Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup (Dairy-Free)

Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is a simple weeknight dinner that’s cozy and filling and comes together quickly in your pressure cooker. All you need is a few ingredients and less than an hour to get this comfort meal on the table! It’s also gluten-free and dairy-free.

It’s almost mid-November and we haven’t had snow yet. It’s a bit strange for us in Newfoundland, but the last few days have been cold and windy, so I know the snow is coming.

In anticipation of the snow, I’m fully embracing soup season this year. But not just any soups. Quick and easy soups. So, if don’t have time to plan out dinner, but are still craving a hot and comforting meal, you can have one in less than an hour.

And this Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup will definitely be on the dinner menu multiple times between now and the end of March.

Why you’ll love this chicken and rice soup too:

• You need just 10 ingredients plus salt and pepper.
• It’s super easy. You pretty much set it and forget it, except for shredding the chicken and stirring in your thickener.
• No cutting raw chicken. The chicken breasts cook up whole in the soup.
• It’s thickened without dairy thanks to a simple mixture of tapioca flour and nut milk.
• It’s chunky and eats like a meal. Just add some bread and you’re all set.

Ingredients for Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup:

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Basil
• Oregano
• Salt and pepper
• Carrots
• Mushrooms
• Wild rice blend
• Chicken broth
• Tapioca flour
• Almond or cashew milk
• Spinach

How to make this chicken and wild rice soup recipe in the Instant Pot:

• Grease your Instant Pot insert with cooking spray and add your chicken breasts. Season with basil, oregano, salt and pepper.

• Add your chopped carrots, mushrooms, wild rice and broth and stir to combine.

• Lock the lid in place, seal the valve and set the Instant Pot to pressure cook on high for 12 minutes. (Keep in mind that it will take about 15 minutes for pressure to build).

• When the timer goes off, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes and then do a quick release.

• Open the lid and carefully remove the chicken breasts and place them on a cutting board. Shred the chicken and add back to the soup.

• In a small bowl or measuring cup, add 1/4 cup of tapioca flour and 3/4 cup of nut milk. Stir until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

• With the lid removed, set the Instant Pot to sauté for 5 minutes. Slowly pour in the flour/milk mixture and stir until the soup thickens.

• Towards the end of the cooking time, add the spinach and let it wilt.

• Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.

Frequently Asked Questions:

• Can you re-heat this chicken and rice soup? Absolutely. You can re-heat it on the stovetop or in the microwave. Just keep in mind that leftover soup will thicken in the fridge, so you may wish to add some broth or water when re-heating.

• Can you freeze chicken and rice soup? I don’t recommend freezing this soup as the pre-cooked rice does not hold its texture once defrosted.

• Can you use frozen chicken breasts in this Instant Pot soup? I haven’t tested this recipe with frozen chicken breasts. While I’ve seen other recipes that cook chicken from frozen in the Instant Pot, you will need to add a few minutes of cooking time to ensure the frozen chicken is fully cooked. This extra cooking time may result in the other soup ingredients overcooking.

• Can you use another thickener besides tapioca flour? If you don’t have tapioca flour, you can use cornstarch to thicken. Both are gluten-free thickeners. I’ve used cornstarch to thicken this soup, but it gels when cooled. While it will liquify when re-heated, I prefer tapioca flour as a thickener for this soup.

• Can you use dairy milk instead of nut milk? If you don’t need this soup to be dairy-free, you can use dairy milk.

Other tips for making this Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup Recipe:

• Cook time may vary slightly depending on the size of your chicken breasts. Just make sure your chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature of 165F.

• This recipe calls for a wild rice blend (wild and whole grain brown rice) and I recommend sticking with that. If you use all wild rice, you will need longer to cook it and white rice will cook too quickly and make the soup mushy.

• Make sure to chop your carrots about 1/2-inch thick and quarter your mushrooms. If you cut your veggies in thin slices, they will cook too quickly.

• I used no salt added chicken broth, but if you like your soup a little saltier, you can add some more salt or use low-sodium or regular chicken broth.

• This recipe calls for spinach, but kale would work nicely too. Just make sure it is torn into small pieces and you’ll have to wait a little longer for it to wilt.

• If you’d like to use fresh herbs instead of dried, just triple the amount. (Fresh herbs are not as potent as dried herbs).

• To keep this soup gluten-free, make sure your rice blend and chicken broth are certified gluten-free.

Pin this Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup for Dinner Tonight!

If you’re looking for more cozy soup recipes, you might also enjoy:

• Chicken Fajita Soup has all the spicy flavour of a fajita, with the addition of white beans for extra fibre and protein.

• Roasted Red Pepper and Butternut Squash Soup is a fall favourite, with a sweet and smokey flavour and a hint of coconut and spice.

• Dairy-Free Seafood Chowder is thick, creamy and loaded with carrots, potatoes, shrimp, scallops and salmon.

If you make this Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup, I would love to hear what you think in the comments below!

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Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

★★★★★

5 from 12 reviews

Instant Pot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is a simple weeknight dinner that’s cozy and filling and comes together quickly in your pressure cooker. All you need is a few ingredients and less than an hour to get this hearty meal on the table!

• Author: Leanne
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 38 minutes
• Total Time: 58 minutes
• Yield: 4-6 bowls 1x
• Category: Dinner
• Method: Pressure Cook
• Cuisine: Gluten-Free

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 cups chopped carrots (1/2-inch thick)
• 2 cups quartered cremini mushrooms
• 1 cup wild rice blend, uncooked
• 6 cups no salt added chicken broth
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened almond or cashew milk
• 2 cups packed fresh baby spinach

Instructions

1. Grease the Instant Pot insert with cooking spray and add the chicken breasts. Season with basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Add the carrots, mushrooms, wild rice and broth and stir to combine.
2. Lock the lid in place and turn the valve to seal. Set the Instant Pot to pressure cook on high for 12 minutes. (It will take about 15 minutes for pressure to build).
3. Once the timer goes off, let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes and then do a quick release.
4. In a small bowl or measuring cup, add the tapioca flour and nut milk. Stir until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
5. With the lid removed, set the Instant Pot to sauté for 5 minutes. Slowly pour in the flour/milk mixture and stir until the soup thickens.
6. Once thickened, add the spinach and let it wilt. (Continue to stir the soup so it doesn’t burn onto the pot).
7. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary. Serve and enjoy!
8. Store leftovers in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-4 days.

Notes

1. You can re-heat leftovers on the stove or in the microwave. The soup will thicken in the fridge, so you may need to add some broth or water when re-heating.
2. Cook time may vary slightly depending on the size of your chicken breasts. Just make sure your chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature of 165F.
3. This recipe calls for a wild rice blend (wild and whole grain brown rice) and I recommend sticking with that. If you use all wild rice, it will take longer to cook and white rice will cook too quickly.
4. I used no salt added chicken broth, but if you like your soup a little saltier, you can add some more salt or use low-sodium or regular chicken broth.
5. If you’d like to use fresh herbs instead of dried, just triple the amount.

Keywords: chicken soup, instant pot soup, chicken and rice soup