Instant Pot Chicken Tortellini Soup

Published by Fork Around & Find Out Kitchen — presented in the Lila editorial voice. Editorial standards

Quick Answer

Sauté onion, carrots, celery, and garlic in the Instant Pot, then pressure-cook chicken in broth for 10 minutes. Shred the chicken, switch back to Sauté, and cook the tortellini before returning the chicken and wilting in the spinach.

Jump to Recipe

Tortellini is too delicate to spend ten minutes under pressure, which is why this soup has the good sense to invite it in late. Onion, carrots, celery, and garlic get softened first; chicken breasts, broth, and Italian seasoning pressure cook for 10 minutes; and only after the chicken comes out to be shredded does the refrigerated cheese tortellini hit the pot.

That sequencing protects the two things most likely to get ruined. The chicken has enough time to reach 165°F and become easy to shred, while the tortellini cooks for only the three to five minutes it actually needs on Sauté mode. Spinach goes in at the very end and wilts from the residual heat. Put everything in at the beginning and you would open the lid to chicken soup featuring several unidentifiable pasta memories.

Parmesan on top gives the broth a salty finish without turning it into a cream soup. The result sits somewhere between classic chicken vegetable soup and a bowl of cheesy pasta: light enough to ladle, substantial enough to count as dinner, and ready in about 35 minutes. It is comfort food with a surprisingly competent sense of timing.

Prep20 minutes

Cook25 minutes

Total45 minutes

Serves4 servings

DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

Servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 small onion, diced
2 carrots, sliced
2 celery stalks, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 package (9 ounces) refrigerated cheese tortellini
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Instructions

1Set the Instant Pot to Saute. Heat the olive oil, then add the onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Press Cancel.
2Add the chicken breasts, broth, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Lock the lid and set the valve to sealing. Cook on High Pressure for 10 minutes.
3Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then carefully quick-release any remaining pressure.
4Remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks, confirming it reaches 165°F internally. Set the Instant Pot to Saute.
5Stir the tortellini into the pot and cook according to the package time, usually 3 to 5 minutes, until tender. Return the shredded chicken to the pot along with the spinach, and stir until the spinach wilts. Cook poultry until the thickest piece reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
6Taste and adjust salt as needed. Ladle into bowls and top with Parmesan.

Nutrition Information

Estimated per serving: 1 of 4 servings.

410Calories

39 gProtein

35 gCarbohydrates

14 gTotal Fat

5 gSaturated Fat

3 gFiber

5 gTotal Sugars

2080 mgSodium

110 mgCholesterol

Estimated from the ingredients and quantities in this recipe using standard food-composition values. Brand choices, trimming, cooking loss, optional ingredients, and actual portion size can change the numbers. How we calculate nutrition estimates.

Pro Tips

Let the pressure release naturally for at least 5 minutes before quick-releasing -- this keeps the chicken from seizing up and turning tough from a sudden pressure drop.
Add the tortellini after pressure cooking, using the Saute function, since pasta turns to mush if pressure cooked with the broth from the start.
Shred the chicken while it's still warm; it pulls apart much more easily than once it cools.