This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This Instant Pot hamburger soup is easy and flavorful! It’s a healthier comfort food meal that uses simple everyday ingredients like ground beef and potatoes.
If you’re looking for the stovetop version, head on over to my popular Easy Hamburger Soup instead.
Why you’ll love it
Tender ground beef enrobed in a tasty tomato broth… who can resist? This Instant Pot hamburger soup builds a ton of flavor in way less time. I just love how this appliance concentrates flavor and is pretty hands off. Open it up, and it’s as if this soup has been simmering away for hours.
I always make this simple, hearty, and affordable soup when I’m cleaning out the pantry. This Instant Pot ground beef soup recipe also happens to be super forgiving. Got some extra veggies? Throw ’em in. It’s all good! And the leftovers are very tasty. It’s a reader favorite.
What you’ll need
- Olive oil, onions, and celery – sautéing sweet (Vidalia) onions along with celery makes a delicious aromatic base
- Ground beef – it’s also known as hamburger, hence the name of the soup. I like to use 95% lean.
- Garlic – garlic lovers, add even more if that’s your thing
- Tomato paste and diced tomatoes – these pantry staples are canned at the peak of ripeness for perfect concentrated tomato flavor
- Beef broth – a 32 oz container equals the 4 cups required for this recipe. Easy peasy.
- Potatoes – Russet potatoes are my go-to variety for soups, but you can definitely use red or Yukon gold
- Italian seasoning – this delicious blend of dried herbs comes in a single convenient jar and adds so much flavor
Pro tip
- I like to use extra lean ground beef because it’s a bit less fatty, so you can skip the step of draining the fat once you’ve browned it. There’s still a bit of fat left, but I find it adds a nice flavor to the soup. If you do use a fattier ground beef, I would definitely drain some of the fat so the soup doesn’t end up excessively oily.
How to make Instant Pot hamburger soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Add the oil and chopped onion and celery to your IP. Press the sauté button, cooking for 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and meat. Cook until browned, giving it the occasional stir. I don’t drain the fat, but you can if not using extra lean ground beef.
Stir in the tomato paste, followed by the diced tomatoes, broth, Italian seasoning, and potatoes. Close the lid with the valve on “sealing”. Cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. After the countdown, do a quick pressure release. Season generously with salt & pepper, and enjoy!
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- I have an older 6 quart model, but here’s the latest version of the Instant Pot.
- Not sure how to store the other half of your onion? This onion saver keeps it fresh in the fridge.
- A sturdy ladle that doesn’t slop soup all over is a must-have.
Substitutions and variations
- You can definitely add in some chopped carrots at the same time as the celery.
- Several readers have successfully thrown in a drained can of corn and/or green beans. Or stir in some spinach after you release the pressure for even more veggies and let it wilt.
- If you’re sensitive to salt, use low-sodium beef broth.
What to serve with Instant Pot hamburger soup
- I like how hearty this soup is, so a dinner roll, breadsticks, or a slice of Cheesy Garlic Bread will round it out nicely.
- For a classic soup and salad combo, try spring mix with my Creamy Balsamic Dressing or this mouthwatering Beet and Spinach Salad to change it up.
Leftovers and storage
- Store leftovers of this hamburger soup in the fridge for 3-4 days in a covered container. The flavors intensify over time even more!
- I recommend reheating over a low heat in a saucepan, stirring every so often until warmed through.
- Leftovers will freeze well. Consume within 3 months. I like to store them in individual containers.
Let me know in the comments below if you gave this easy Instant Pot soup recipe a try. I’d love a review. Questions the blog post didn’t answer? Talk to me! You can also find me on Instagram.
Instant Pot Hamburger Soup
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 sticks celery chopped
- 1 pound extra lean (95% lean) ground beef
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 heaping tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 (28 fluid ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- 4 cups beef broth
- 2 large Russet potatoes diced
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning or to taste
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the olive oil, onion, and celery to your Instant Pot. Press the sauté button and cook for 4 minutes.
- Stir in the beef and garlic. Cook until the beef has browned, stirring occasionally (about 5 minutes). You shouldn't need to drain much fat if you're using extra lean ground beef, but feel free to drain some/most of it if desired (I didn't drain any).
- Stir in the tomato paste, then add in the diced tomatoes, beef broth, potatoes, and Italian seasoning.
- Close the lid, make sure the valve is on "sealing", and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
- Once the countdown has finished, do a quick pressure release.
- Season with salt & pepper as needed and serve immediately.
Notes
- Serves 4-6.
- Anything from about 1 to 1.5 pounds ground beef will work.
- Use low-sodium beef broth if you’re sensitive to salt.
- Inactive time indicates the time it takes the Instant Pot to get up to pressure.
- Try the stovetop version if you don’t own an IP.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on January 30, 2019. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
Do you cook the hamburger in pan or just put in instant pot not cooked?
You put it into the IP raw. You’re cooking it right in the IP like you would in a pan when you’ve got the sauté button pushed. Hope you like the soup!
I just made this recipe because it seemed like a very simple one for a first time use. However the instructions doesn’t say what setting to actually put it on other than high pressure. So I put it on meat stew. I hope that is correct and I can’t wait to eat it.
Hi Angie! You would use the “manual” button and then adjust the time +/- to get the exact amount of minutes you want. That’s how I have all my Instant Pot recipes set up. I don’t like to use any of the pre-set buttons because they’re simply pre-programmed time amounts (thus they’re approximations), and different Instant Pot models have different buttons. It may cook your soup a bit longer than I intended, but this recipe is pretty forgiving so I am sure it’ll still be fine. Let me know how it goes!
Hello!
I too am using MyFitnessPal. Do you know how many ounces is a serving?
I’m afraid I don’t – sorry! I am not the best with math haha. It takes a bit more time, but I suggest weighing and plugging in the exact ingredients you’re using. That’s really the only way to get an accurate estimate of calories. Trust me when I say calorie counts/nutrition info on most online recipes can be waaay off.
This recipe looks amazing for busy nights! I’d like to try it but my instant pot broke, do you think I could adapt this to a slow cooker? Maybe cut the potatoes smaller so they cook all the way through?
I think that should work! And you could always brown the sausage in a skillet prior to adding it to the slow cooker. Let me know how it goes! 😊
This is whats for dinner tonight as well as cornbread muffins:-)
I’d like to swap out potatoes for macaroni noodles (elbows). Any suggestion when I’d put those in?
Hmm… I’ve cooked pasta recipes in the IP before, but without testing it, I can’t really say whether the pasta will end up soggy or not. You could try adding the macaroni right before you seal the IP. Then cook it on high pressure for 5 minutes. Do a quick release once the countdown has finished. Everything should still be cooked, but like I said, without testing it in this type of recipe it’s hard to speculate whether it’ll work or not.
Maybe add noodles at the very end after the steam hs come out?
Not sure if the person who wanted to sub macaroni tried it yet but my suggestion would be to do 1/2 the time on the box of the past minus one minute. So if the pasta says “al dente in 10 min” I would set your IP to 4 min, thats my rule of thumb 🙂 PS cant wait to try this recipe!
Thanks for the tip 🙂
I added a couple carrots otherwise the recipe would be perfectly delicious as written.
My picky 6 year old ate it too and he changed his mind weekly about his likes and dislikes. Glad I caught him on a good week. LOL!
I’ll be bookmarking this to make again. Simple to make and great flavor.
Thank you!
Yay I am so happy it worked out haha. Hope he likes it next time too! 🙂
I added carrots too! 🥕 can’t wait to try it… still cooking ❤️
We made this today, substituted 2 cans of Rotel for the tomatoes and it was nice and spicy and SO DELICIOUS!!
I can’t wait to freeze some for later.
Thank you very much for the recipe.
So glad you liked it! You are very welcome. 😀
I recently received an Instant Pot as a gift, and have (admittedly) been intimidated to use it. We decided to make this last night and it was surprising simple and SUPER flavorful! The only complaint I heard, was that there were no left overs! Ha! I will definitely make this again.
I am so happy it worked out! I know, when I first got the IP I was scared to use it as well. It definitely becomes less intimidating the longer you have it. I now don’t even use a spoon to do the quick release (I used to stand like 5 feet away and use a long spoon to move the seal thing haha).
Well, now I don’t feel so bad. I got my IP for Christmas, 2017! It IS intimidating, so I’ve been keeping my distance! But, I am going to go for it, and make this tonight. It’s cold and rainy here in Idaho, so it sounds so yummy! I did make a stew and spaghetti after I got it, and they were delicious SO, what’s my problem? I WILL make friends with my IP and my stand mixer this year!!! They both just look at me and laugh! 😂
I’m rooting for ya! Hope it worked out. Let me know! 🥰♥️
I did add a few things to my personal preference, but this is a great, quick soup! I will make it again!
So happy you liked it!
Yummy! Your instructions were super easy to follow (I’m an instand pot newbie) and the flavor was so good!! I added a red and yellow bell pepper, carrots and fresh garlic. Sprinkled cheddar cheese to top it off, served with crackers. THANK YOU!!!!
I am so happy to hear it, Hope!! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. 😀
I’ve made this twice, hit the spot both times! A keeper for sure 🙂
Excellent! Thanks for letting me know, Aimee!
Would love to try this recipe but I’m only cooking for one. Can you freeze this soup?
You bet!