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This Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup is rich, creamy, and satisfying! It's perfect for weeknights and it will be on your table in no time!
I've been meaning to share an Instant Pot version of my Vegan Potato Leek Soup for some time now. To date, it's the most popular recipe on the blog and I get many requests on how to make it in the IP. Well, it was ridiculously easy to adjust and I'm super happy with the results.
I love my Instant Pot and use it a ton, especially for busy weeknight meals. It takes the maintenance out of cooking and keeps you out of the kitchen. I use it for dry beans, legumes, rice dishes, soups, stews, vegan yogurt, steel-cut oats, and the best Instant Pot Mushroom Risotto, ever!
I have this 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo Plus with 9-in-1 Function. It's the perfect size for my recipes and countertops.
What are leeks?
They look like a giant scallion which they are related to, along with onions, garlic, and shallots. However, they have a delicate and subtly sweet flavor compared to their counterparts. You can use them to replace onion in a recipe or use them in conjunction for an extra layer of flavor.
Leeks are grown in very deep soil and more is piled on top to keep them tender. This will trap lots of dirt between their layers, so make sure to clean them thoroughly to avoid sandy soup.
How to make Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup
(full ingredient amount in recipe card below)
- Sauté the leeks and onions until softened using the sauté feature.
- Add the garlic, thyme, rosemary, and coriander. Sauté until fragrant.
- Cancel the sauté feature and add the potatoes, vegetable broth, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Close and secure the lid, then set timer for 6 minutes on high pressure.
- Once the timer beeps and the float valve goes down, you can open the lid. Remove the bay leaves.
- Add the coconut milk.
- Blend until creamy and smooth using an immersion blender (or regular blender). Taste for seasoning and add more if needed.
Can I freeze it?
Absolutely, it freezes really well! Just leave the coconut milk out of the portion you'll be freezing. When you're ready to make the soup, defrost it overnight in the fridge and heat it up slowly on the stove. Add the coconut milk when it's fully heated.
More soup recipes to enjoy
- Vegan Corn Chowder
- Instant Pot Yellow Split Pea Soup
- Vegan Ajiaco (Colombian Potato Soup)
- Chickpea Curry Soup
- Vegan Cauliflower Soup
I love to hear from you
If you make this Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup, let me know what you think by ★ star rating it and leaving a comment below. It would really make my day. You can also follow me on Instagram and share your creation with me. Just tag me @veganhuggs and hashtag #veganhuggs so I don’t miss it.
Recipe
Instant Pot Potato Leek Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil or preferred oil (vegan butter works too)
- 1 small onion , diced
- 3 medium leeks , cleaned well & sliced (white & light green part only) *See note
- 3-4 cloves garlic , minced
- ¾ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 5 small (2 pounds) russet potatoes , peeled and chopped
- 4 cups vegetable broth , low sodium
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt , more to taste
- Fresh ground pepper , to taste
- 1 cup canned coconut milk , shaken well (or any unsweetened non-dairy milk)
Recommended Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Instructions
- Turn on the sauté feature of your Instant Pot and add the oil. When heated, add the leeks and onions. Sauté until softened, about 4-6 minutes.
- Add the garlic thyme, rosemary, and coriander. Sauté until fragrant, about 30-60 seconds.
- Cancel the sauté function. Now add the potatoes, vegetable broth, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Close and secure the lid. Turn the steam release handle to the Sealing position. Push the Pressure Cooker (Manual Setting) button to high pressure and set the time to 6 minutes by using the + or - button.
- The cooker will beep when the time is up. Carefully turn the steam release handle to the Venting position (It will loudly spurt out lots of steam and some water). Once the Float Valve goes down you can open the lid.
- Remove the bay leaves and add the coconut milk (shake can first). Using an immersion blender (or regular blender), blend until creamy and smooth. Taste for seasoning and add more if needed. If the soup is too thick for your taste, you can add a small amount of vegetable broth to thin it out. See notes for topping ideas.
Notes
- Cleaning Leeks: leeks can be very dirty inside the layers because they are grown in deep soil. To clean thoroughly, cut off the dark green part and discard (or save for stock). Cut off the roots, and slice the stalk lengthwise in half. Now slice the leek into pieces. Place in a small bowl of water and swish around to release the dirt. Place in a colander and drain well.
- Topping Ideas: swirled coconut milk, fresh-cracked pepper, squeeze of lemon, fresh-cut chives, or green onions.
- The cook time doesn't include the Instant Pot preheating time. This can take 8-12 minutes and takes place after you seal the pot and set the timer.
- Don't have an Instant Pot? No worries, you can make my stovetop version HERE.
Lilia-Rosa Salmon
Super easy and even non-vegan husband approved!
Melissa Huggins
Yay! I'm so glad it went over well! Thank you for giving it a try. 🙂
Kristen
Wow! My whole house smells amazing after making this! It's so delicious! I'm doing a #PotatoReset and this is compliant (I added more potato and garlic and skipped the oil and coconut milk) so I'm psyched to add some yummy healthy soup into my cold week. Thank you!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Kristin, I'm so glad you liked it! Thank you for giving it a try. 🙂
Kristen
This is my new favorite recipe! I cut everything in half except the onion and the time to fit it in my 3 qt and it comes out great! I'm curious why you would leave the coconut milk out when freezing?
Kristen
Also I forgot to mention that when I shook my coconut milk can I couldn't hear any movement so I put the whole sealed can in a bowl of warm water to liquify it before shaking and this worked great!
Melissa Huggins
Thank you, Kristen! I'm so glad you liked it! You can freeze it with coconut milk, but it could change the texture of the soup slightly. I've done it before and it wasn't really noticeable though. 🙂
Jenn Ruebush
Very good! I even forgot about the coconut milk and just blended it without it. Still tasty! I left some chunks of potato since I like chunky soup. Next time, I'll try to remember the coconut milk!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Jenn, I'm happy that you liked it! Thank you for giving it a try. 🙂
April
So tasty and fast! My 8 year old who is super picky even loved it.
Melissa Huggins
Yay! So glad you liked it. Thank you for giving it a try 🙂
Kyranna (HostedwithLove)
I have made this recipe twice and both my fiance and I enjoyed it both times. Super simple and delicious and perfect on a cold gloomy day. The one time I didn't have regular potatoes, I substituted with sweet potato and also used a whole onion (instead of half) and still delicious!
And thanks for the tip to save the dark green part of the leeks for stock.
Jessika
That is great. Did you cook it longer or the sweet potatoes were fine with the 6 minutes in the instant pot?
Shruti G
I was so happy to find your recipe. I love the coconut milk instead of cream as I am lactose intolerant. Tastes delicious. I forwarded the recipe to my family so that they can try it out as well.
Melissa Huggins
I'm so glad you liked it! Thank you for giving it a try 🙂
Heather Driscoll
So delicious!
Melissa Huggins
So glad you liked it! Thank you for trying it out 🙂
Lisa P
Such a wonderful, tasty soup! My husband and I really like it a lot. I will be making this again very soon! Thank you!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Lisa, I'm so glad you both liked it! Thank you for giving it a try! 🙂
Cathi
Made this for lunch. SO good, creamy and flavorful. I love coriander, so added some extra. Thank you for sharing!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Cathi, You're most welcome! I'm so glad you liked it! Thank you for giving it a try 🙂
Jenny k
I always get so nervous to add coconut milk to recipes because of the texture when you open the can. Do you empty the can of coconut milk completely (formed and liquid) or drain the liquid and just add the formed part. I’m sure this is a silly question- thank you in advance!
Melissa Huggins
I'm sorry this response is a bit late. Shake the can really well before pouring into the soup. I just added the note in the recipe. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Kelly
I’ve tried several vegan potato-leek soups, so take my word for it and stop looking! This is it! Creamy, savory, herby deliciousness. Take the suggestions at the end of the recipe and add a splash of lemon and a swirl of the leftover coconut milk. ☺️
Melissa Huggins
I'm so glad you liked it! Thank you for giving it a try 🙂
Yesenia
This turned out great. My family doesn’t like coconut milk, so instead I soaked 1cup of cashews while it was cooking. And when the perks/potatoes where done I drained the cashews, put them in a food processor with a cup of water until they turned creamy. I stirred that in after I blended the potato and leeks. I used the lemon - yummm!
Melissa Huggins
Hi Yesenia, so happy that the cashew cream worked out - thank you for sharing that. 🙂 Have a great week!
Renee T
I have to try this as my first instant pot creation. I loved the original recipe.
Lee Holfelder
ppreciate the step by step pictures using the IP. I've had my 6 qt. IP for over a year and still haven't gotten the courage to use it. Thank to your step by step pictures, I will definitely give it a try with this recipe. Thanks!