Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

Based on a friend’s suggestion, I broke down and picked up an Instant Pot. I scored a sweet deal on the Instant Pot Duo Mini, a small, feature-packed cooker perfect for Cooking4OneandaHalf. Of course, I tested it per the instructions, then tested it with white rice, then with small red beans. The results were good, the time to cook was quick, and overall I was satisfied with adding this device to my cooking repertoire. So, I needed to cook something in it to really showcase the quick and tasty results so often touted by others. I decided on Chicken Noodle Soup. I know, you could claim I was working with a dish that probably has hundreds of recipes on the web – and I did read quite a few in order to glean the tricks to success – but I wanted a recipe that took a time-intensive dish and reduced it to an easy and quick dish with equal or better results. And this is it, in my opinion. I relied on several tricks to get these results and could create variants from this base recipe for a number of delicious soups. The most important trick I found in my research was to cook the noodles separately. Adding them to the pressure will force them to overcook and become gummy – not a definition of delicious in my book. The second trick is to under cook them slightly and let them finish cooking in the hot soup just before serving. I came up with this third trick to get a balance of rich, dark meat cooked to tenderness alongside moist, delicate white meat. I used boneless skinless thighs, searing them lightly to create a bit of fond in the pot and added frozen chicken tenders just before the pressure cook. The end result was flavorful, tender dark meat combined with moist , tender white meat. No more dried out, chewy over-cooked white meat in your chicken soup! The basic recipe came from this version from Delish. If you have an Instant Pot, give this recipe a try – or at least use the tricks on your preferred recipe – I am certain you will be enjoying a richly satisfying bowl of healthy soup soon!

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Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 50 mins

Total time: 1 hour 5 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks celery, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dried thyme leaves
½ tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1 bay leaf
1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
½ lb boneless skinless chicken tenders, frozen solid
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup dry white wine (optional)
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups cold water
8 oz egg noodles
freshly chopped parsley, for garnish

Instructions

Set Instant Pot to Sauté.
Heat oil to shimmering and add the thighs.
Lightly brown on all sides, approximately 2 minutes per side.
Remove the meat and set aside before adding the onion, carrots, and celery.
Sprinkle with a little salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are slightly tender, approximately 5 minutes.
Add garlic, rosemary, and thyme and cook until fragrant, approximately 1 minute.
Add wine (if using) to deglaze the pane.
Return the thighs and any collected juices to the pot, nestling into the vegetables, before sprinkling with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Add chicken tenders, bay leaf, broth, and water before closing lid.
Set Instant Pot to Soup setting and set timer for 10 minutes.
When cooking is complete and while the pressure is releasing, boil water for the noodles and cook 1 minute shy of cooked per the package directions. Drain the noodles and set aside.
Once the pressure has been naturally released from Instant Pot, carefully remove lid.
Remove the chicken tenders and thighs to a large bowl.
Using two forks, shred the chicken, and return it and any juices to the pot, stirring to combine.
Add the noodles to the Instant Pot to finish cooking in the hot broth.
Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with parsley before serving.

Some additional tips to making this dish quickly.

Use a mandolin to prepare the carrots, celery, and onion.
Add extra flavor to the broth by using Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base Reduced Sodium paste at half strength.

Enjoy!