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You are here: Home » Soups and Stews

Published: May 3, 2021 · Modified: Oct 6, 2024 by Saima · This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases · This blog generates income via ads.

Instant Pot Cauliflower Soup (Vegan, Dairy Free, Gluten Free)

284 shares
  • 162
Jump to Recipe
instant pot cauliflower soup

This vegan instant pot cauliflower soup is thick, savory, and creamy without cream or flour. It is bursting with the flavor and goodness of cauliflower, butter beans, turmeric, garlic, and herbs. A drizzle of olive oil and fresh lemon completes this dairy-free and gluten-free soup that you won't get enough of! Did I mention it's really easy too?

cauliflower soup in bowl with spoon

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This soup is pure gold. Apart from the looks (it is good-looking, right?), it is suuuuper healthy with NO cream, cheese, or milk. And..it is yum! Cauliflower is a versatile veggie for sure, but I was honestly a tad skeptical about how it would taste in a soup especially without any dairy to overcome the blandness. Well, that little voice in my head was silenced when I put the first spoonful of soup in my mouth. It tasted rich and savory and absolutely lovely!

If you like basking in soupland at all times of the year like I do, have a peek at these other soup recipes too. My favorites are vegetable soup with pasta and beans, mulligatawny, and mushroom soup.

Ingredients

Note: exact quantities are mentioned in the recipe card further down in the post.

A few thoughts on the ingredients...

  • I used a frozen cauliflower packet because I did not have fresh cauliflower at hand. A small, fresh cauliflower head would also work. The frozen pack did eliminate the need to wash and chop the cauliflower!
  • That tin or can you see in the picture? It's butter beans, and it's what makes the soup so creamy and yummy. I used approximately half of that can after draining and rinsing the beans in cold water.
  • For garnishes, I added Italian seasoning/herbs and chilli flakes. If you don't have Italian seasoning, that's totally fine. You can use any fresh or dried herbs you have: thyme, oregano, parsley... whatever you might have. Each herb has its own distinct flavor and aroma, of course.
  • As final touches, a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and a few dashes of lemon juice worked wonders. The lemon is not pictured but I did squeeze a small wedge into each bowl of soup.
  • The light olive oil was used while cooking the soup, and the EVOO as topping. Hence, the two bottles in the picture.
  • Finally, the spices: chilli flakes, turmeric, and freshly ground black pepper complete the soup and save it from being bland and boring. I also used Himalayan pink salt in this recipe. It is not essential though and you can use regular table salt or sea salt if you wish.
bowl of cauliflower soup with spoon cradled in a pair of hands

Instructions

Making this soup is a real cinch. It's almost a dump and go recipe if you have all your ingredients in one place. This is how you will go about it:

  • Switch on your instant pot to sauté, and add the light olive oil in the inner steel insert. When the oil is hot, add chopped garlic and onions and fry them just until the onions are soft (two minutes).
  • Add the cauliflower florets, turmeric, black pepper, half of the chilli flakes and Italian seasoning, and salt. Sauté for three to four minutes.
  • Add the butter beans and vegetable broth and deglaze the pot. Deglazing just means to scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any stuck bits so that they don't burn.
  • Close the lid and pressure cook for five minutes with pressure release after ten minutes.
  • Open the pot and, using an immersion blender (affiliate link) if you have one, blend the contents until smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender, wait for the soup to cool down and blend in your regular blending machine. The advantage of using a stick or immersion blender is that it goes right into the pot and does the job even if the food is hot. Plus you save the hassle of cleaning the blender jar later.
  • Take out the soup in bowls and squeeze a small lemon wedge in. Top with the remaining chilli flakes and Italian herbs. Finally, drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil on the soup and serve warm.
two bowls of cauliflower soup with  salt and pepper in small bowls

Tried this recipe? Do consider giving it a star rating and a comment below. And if you’re on Instagram, feel free to tag me so I can see your creation. I'd love to hear from you! Thank you:)

📖 Recipe

cauliflower soup in bowl with spoon

Instant Pot Cauliflower Soup

Saima Zaidi
This instant pot cauliflower soup is thick, savory, and creamy without any cream. It is bursting with the flavor and goodness of cauliflower, butter beans, turmeric, garlic, and herbs.
4.75 from 4 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Course Soup
Cuisine Indian
Servings 4 cups
Calories 176 kcal

Equipment

  • Instant Pot Duo 6-quart

Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 tablespoon light olive oil
  • 4 cloves garlic chopped
  • 1 red onion medium-sized, sliced
  • 1 cauliflower head small, chopped (or 1 frozen cauliflower packet, 500 grams)
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 teaspoon chilli flakes divided
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning divided
  • 1 teaspoon salt to taste
  • ½ can butter beans drained and rinsed
  • 1 ½ cups vegetable broth
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
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Instructions
 

  • Switch on your instant pot to sauté and add the light olive oil to the steel insert. When the oil becomes hot, add the garlic and onions and fry until the onions become soft (two minutes).
  • Add the cauliflower florets, turmeric, ½ teaspoon chilli flakes, black pepper, ¼ teaspoon Italian seasoning, and salt. Sauté for 3-4 minutes.
  • Add the butter beans and vegetable broth and deglaze the pot.
  • Cancel sauté and close the lid. Make sure the steam release vent is sealed. Press the pressure cooking button (high) and set the timer to 5 minutes. 
  • Once the timer beeps, wait for 10 minutes before releasing the rest of the steam. Open the pot and using an immersion blender, blend the contents. Or wait for the contents to cool down and blend in a regular blender.
  • Take out the soup in bowls and add a few drops of lemon juice to each bowl, followed by the remaining chilli flakes and Italian seasoning. Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil too and serve warm. 

Notes

  1. If the soup is too thick after blending, you can thin it out with broth or water. 
  2. Substitute the Italian seasoning with herbs of your choice. Thyme, oregano, parsley work equally well. 
  3. Adjust the chilli flakes to your liking. 
  4. If the vegetable broth you are using is salted, remember to adjust the salt accordingly. 
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupCalories: 176kcalCarbohydrates: 19gProtein: 6gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gSodium: 988mgPotassium: 671mgFiber: 6gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 342IUVitamin C: 73mgCalcium: 57mgIron: 2mg
Keyword instant pot cauliflower soup, instant pot soup, vegan soup
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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284 shares
  • 162

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Tony says

    July 06, 2021 at 2:40 am

    5 stars
    Sorry no pictures it went way too fast. This soup is fantastic!

    Reply
  2. Emma says

    July 14, 2021 at 6:23 am

    5 stars
    Lovely soup - can I freeze it?

    Reply
    • Saima says

      July 14, 2021 at 2:43 pm

      Thank you, Emma. Yes, by all means. You can freeze it.

      Reply
  3. Johnna says

    November 07, 2021 at 11:35 am

    Can you do this in the crockpot?

    Reply
    • Saima says

      November 07, 2021 at 1:47 pm

      Never made it in a crockpot, Johnna. If you want to try it in a crockpot, just remember that cauliflower is a tender vegetable that breaks down pretty quickly, so adjust the time accordingly.

      Reply
  4. Emma says

    January 17, 2022 at 7:37 am

    If using frozen cauliflower do I need to defrost it first

    Reply
    • Saima says

      January 19, 2022 at 5:54 pm

      No, you don't need to. Just add 2 minutes to the pressure cooking time.

      Reply
4.75 from 4 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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Hi, I'm Saima! I live in Alberta, Canada with my husband and twin boys. Here, you'll find Indian recipes with fresh, natural ingredients and easy, no-fuss cooking techniques. Welcome to my blog!

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