Instant Pot Tortilla Soup

Name: Instant Pot Tortilla Soup
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 6 min
Total time: 16 min
Cuisine: Mexcian
Ingredients: 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth or chicken broth; 1 (15-ounce) can vegetarian refried beans (Sub: drained and rinsed pinto beans); 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed (Sub: drained and rinsed kidney beans); 1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained (Sub: 1 1/2 cups frozen corn); 1 (15-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, with their juices (Sub: fire-roasted diced tomatoes are a delicious alternative!); 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilis, with their juices (Sub: 1/2 cup salsa); 1 cup mild or medium salsa (this is my absolute favorite salsa); 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (Try our homemade taco seasoning.); 1 to 2 cups cooked brown rice (See Notes for a cauliflower rice substitution idea.)

5 /5

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By: Polly ConnerPosted: 1/10/24Updated: 3/13/23

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This dump-and-go Instant Pot Tortilla Soup is one of the easiest, healthiest soups you’ll ever make. Almost every ingredient comes straight from your pantry!

Or try our stovetop Vegetarian Tortilla Soup or Crockpot Tortilla Soup.

Bowl of vegetarian tortilla soup with all the toppings on it and a half avocado and lime wedges and slices beside it.

We love the Instant Pot not just for the speed of making dinner, but because it comes together in one pot. One and done – just like our Instant Pot Chili, Instant Pot Crispy Carnitas or our Instant Pot White Chicken Chili.

Table of Contents

What We Love About This Soup

Absolutely delicious and filling. It’s colorful, a little spicy, and full of bold flavors. Sooo satisfying, especially on a cold day.
It’s a dump-and-go Instant Pot recipe. Simply drop all the ingredients in the pot, pressure cook for a few minutes, and dinner is (pretty much) done.
Super healthy! It’s vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free, and filled with veggies and beans.
Still hearty enough for any meat eater in your family. Feel free to throw in some cooked chicken or taco meat at the end, if you want, though.
It makes a big batch meal and is freezer-friendly, which works well for serving a large group of people.
Provides healthy lunches all week long. I use my Souper Cubes to portion them out in individual servings to have on hand in the freezer, or you can keep it in the fridge for several days. I love having healthy lunches ready to go!
It’s flexible. It can also be made using these other methods:
- Crockpot Tortilla Soup
- Vegetarian Tortilla Soup – Our stove top version.
You can mix up the ingredients. Don’t have green chiles? Add a little more salsa. Don’t have rice? Try quinoa. Have fresh veggies on hand? I’ve thrown in chopped zucchini, spinach, and diced bell pepper before with great results (just cook until they are soft).

Ingredients

While I typically stick to the ingredients below, feel free to use up what you have on hand with this “kitchen sink”-type soup.

Ingredient Notes

Vegetable broth (or chicken broth) – I like Pacific brand from the store or make your own chicken broth.
Vegetarian refried beans – Look for ones that have all recognizable ingredients.
Petite diced tomatoes – If you want to kick up the flavor, try adding fire-roasted diced tomatoes instead.
Mild or medium salsa – My favorite is Mateo’s brand.
Taco seasoning – Use our homemade taco seasoning, if you want. It’s delicious.
Cooked brown rice – Or throw cauliflower rice in with all the ingredients and cook with all the other ingredients!

Stock photo of a bag of Lundberg brown rice.

What Brand of Brown Rice Should I Buy?

I highly recommend Lundberg Organic Brown Rice, as it’s grown in California and is a brand that actively cares about avoiding dangerous arsenic levels in their rice. (Read more about how rice–especially when it’s grown outside California, Pakistan, and India–is contaminated by arsenic here.)

Buy Lundberg Brown Blend Rice

How to Make Tortilla Soup in the Instant Pot

It’s just so easy.

Combine broth, refried beans, black beans, corn, tomatoes, chiles, salsa, and taco seasoning in the Instant Pot. Stir and break up the refried beans as much as possible.

Instant Pot vegetarian tortilla soup ingredients dumped in an Instant Pot.

Lock and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 6 minutes, then quick release the pressure.

Stir in cooked rice. Serve warm, with your favorite toppings.

Instant Pot vegetarian tortilla soup in an Instant Pot with cooked brown rice being stirred in.

Pro Tip: Add Chicken!

If you want to make this a chicken tortilla soup or use up some leftover rotisserie chicken, just add the fully cooked chicken in when you add the rice.

Another option is to make our Chicken Taco Soup.

How to Serve Instant Pot Tortilla Soup

Top with your favorite Mexican toppings, like torn up tortillas, crushed tortilla chips, diced avocado or red onion, cilantro, a squeeze of fresh lime juice, shredded cheddar, etc.
Serve with Sweet Potato Corn Bread or our Mexican Chopped Salad with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette.
Freeze leftovers in single-serving glass bowls with lids. Thaw overnight and warm up for a healthy lunch. Works great to send in a thermos in a lunchbox, too.

Make It a Freezer Meal

You’ve come to the right place if you’re looking for make-ahead freezer meals.

Not only have we written two freezer meal cookbooks but we also have some amazing 1 Hour Freezer Prep Plans that walk you through how to make 6 meals in one hour.

Like so many of our freezer meal recipes, this soup will work beautifully as a freezer meal.

Freeze For Later: Add all the ingredients, except the rice, to a gallon-size freezer bag. Seal, toss gently to combine, and freeze in a round bowl or container with a diameter similar to the instant Pot (so it will fit in the pot when frozen). Place the cooked rice in a separate small freezer bag. Seal and freeze alongside the soup. Read more about Instant Pot freezer meals.

Prepare From Frozen: Put the rice on the counter to thaw. Set the Instant Pot to “Saute.” Transfer the frozen soup to the pot and cook for 5 minutes to release some liquid. Press “Cancel.” Follow Steps 2 and 3, but cook for 12 to 17 minutes.

Full freezer bag labeled Tortilla Soup sitting inside an Instant Pot with a bag of rice beside it.

Best of the Best Freezer Meals for the Instant Pot

We’ve rounded up a fabulous collection of freezer meals for the Instant Pot. If you’re looking for more recipe that can be prepped in advance and later plopped into the Instant Pot from frozen, this post is a must!

Best Instant Pot Freezer Meals

Recipe FAQs

Can I make it creamy?

You sure can. Just stir in sour cream or plain Greek yogurt at the very end.

Can I add meat?

Yes, this recipe is super flexible. When you add in the rice at the end, you can also add fully cooked shredded chicken or fully cooked taco meat.

Can I make this soup gluten-free or dairy-free?

This recipe is naturally dairy-free and gluten-free. However, when buying processed ingredients from the store, it’s always important to check the labels if you have a gluten allergy. Make sure store-bought broth and taco seasoning is labeled gluten-free.

What cooked rice do you use?

Any type of fully cooked rice will work. I prefer brown rice or cauliflower rice because it’s healthier. I’ve also used quinoa instead of rice, as well as our Cilantro Lime Rice. P.S. You did know you can freeze rice, right?

How long do I cook this soup in the Instant Pot?

Ah, the burning question. With so much mixed information out there on Instant Pot cooking times, it’s a good thing you’ve come to two gals who have published an Instant Pot cookbook.

A vegetarian soup like this one only needs to pressure cook for 7 minutes in the Instant Pot with a quick release. After that, stir in your cooked rice and it’s done!

Instant Pot Healthy Soups

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Instant Pot Taco Soup

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More Instant Pot Soups

Photos and video by Whitney Reist of Sweet Cayenne.

Polly Conner

As co-founder of Thriving Home, Polly’s passionate about helping busy parents get dinner on the table. With a house full of kids, dogs, and (usually) a DIY project in the works, she knows firsthand how every minute (and every dollar) counts. As a business owner, she enjoys wearing multiple hats and serves best as a project manager for Thriving Home.