Instant Pot Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup (Paleo, Whole30)
Posted: 12/19/18
Updated: 04/25/23
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This healthy chicken pot pie soup is super rich, creamy, and comforting. Made in the Instant Pot, it’s paleo, Whole30, dairy free, and gluten-free, too, without skimping on any flavor. This healthy soup comes together in about 30 minutes and is good enough to eat all week!
This recipe is from my digital cookbook The Paleo Instant Pot, which you can buy for $25 by clicking here! It includes over 30 Whole30-approved recipes designed for the Instant Pot and focused on flavor. It’s the perfect last-minute Christmas gift for a healthy food lover, and it’s a must for anyone you know getting an Instant Pot under their tree!
Let’s be really clear:
My husband is the winner here.
We’re testing new, healthy recipes daily, usually Whole30 and paleo, but always as flavorful as I can dooty them up to be. When he does a Whole30? It’s like this: he comes home from lawyering all day and sits down to either a brand new dish or one of our regular faves, like egg roll in a bowl, zuppa toscana, or – let’s face it – the chicken zucchini poppers from One Lovely Life.
Got the context? He tries a lot of really good food. So when he tried this soup and said,
“Definitely the best Whole30 soup you’ve ever made.”
I knew we had a seriously good healthy chicken pot pie soup on our hands.
Why we love this healthy chicken pot pie soup
There’s no surprise, really:
- This healthy chicken pot pie soup is made creamy with a coconut-cashew cream, doubling down on the richness of the soup with no dairy at all.
- It’s made in the Instant Pot, and it’s quick and easy.
- This creamy Whole30 soup is insanely comforting and satisfying.
I was inspired by one of my all-time favorite dishes–chicken pot pie–to make a healthier version that I could eat on a Whole30 or our paleo diet.
Variations
- Use fresh herbs, like thyme or rosemary, if you prefer.
- If you can’t eat coconut or are worried about a coconut flavor, you can simply replace the coconut cream with water, almond milk, or chicken stock. However, the coconut cream is delicious in this recipe and doesn’t leave a coconutty flavor!
- Make this healthy chicken pot pie soup in the slow cooker or on the stovetop instead. See directions below.
Use cooked chicken to make this paleo and Whole30 recipe even faster
Simply sauté the mirepoix (the onion, carrots, and celery) and garlic on the stovetop instead of the Instant Pot as detailed in the first step of the recipe, then add the potatoes, chicken broth, and thyme to your pot.
Make your cashew-coconut cream as directed in the recipe.
Bring to a boil and boil until potatoes are fork-tender. Add your chicken and cashew-coconut cream to the pot and stir well. Finish with plenty of salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
Is this recipe dairy free?
It is if you use olive oil in the place of ghee. Most people don’t have a problem with ghee, even if they’re lactose intolerant, but if you’re avoiding all, even minute, instances of lactose, or cow’s milk proteins (for a breastfeeding sensitivity, for example), use the olive oil.
What is coconut cream?
In this recipe, coconut cream means just the white, solid part of a can of coconut milk or coconut cream. Wait, what?
Here’s the deal: “coconut cream” in a can means it contains more of the rich, solid cream than a can of coconut milk does.
I like to buy cans of “coconut cream” (unsweetened, of course) since I can get nearly a cup of pure coconut cream from those. You may need 2 cans of full-fat coconut milk to produce 1 cup of coconut cream.
Refrigerate the coconut milk or cream overnight, then remove the can from the fridge without shaking it or stirring the contents at all. Open the can and scoop off the top layer of thick, solid, white cream. That’s all you want to use in this recipe. You can discard the remaining liquid or use it for something else.
Can I substitute something for the cashews?
Sure! Try 1 cup of steamed cauliflower blended together with the coconut milk in place of the cashews if you have an allergy. If not, use the cashews! They are so, so important to this recipe.
Other recipes you’ll love
- Dreamy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice
- Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Thighs
- Immune Booster Shot Recipe (Maximum Strength!)
- Instant Pot Brown Rice
- Easy Black Bean Soup
- Mango Habanero Wings
- Egg Roll in a Bowl Meal Prep (Whole30, Paleo, Keto)
- Whole30 Beef Stroganoff
Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Soup (Paleo, Whole30)
A super-rich and creamy chicken pot pie soup is so comforting and satisfying. It’s made in the Instant Pot, and it’s dairy free, grain free, gluten free, paleo, and Whole30.
servings
Ingredients
- 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized chunks, approximately 1-2 pounds
- 2 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
- 1 medium onion diced, approximately 1 cup
- 3 large carrots diced, approximately 1 cup
- 3 large celery stalks sliced, approximately 1 cup
- 5-6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound red potatoes diced
- 2 cups chicken broth or chicken stock
- 1 cup full-fat canned coconut cream or coconut milk, see Notes
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt more or less to taste
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried sage
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- fresh parsley leaves chopped, for garnish
Equipment
- Instant Pot or other pressure cooker (see Notes for alternate methods)
- high-speed blender
Instructions
- Turn Instant Pot on Sauté mode. Melt ghee in pot, then add onion, carrots, and celery, stirring regularly. Cook until onions are soft, then add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Add potatoes, chicken broth, chicken, dried sage, and fresh thyme to Instant Pot. Secure lid with valve in Sealing position and set to Manual High Pressure for 10 minutes. Once Instant Pot pressurizes, cook time will begin.
- While Instant Pot cooks, add coconut milk and cashews to high-speed blender. Blend until very, very smooth.
- When time is up, Quick Release, then stir in coconut-cashew mixture and add salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Serve warm.
Notes
- If you do not have a high-speed blender, soak your cashews in hot water for a few hours then drain and proceed with the directions.
- Coconut Cream: Refrigerate a can of unsweetened coconut cream or unsweetened coconut milk overnight. Remove the can without shaking it or stirring the contents. Open the can and scoop off the solid white layer on top of the liquid – use 1 cup of this solid layer in the recipe.
Make This Soup Without an Instant Pot
On the stovetop:- Heat the ghee or olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the onion, carrots, and celery until the onions are soft, then sauté the garlic about a minute or until fragrant. Add the potatoes, chicken broth, sage, and thyme to your pot.
- Bring to a boil and cook 4 minutes.
- Add your chicken breasts and cook for 6 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and potatoes are fork-tender.
- Meanwhile, make your cashew-coconut cream as directed in the recipe.
- Add your cashew-coconut cream to the pot and stir well. Finish with plenty of salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
- Heat the ghee or olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sauté the onion, carrots, and celery until the onions are soft, then sauté the garlic about a minute or until fragrant. Transfer the sautéd mixture Add the potatoes, chicken broth, chicken, sage, and thyme to your pot.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6.
- In the meantime, make the cashew-coconut cream as directed in the recipe. When the slow cooker time is up and potatoes are tender, stir in cashew-coconut cream and season with plenty of salt and pepper.
Video
Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1serving, Calories: 645kcal, Protein: 27g, Fat: 44g, Saturated Fat: 26g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 55mg, Sodium: 1510mg, Potassium: 1524mg, Total Carbs: 42g, Fiber: 7g, Net Carbs: 35g, Vitamin A: 7851IU, Vitamin C: 24mg, Calcium: 87mg, Iron: 6mg
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
We’ve made this soup over and over and oh my gosh it’s so good every time! The whole family (small children, some with sensory issues, strong preferences, etc.) loves this soup. I add peas sometimes, and double always.
So glad you enjoyed it!
Super tasty! I’m thinking about putting the chicken in whole and then shredding it before adding the coconut milk/cashews next time. Do you think it would need a longer cook time?
Shouldn’t need a longer cook time! But definitely always check for a pink center.
Should the cashews be unsalted for this recipe?
Yes!
Any suggestions for a good substitute for the coconut cream/milk? Have a picky partner who doesn’t like anything with the faintest hint of coconut. Thanks!
If you can eat dairy, you could use regular whole milk, half and half, or heavy cream. Or for a dairy-free option, cashew milk should work well.
There is a big snow storm coming tomorrow and this soup sounded wonderful. So, I made it today to eat over the next few days until I dig myself out of the snow. This soup is absolutely delicious. I am so happy to add it to my healthy soup recipes. This will definitely be made again, and again, and again. Thank you so much for sharing. I’m looking forward to lunch tomorrow while watching it snow!!
This is the perfect snow day recipe! So glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
I never rate recipes, but this was just so good I had to give it 5 stars. So delicious, so simple. Only adjustment I made was to double the liquid
So glad you enjoyed it and gave us this feedback! 🙂
This was AMAZING!!!
So glad I made it tonight and wish I had doubled the recipe.
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
This is one of my all time favorites!!! We’ve made it many times and it always is a hit!!!! Sooooo good.
So glad to hear that, Caitlyn! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe, but have a touch of a problem: my blender and food processor will not handle blending nuts (I’ve tried several times). Could I used cashew butter in place of blending the cashews? If so, how much of the cashew butter would be eqivalent? Thank you.
We haven’t tested this swap, so we can’t say for certain, but we don’t think it would work with cashew butter. You need the whole cashews to get the dairy-free thickness we’re striving for. However, you could just use the coconut milk and omit the cashews all together. It just won’t be as thick. You could also try adding the cashews a little but at a time to your blender. The coconut milk acts as a lubricant and helps to grind them up!
Chrysta, I have made this recipe so many times, but I have never put the cashews in because my husband is allergic to them (we don’t let them come in the house!). I can tell you it is incredibly delicious, and it will be just fine if you skip them! Also, I make it exactly as described, except for the cashew part. Hope this helps!
You can can boil the cashews for a few minutes to soften them, then they will blend quickly.
Have you tried soaking the cashews first? I always had to soak them for a minimum of a half an hour in warm water before blending with all of my previous blenders.
Love this soup! Just wondering, can you freeze it to save for later?
Absolutely!
You can’t freeze whole potatoes. They turn out very grainy. Unless someone knows a secret about keeping this from happening.