dairy milk, but it will be less creamy in that case.
You can typically use 1 tablespoon of red curry paste as a swap for 1 teaspoon of curry powder.
Transfer the frozen soup to the fridge at least 24 hours before you plan on reheating it again. This should help it thaw, though it’s not 100% necessary to thaw the soup before warming it up again.
Looking for more Instant Pot soup recipes? Try Instant Pot Lentil Soup or Chicken Curry Soup for more delicious ideas.
Instant Pot Butternut Squash Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion , chopped
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 tablespoon curry powder
- 2 pounds butternut squash , peeled and cubed*
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 3 cups water
- ½ cup canned coconut milk**
Instructions
- Press the Sauté button on the Instant Pot and wait 1 minute for the bottom to warm up. Addin the olive oil and onion, and cook until the onion softens, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add in the garlic and curry powder, and stir for 1 more minute, just until they smell fragrant.
- Press the “Off/Cancel” button and add 1 cup of water to help prevent the garlic from burning. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape the bottom of the pot, to make sure nothing is stuck. (This will prevent a burn error later.)
- Add in the remaining 2 cups of water, the butternut squash, and the salt and pepper. Secure the lid and move the steam release valve to sealing. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes. It will take roughly 10 minutes for the pot to pressurize, so the screen will read “ON” until then.
- When the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes. (This means you don’t have to do anything until the screen reads L0:10.) When the time has passed,move the steam release valve to venting to release any remaining pressure. When the floating valve in the lid has dropped, it’s safe to remove the lid.
- Transfer the soup to a blender and carefully blend until it’s smooth. For safety, be sure to remove the vent in the blender’s lid and cover it with a thin towel to let steam escape. (This way the lid won’t blow off your blender from the steam pressure.) You can work in batches, if you need to, or you can use an immersion blender to blend the soup directly in the pot.
- Return the soup to the pot, and stir in the coconut milk. Adjust any seasoning to taste, adding more salt, if needed. You can also add a splash of maple syrup, if you prefer a sweeter tasting soup. Serve warm, with any garnishes you like. You can drizzle it with extra coconut milk, or add some roasted butternut squash seeds, fresh cilantro, or black pepper on top. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
Nutrition
If you try this Instant Pot butternut squash soup recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how you like it!
Woohoo, love the idea of the Instant Pot makeover! I just got my IP about a month ago and I’ve officially drunk the Kool-Aid 😉
This looks amazing— so nourishing and healthy! I have a mad love for butternut squash, and I also love my Instant Pot! 🙂
I just purchased my instant pot. I am looking for recipes!!! Thanks for giving me very clear directions.
I am LOVING the instant pot recipes! I just got one for Christmas and am still figuring out how best to use it, so this is super helpful and looks delicious!
I am intrigued by the yogurt setting… and wondering if I could somehow make a vegan coconut yogurt or something.. hmmmm…
Thanks Megan!
The yogurt is on my to-do list this month! 🙂
Making this right now! Thanks 🙂
Megan what size instant pot do you use??
Megan do you use an Instant Pot cookbook? which one would you recommend?
I also like to add fresh ginger and a lil maple syrup, orange juice or pineapple juice when I want it a little sweeter. If I’m wanting more savory option I add whatever grilled veggies or greens I have leftover from night before.
Is this soup freezable?
Oh darn I just made this recipe and added the coconut milk – didn’t read through the instructions. I hope it still turns out 🙂 Smells great!!
I did this too, did it turn out?
Excellent recipe
Yum! I just made this. I substituted chicken broth for the water. I also added the butternut squash into the onions after the onions were mostly cooked. I wanted to sauté the butternut squash to let the natural sugars release. The result is pure delicious’ness! Thank you!
Chicken or veg stock instead of water:)
Would this recipe work with canned pumpkin too?
What is the curry powder in the ingredients. Really tempted to try this soup if I know what I need to use for that.
This is good but it might benefit from a touch of sweetness, like an apple or something.
I started with this soup pre instantpot, so was thrilled to see this makeover to combine my two loves! Have a pot on “soup” right now!! Mmmmm
This recipe is outstanding. I tweaked it a little bit, added a little more coconut milk and less water, cut back on the curry since I am not a huge curry fan.
I made this with Kobucha squash and it is delicious! I also added in a whole can of coconut milk (by mistake) but I don’t think that is a bad thing.
This is wonderful! Thanks for the recipe. I added some ginger for extra kick.
If not vegetarian I use chicken broth instead of water. Better flavor I think. Thank you for your recipe!
Absolutely wonderful recipe, one of the simplest best soups I’ve made – thank you for the recipe!
Delicious! Used broth rather than water
Just made this with coconut cream and added a little more curry powder as I can’t get enough of curry and all I can say is OMG!!! I wasn’t going to eat dinner tonight, and only taste a bit of this before I put it away for tomorrow nights dinner but I’ve already had a bowl and can’t stop!
Thank you sooooo much for sharing this!!
Absolutely love this soup! It’s quick and simple with clean ingredients. I added goji berries instead of the dried cranberries and didn’t mind the replacement. Very hearty too so you feel filled up afterwards. Will definitely make it again!
Can you please tell me the benefi of puting the time to cook as 30 minutes. I did 15, just to be sure, though all other butternut squash soup IP recipes call for much less time (I’ve seen 4-15 minutes… Varies widely. I’ve never seen 30 minutes Uber so button like yours is..)
Other than this, and the fact that it should probably have a broth of vegetable or chicken instead of water, I did enjoy the ingredients.
Thank you for taking the time to post it.
I just made this incredible soup in my Instant Pot 7-1 DUO 6qt. I used two pounds of already cut fresh organic butternut squash and did substitute 3 cups of organic vegetable broth instead of using water. I did opt to use 1/2 cup of organic half & half instead of coconut milk. This is a deliciously easy and savory butternut squash soup and one I will be making over and over again. I’ve got plenty of soup left over in the refrigerator and I am anticipating pouring some over simply cooked chicken and cauliflower for more meals. This soup is rich, creamy and exceptionally satisfying. This is the very first butternut squash soup I have ever made and I loved it! Thank you for such a delicious, healthy and easy recipe.
I had a smaller BN Squash, so substituted the shortage with cauliflower. This was my first actual recipe used in my IP. It was delish and so easy!
It wasn’t sweet enough so I added three dates and it was much better. I don’t use oil so I don’t know if that affected it. I use water.
Sorry I forgot to say I also added an apple and cinnamon and had two pounds of organic cut up squash. I think I’d use low sodium veggie broth next home instead of water too. I am a vegan .
Thanks for the recipe, it was awesome! I made it with vegetable stock instead of water, and I also added lentils to add protein to the soup. The result was delicious!
Thanks for letting me know!
Just made this today, so easy and flavourful. I had some left over pumpkin pure from another recipe I made this morning and blended it all together.
Thank you for sharing this recipe !!
Great basic recipe! I used 3/4c light coconut milk and also subbed water for vegetable broth. Also increased the curry and added chili pepper flakes for more spice. YUM! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Really tasty and satisfying on a rainy dreary day. I added cayenne for a lick and some cracked black pepper.
Fantastic! So yummy! It was a really nice change from my go to sweet butternut squash soup I made it exactly the way your recipe was written even though I was tempted to use broth instead of the water I resisted and was pleasantly surprised! I Didn’t miss it at all!
Julie, i usually make butternut squash-leek soup, guess you could replace onions w/leeks and the rest the same. I also use potato masher instead of completely pureeing as my husband and family all like it better w/some thickness to it.I also add half a jalapeno w/out seeds for a nice zip to the taste buds, i also use chicken broth instead of water always, more flavor. Does any of this hurt the vegan part?
I may have missed the instructions, but can you do this in a slow cooker or just on the stovetop?? Thanks!
Turned out delicious! Thanks so much! Definitely will make again.
I’ve made this recipe many times before, this time my squash was too small! Added in some red potatoes in 1inch pieces and it bulked it up without changing the flavour.
I pre-cooked the squash (halved, unpeeled) in the instant pot because I find it is so hard to cut raw. I also reduced the curry because my hubbie isn’t a huge fan. I used 1 teaspoon. Also added juice of 1/3 of a lemon. Delicious!!! Thank you for the recipe.
Delicious and easy to make!
What’s the serving size for the nutritional information offered? How many grams?
Delicious!
Love the really logically detailed and thoughtful instructions to make this soup and to avoid burning oneself while if using a blender (been victim of this in the past). Thank you
Left out coconut milk. Added 2 carrots, chopped to garlic saute. Added only 2 cups water with chicken bouillon cube. Reduced salt to 1 tsp. Added 1/2 tsp chai spice (cardamom, clove and cinnamon), 2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp ground ginger and 1/4 tsp ground red pepper. Added skinned, baked yam. Pureed smooth and garnished with pepitas and 1 peeled and grated Granny Smith apple mixed with 1/2 TBSP honey and 1 tsp apple cider vinegar. Turned out AMAZING.
YUM! I made this last night and it’s fantastic! I used both Sweet potatoes and white potatoes because I didn’t have enough sweet, and it worked out great. Thank you!
I’m making it tomorrow! I want to share the way I cook a butternut squash if I’m going to use the pulp in a soup or as a side dish.
I place the squash, whole, on a baking sheet and prick several holes on top and sides. I roast at 400to450 degrees until the skin is very brown and the squash is falling in on itself. When it reaches this really ugly stage, it is done. Right away, cut it down the middle to let the steam out, let it cool enough handle, and scoop out the seeds. What is left is a nicely caramelized, pre-mashed butternut squash with a depth of flavor that you can’t get any other way
I take this is a 6qt pot recipe… sometimes a 6 at recipe will not full it.. I was wondering could I double this recipe in a 8qt without over filling it… I know the coconut goes in after everything cooks so that should not be a issue.
I think it should be safe to double as long as you don’t go past the “MAX” fill line on your 8-quart machine.
Loved this recipe! I added 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and juiced 1 fresh lime. Topped with toasted pumpkin seeds and cilantro…. yummmmmmmm 🙂
This soup is delicious. So easy, using the immersion blender its one pot from start to finish. Thick and creamy, I worried it wouldn’t be substantial enough for a meal, but we were all full after one bowl. Definitely making this again. Thanks Megan!
The is one of my favorite recipes. So creamy and good!