Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup is so delicious! You might want to stop at the store on the way home for ingredients so you can make it ASAP! Use some leftover ham, or get some from the deli, throw in some potatoes, and a few veggies, some seasonings, and you will have a rich and creamy, but not heavy, pressure cooker Potato Ham Soup!
Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup
If you have ever had a bland potato soup, I promise that this Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup will redeem potato soup for you and put this wonderful meal in your rotation! Believe me, I’ve been there, too with the lackluster potato soup.
I recently made a Bone-in Ham in my Instant Pot and had lots left over. First, I’ll just start by saying that I cook a bone-in ham so I can use the bone to make rich and delicious (and very useful) Bone Broth (which I also make in my Instant Pot!). Then, with the leftover ham, I get busy making all of my favorite leftover ham recipes. Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup is one of my favorites!
The basic method I use when making a creamy soup in the pressure cooker is to first sauté the vegetables. Onion, carrots, and celery. Then add seasonings, flour, and then the broth. This gets it to thicken a bit without lumps. Then add in potatoes, the ham, and pressure cook it. When it is finished pressure cooking, that’s when you add the cream or milk, cheese (if using), etc. This method will give you nice results without your dairy curdling! No one wants that!
This Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup is good with a nice hunk of buttered crusty bread, mmmmm. This is a really good ‘comfort food’ soup, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
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Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup is rich & creamy, made with leftover ham and gold potatoes. this soup cooks fast in the electric pressure cooker! A very flavorful and comforting soup!
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Tbsp Butter, unsalted
- 1 small Sweet Onion (Walla Walla, Vidalia, etc.)
- 2/3 cup Celery, diced (about 2 stalks)
- 1 cup Carrots, diced (about 2-3 medium)
- 3 Cloves of Garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1/4 tsp Coriander, ground
- 1/4 tsp Ground Nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp Thyme Leaves, dried
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt (or 1/2 tsp table salt)
- 3 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
- 1 1/2 lbs Gold Potatoes, diced
- 2 cups Ham, diced (great way to use leftover)
- 1/4 cup Flour
- 1 1/2 cups Half and Half (or heavy cream, or whole milk)
- 1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream
- Green Onions, chopped
- Italian Parsley, chopped
Turn on the Instant Pot Sauté function (Normal/Med heat). When the display reads "Hot" add the olive oil and butter.
Add the onion, celery, and carrots. Cook until the vegetables start to soften, and the onions are starting to turn translucent.
Add the garlic. Sauté for a minute, stirring constantly, until fragrant.
Add the bay leaf, Coriander powder, nutmeg, thyme, and salt. Stir.
Pour in the broth and stir.
Add the potatoes and the ham. Stir.
Place the lid on the pot and lock it in place. Turn the Steam Release Knob to the Sealing position (except on the Ultra model).
Cancel the Sauté function.
Select Manual (or Pressure Cook), and use the + or - buttons (or dial) to choose 5 minutes.
When the cooking cycle has finished, let the pot go into the Natural Release (Warm) mode. You don't have to do anything, it will do this automatically.
After 20 minutes of Natural Pressure Release, you can manually release the remaining pressure by turning the Steam Release Knob to the Venting position (or pushing the button on the Ultra).
When the pressure is all out of the pot, and the pin in the lid has dropped, you can open the lid.
Whisk the flour into the half and half and then whisk it into the soup. Turn on the Sauté setting and keep stirring until the soup thickens. Then cancel the Sauté setting.
Stir in the cheese, if using.
Add sour cream, if using, and stir.
Taste and adjust salt if necessary.
Garnish as desired and serve.
Resources to Make Instant Pot Potato Ham Soup recipe and more
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I made this tonight and it was delicious! I added one cup of dry northern beans and cooked on manual for 20 minutes, then quick released pressure. Tasted great!
Hi Steph! The beans sound like a great addition! I’m glad you liked the soup. Thank you for taking the time to let me know!
Is this recipe for the 3 quart sized insta pot?
This recipe is for the 6 quart. You can reduce it by 1/3 or 1/2 to fit in the 3 quart. Cook time stays the same.
I made this the other day to use left over Christmas ham. It was so good my husband asked me to make a second pot today.
That’s so great, Nicole! I’m so glad you and your hubby like it! Thank you very much for the feedback!
I made this last night and it was delicious! Even though I totally messed up the amount of spices! I thought I had the 1/4 teaspoon and oops – I used 1/2 teaspoon for the spices. Well, it tasted great! Thanks for the recipe. 5 star!
Hi Bonnie! I have totally done that before, only with the salt! Oops! I’m so glad you liked this soup, it is one my husband asks me to make whenever I have a ham planned. He’s like, “Great, ham! You’re going to make that soup, right?” Lol! Thank you for your review!
Oh My Goodness! Made this lovely soup for dinner tonight. Followed the recipe exactly. I did use a mix of those small red and gold potatoes. This entire process was super easy and so tasty. We added our cheese to individual servings. I’m now following your FB page. Thanks so much!!
Hi Cherie, thank you for your review! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I have to admit, I was nervous about the flour in this recipe. I have yet to get the dreaded *BURN* message with my Instant Pot, and was worried this would result in my first one. I didn’t need to be though, everything was great! I decided against adding the cream ad the end, and just went with the sour cream, as the soup was already creamy enough thanks to the flour. So tasty!
Hi Shannon, I also get a little nervous about it. I really think the newer IPs burn much easier. I have the older models, and 1 newer. But, I tested this several times, and it seems to work well for everyone so far! Otherwise, the flour can be added at the end, mixed with the cream. Thanks so much for your review!
I have made this for the second time now! It has been a hit both times! Great recipe ? I used my Nesco Insta pot but still worked out well!
Hi Della, that’s great! I’m glad you were able to use your own pressure cooker and make this recipe. Even though I use Instant Pot brand, I want my recipes to work with all brands! Thank you for your review!
I made this soup with left over Honey Baked Ham from Easter. I used 1/2 veggie stock instead- was almost out of chicken stock. I added a little extra tyme ( my favorite spice!) and lots of cheese! Cream was so delicious and sour cream! I probably made 4 cups so ended up a little thin so I scooped out a cup or two blended it and put back into the soup. It was perfect and my husband loved the flavor. It tasted so high class. Bet it would be good with clams too. Thanks
Hi Tiffamy! It’s great that you could make it with what you have, and adjust to your taste! I’m so glad you like it, and yes, clams would be nice! I have a clam chowder recipe that is really good, but you could adapt this one!
I added more water before I cooked it. Excellent! I also put a little vegetable bullion and a can of veg-all. Can’t go wrong with this recipe
Awesome, AJ! Thank you for the comment! I’m glad this works for you!
Made it today and it turned out perfect
My elderly mother and husband enjoyed it immensely
Thanks for an awesome recipe that is going to become our favourite
Hi Elaine, I’m very happy that your mom and hubby enjoyed this soup. Thank you so much for your review!
This soup was so good! I increased the recipe slightly as I am cooking in an eight quart. Oh my gosh! We ate the whole pot! When I make soup we usually put half in the freezer to hold it for a week or two. Not this soup! Thanks for the recipe.
That’s great, Bethany! I’m so glad you all liked this soup!
Wow!! This was really good!! Perfect use of our leftover Christmas ham! Hardly any leftovers! Next time I need to cut my potatoes more uniform, I’m usually better about that! Had a few that were just a tad too firm. But that’s no fault of your recipe! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you! Awesome!
Hi Sandy. Need your guidance. Followed your recipes to the letter. When I got too the actual 5 min. of pressure, I received a burn message and low and behold the bottom of the pot was sticking and all the ingredients we’re starting to burn. Any suggestions as to why this happened?? Thank you.
PS. I used the 6qt. Instant Pot.
I think the newer model pots are more sensitive to anything that sticks to the bottom. I had an older model when I made this recipe. I adjusted the steps of the recipe based on your feedback (thank you). Adding the flour after pressure cooking will fix that.
Oh my goodness! This was SO yummy!! We made it tonight to use up our leftover Honeybaked Ham. My son, who loves Panera baked potato soup in the bread bowl, said that this blows that soup out of the water. 🙂 One question: since it calls to add the flour/cream mixture after releasing the steam, I wondering about making a batch to freeze. Do you think it would be better to freeze without adding it and just add once the soup is ready to thaw and reheat?
Thank you again for an awesome recipe!
Thank you! I think you could freeze it before adding the flour/cream mixture.
My wife found this recipe for me to make tonight, omg it is beyond amazing! thanks! for the recipe this will be a regular meal in our house now!
That’s wonderful, Stephen! Thank you for your review!
My son has a dairy allergy. Do you think substituting Almond Milk for the whole milk would work? Or do you know of a better substitution? Thank you!
I think unsweetened almond milk would be the best.
Thank you!
I’d love to try this recipe, based on the reviews it sounds wonderful. Can I use the bone with the meat on it during the process?
Yes, that sounds good. I would try to get as much meat off the bone prior to cooking as the cook time is so short. Save the bone after for some amazing bone broth!
Made this today for my fam with 2 young picky kiddies and everyone absolutely loved it! My husband said it was his new favorite soup! I did HWC, a little extra chesse, the sour cream, and added some leftover bacon from breakfast in at the end. We didn’t have any leftover ham, so I had Publix deli slice some really thick pieces for me and cut those up and it was perfect! Thank you!!
It’s been freaking cold here in Canada (-25C) so leftover ham from Christmas went into the instant pot. I also had a beautiful beef bone broth in the freezer as well. All in all a pretty great combination with all the veg and spices. Mmmmm! Thanks for the amazing recipe! The family loved it.
Can you make this recipe using the slow cooker on the instant pot instead of the pressure cook setting?
I know it would take longer but might bring out more flavor? If I did the slow cooker about how long should I cook the soup?
Thanks!
I think so. I would try the More setting as it seems to work better. Start with 6 to 8 hours.
Delicious soup, have made it twice now and received rave reviews. Hearty and warm and satisfying, not too rich. Used the ham bone to make broth instead of chicken
Thank you! I appreciate your review, and I’m so glad you like this recipe!
This has become a staple recipe in our house. My husband LOVES this soup! I’m kind of sad the weather will be getting warmer and we probably won’t make it as much. Just FYI- my husband is allergic to wheat so I use gluten-free flour. Every time without fail, I get the “burn” notice. I remove the burned stuff on the bottom and it still comes out yummy. But the burn error is a pain. I see now that I can add the flour at the end. I will definitely try that. Lifesaver! Thanks for an amazing recipe!
Hi Renee, sorry about the burn message. I developed this recipe on my old IP, which doesn’t have the burn message and is not as sensitive as the newer models. I had to update the recipe! Thank you for your review!
I will be making this …. this week….I can’t wait ….I have a question….1. instead of adding flour at the end can I just add slurry to it instead? 2. Can I sauté the ham with the vegetables? Thank so much! ?
HI Janet, yes to both! If you mean add the slurry in the beginning you can, but if it gets too thick you might get the burn message. That’s why I add it after pressure cooking.
Wanting to try this recipe but I’m curious if you can make it with rivels in the instant pot, any ideas? Grew up with my mom always making rivels in her potato soup so I’d love to try it that way.
Hi Jason, yes, you can drop in some rivels after pressure cooking, using the sauté setting to bring the soup to a simmer. You will need to decide if you want to also use a thickener as well, as rivels can thicken the soup a little.
Great soup, easy to make. I used a variety of colored potatoes from my garden as well as my home grown carrots and onions. Such an easy and satisfying soup! Thanks
I love this soup! How many quarts does it make?
About 3.
5 Stars! Yum. Made for dinner. Will be great leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch! Used a ham steak, and Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream. Going in my Instant Pot soup rotation.
5 Stars! Yum. Made for dinner. Will be great leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch! Used a ham steak, and Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream. Going in my Instant Pot soup rotation.
This soup was an absolute win! Made it exactly as directed and it was divine. We ate the whole pot
This soup is delicious. I ended up making it in the crockpot due to the fact that I ended up having other stuff to do. But it still turned out perfectly. I just threw everything in at once. Besides the cheddar and sour cream which I added in the end. It was so good.