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Instant Pot Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup Recipe

March 22, 2016 (UPDATED: July 24, 2020) by Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship® 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

All-day flavor can be yours in a flash with the Instant Pot. This smoky Mexican chicken soup recipe has authentic flavor that is perfect for weeknight dinners.

Instant Pot electric pressure cooker

What’s the big deal with the Instant Pot, you ask? Why all the hype?

I can tell you why I have learned to appreciate it:

  1. It’s quick! When I forget to meal plan or thaw meat, it’s a lifesaver at 4:00 p.m. I imagine it has even saved many a meal across the country at 5 p.m. or later.
  2. It’s hands-free. Once all the ingredients are in the pot, I can walk away and it regulates the high vs. low heat so I don’t have to worry about boiling something over (which I do often), I don’t have to stir, and I don’t have to think. As a mom of 4…that’s kind of important to regaining sanity sometimes. (Funny sidenote: I went to type “retaining” there but apparently my subconscious told my fingers otherwise…I guess I’ll leave it!)
  3. It doesn’t burn the overnight steel cut oats. Every time I’ve tried oatmeal in a slow cooker, it hasn’t gone well, and the “nest a glass dish in some water inside the slow cooker” strategy would not even feed my hungry people one meal!
  4. Fewer dishes. Because you can saute right in the Instant Pot, you will never have to have a second pan to sear meat or caramelize onions. Slow cooker recipes always tick me off when they do that…
  5. Multi-function. It’s a slow cooker, too.
  6. Safe materials. It’s been a big deal off and on over the years about the safety of crockpot inserts. There have been questions of lead leaching (which I’m looking into for a future post actually), so it’s just doggone nice to have stainless steel as the surface in the IP. I don’t worry about it. Phew!
  7. More room on the stovetop. When things are really hopping in my kitchen, which can happen even without a big party, I’m pumped to have a “fifth burner” basically, because the Instant Pot can do everything a pot on the stove can do (and more).

There are probably more benefits, and you’ll see some in the post about basic Instant Pot techniques like boiling eggs and cooking rice, but those are the biggies for me.

It’s not without its drawbacks – last night for some weird reason it took 4 tries to get it to have pressure to cook a recipe. I’m still troubleshooting and hoping it was my fault! Answer coming in a future post in the Instant Post series…

Click to request access to the Instant Pot Guidebook from Kitchen Stewardship!

Make your Instant Pot work for you!

I won’t tell if your Instant Pot is still in its box, pinky swear. 😉

I left mine abandoned in the basement for almost a YEAR because I have a new-thing-instructions phobia, but now I have TWO Instant Pots and they’re both in constant use!

Turns out it’s so easy, a kid can do it — I’ll send you a quick video of my children unboxing and setting it up when you grab your FREE download mini eBook:

Get the Instant Pot Guidebook for FREE!

What’s in the Guidebook?

You’ll love the simplicity of your Instant Pot, and the free downloadable guidebook will help you:

  • Adapt your own favorite recipes from the slow cooker
  • Cook FROZEN ground beef
  • Hard boil eggs perfectly
  • Cook squash, steam veggies, and make applesauce in your IP
  • Make dry beans in an hour and perfect rice without boiling over
  • Steam veggies al dente and make Paleo cauli rice in minutes
  • Cook a whole chicken and make FAST bone broth

Whether yours is still in the box or you’ve used it a little but want to know more about those techniques, or if you’re still pining for an IP on your wish list, I can’t wait to give you these simple baby steps to success!

Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup

For today, I have another recipe for you, one that my husband made easily. It’s SUPER quick in the Instant Pot but also can totally be made in a slow cooker or on the stovetop. It’s a simple Mexican soup with a smoky twist that makes it a little more grown-up, in my opinion (and it’s inexpensive too).

It’s filling and keto friendly.

Enjoy!

Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup in the Instant Pot or stovetop, Keto Soup

Recipe: Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup – make in the Instant Pot, Slow Cooker or Stovetop

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Instant Pot Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup

★★★★ 4 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Katie Kimball
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 35 mins
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: Soup
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Ingredients

  • 1 Tbs. olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 green or red pepper, diced
  • 2 c. carrots, chopped/diced/shredded (whatever is easiest for you)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 chicken breasts or thighs
  • 4 c. chicken stock
  • 2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes (or one home-canned quart)
  • 1 (7 oz) can tomato paste
  • 2 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • Fresh limes for juice
  • toppings: fresh cilantro, red or green onion, shredded cheese, avocado cubes, sour cream

Instructions

Instant Pot

  1. Turn the Instant Pot to “Saute” and heat the oil.
  2. Add the onion, peppers, and carrots and stir around for 5 minutes or so until they’re starting to get translucent and fragrant.
  3. Add the garlic for about a minute, just until you can really smell it, stirring constantly.
  4. Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT for the limes.
  5. Lock the lid in place and make sure the valve is closed.
  6. Hit “Manual” on high and set it for 5 minutes (it will take about 10 minutes for the pressure to build and then the 5 minute high pressure countdown will begin). If using frozen chicken breasts, add at least 10 minutes to the time.
  7. When the timer goes off, allow the pressure to naturally release for at least 10 minutes before initiating a quick release (flip the lever on the lid from “seal” to “vent” – be careful of the steam!).
  8. Check chicken for doneness (no pink!). It should be done, but if by chance it isn’t, you can go for another 5 minutes on high pressure. It won’t take as long to heat up, and then do a quick release and check again.
  9. Remove the chicken from the pot and shred with two forks. Return to the pot and stir.
  10. To serve, squeeze lime juice into each bowl or offer lime wedges at the table along with the optional toppings.

Stove Top

  1. In a large pot over medium heat, heat the oil.
  2. Add the onion, peppers, and carrots and stir around for 5-10 minutes or so until they’re starting to get translucent and fragrant.
  3. Add the garlic for about a minute, just until you can really smell it, stirring constantly.
  4. Add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT for the limes.
  5. Turn the heat to high with the lid on.
  6. Once a rolling boil is reached, turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for 15-20 minutes with the lid on.
  7. Check chicken for doneness (no pink!).
  8. Remove the chicken from the pot and cut into pieces with a knife and fork. Return to the pot and stir.
  9. To serve, squeeze lime juice into each bowl or offer lime wedges at the table along with the optional toppings.

Notes

**Can be made in a slow cooker as well – just toss in all the ingredients and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. You’ll lose a little flavor by not sauteeing the onions and garlic first, which you could do in a separate pan.

Adapted from Play Paleo

Did you make this recipe?

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Traditional Cooking School Instant Pot Sourdough Cornbread Pressure Cooker Recipe

My dear friend Wardee at Traditional Cooking School can do just about anything with her Instant Pot – cakes, bread, main dishes, veggies, even “stacking” multiple kinds of food at once!

She’s offering a free sourdough cornbread Instant Pot recipe!

This cornbread is delicious, nutritious, super easy to make, and it only needs 12 minutes of cook time.

GET THE FREE INSTANT POT SOURDOUGH CORNBREAD RECIPE

I’d love to see more real food Instant Pot recipes available on Pinterest – pin this one for me?

Instant Pot Recipe for Smoky Mexican Chicken Soup super easy and fast

More Instant Pot Treasures

Cooking Real Food with an Instant Pot Series

  • 10 Basic Instant Pot Techniques (some may surprise you!)
  • Apple Cranberry Steel Cut Oats in the Instant Pot
  • Simple Cauli Rice in the Instant Pot (no food processor needed!)
  • Instant Pot Italian Lentil One-Pot Dinner
  • Instant Pot Turmeric Chicken
  • Instant Pot Curried Lemon Coconut Chicken (can also be made in the slow cooker)
  • …and more to come this week and next!
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Filed Under: Real Food Recipes Tagged With: chicken, chicken stock, dairy-free, dinner, egg-free, fast meals, gluten free, grain free, Instant Pot, keto, main course, nut-free, Paleo, Real Food Recipes, slow cooker, soup, Whole30

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About Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship®

Katie Kimball, CSME is a trusted educator and author of 8 real food cookbooks. She is passionate about researching natural remedies and making healthy cooking easier for busy families. She’s been featured on media outlets like ABC, NBC and First for Women magazine as well as contributing regularly on the FOX Network.

See more of Katie Kimball, CSME in the Media.

Over the last 10 years, Katie has spoken prolifically at conferences, online summits and podcasts and become a trusted authority and advocate for children’s health.

Busy moms look to this certified educator for honest, in-depth natural product reviews and thorough research. She often partners with health experts and medical practitioners to deliver the most current information to the Kitchen Stewardship® community.

In 2016 she created the #1 bestselling online kids cooking course, Kids Cook Real Food, helping thousands of families around the world learn to cook.

Certified Stress Mastery Educator BadgeA mom of 4 kids from Michigan, she is a Certified Stress Mastery Educator and member of the American Institute of Stress.

See all blog posts by Katie Kimball.

2 Bites of Conversation So Far

  1. Colleen says

    February 11, 2020 at 4:45 pm

    Wish you would give calories / Nutrition info.

    Thanks

    ★★★★

    Reply
    • Carolyn @ Kitchen Stewardship says

      February 13, 2020 at 6:42 pm

      Hi Colleen, We’ve been adding nutrition information to new recipes and are planning to go back through the old ones to add it there as well! Thanks for your feedback!

      Reply

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