Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup - how to make a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup using a store-bought rotisserie chicken.
There is nothing better than chicken noodle soup made with homemade broth. I know, I know…making chicken broth seems like a lot of work. That’s where the Instant Pot comes in; pressure cooking makes homemade broth much easier. Now, I’m not going to say it’s as easy as opening a can of Campbell’s - it’s not - but Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup is worth the extra effort.
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If you don’t have a leftover roast chicken, where do you get the get the bones to make broth? I have two quick answers. One is chicken backs. The other is what I'm using in this recipe - a grocery store rotisserie chicken. Grab one from the case at your market, and you’re on the way to Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup. (More details are in my Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Broth recipe.) For other recipes that use Rotisserie Chicken broth, check out my Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Tortilla Soup, Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Risotto, or Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken and Wild Rice Soup.
Ingredients
Rotisserie Chicken Broth Ingredients
- A rotisserie chicken
- Onion
- Carrot
- Celery
- Bay leaf
- Fine sea salt
- Water
Chicken Noodle Soup Ingredients
- Butter
- Onion
- Carrot
- Celery
- Thyme
- Fine sea salt
- Rotisserie Chicken Broth
- Breast meat from a rotisserie chicken
- Potato
- Wide egg noodles
- Fresh ground black pepper
- Parsley (optional)
See recipe card for quantities
How to make Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup
- Pressure cook the broth: Pull the breast meat off of the rotisserie chicken, chop it up into bite-sized pieces, and put it aside for later. Put the rotisserie chicken carcass, a peeled onion, scrubbed carrot, rib of celery, 2 bay leaves, and a half teaspoon of salt in the Instant Pot. Pour in 8 cups of water, then pressure cook at high pressure for 1 hour, and let the pressure come down naturally, about 30 more minutes. Strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer, discard the solids, and set the broth aside.
- Sauté the aromatics: Wipe out the Instant Pot liner, then melt 2 tablespoons of butter using Sauté mode. Add a chopped onion, chopped carrot, chopped rib of celery, and a teaspoon of dried or fresh thyme. Sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt, and sauté until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.
- Everything in the pot: Add the reserved chicken breast meat, a small diced potato, and 1 cup of wide egg noodles to the pot, then pour in the rotisserie chicken broth.
- Pressure cook for 4 minutes at High Pressure with a Quick Release.
- Stir in 1 ½ teaspoons of fine sea salt and ¾ teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper. Enjoy!
How big are rotisserie chickens?
I did some quick research on rotisserie chickens - checking the weight at my local stores - and they varied. Most were about 2 pounds, but Costco’s famous rotisserie chickens were closer to 4 pounds. That’s OK - one bird will give you enough bones and meat to make this soup, no matter the size.
Tips and Tricks
Save the breast meat for the soup before you start cooking. Pressure cooking the pulls the flavor out of the bones and meat into the broth, leaving the remains spent and dull. That’s why I reserve the chicken breasts, saving them for the soup.
Remove the breast meat before cooking. Pressure cooking the broth takes all the flavor out of the ingredients, and moves it into the water. The leftover chicken meat (and vegetables) are bland and stringy, giving their all to the broth in the hour of pressure cooking. I will eat a little of the meat as a chef's treat, but it's not something I want to serve to people.
Don't over-noodle the soup! One cup of egg noodles isn’t going to seem like much, but they expand and suck up a remarkable amount of broth. Don’t add more noodles or you’ll end up with a noodle stew, not soup.
What to serve with Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup
Soup and salad are the obvious choice, with rolls or a loaf of crusty bread. Or, I go back to my childhood and serve chicken noodle soup with saltine crackers.
Print
Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
Description
Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup - how to make a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup using a store-bought rotisserie chicken.
Ingredients
Rotisserie Chicken Broth
- 1 (2- to 4-pound) rotisserie chicken, breast meat removed and saved for later
- Juices from the rotisserie chicken container
- 1 onion, peeled and halved
- 1 carrot, scrubbed and cut in half (or 4oz baby carrots)
- 1 celery rib, cut in half
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 8 cups water
Rotisserie Chicken Noodle Soup
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 large carrot, peeled and sliced ½ inch thick
- 1 celery rib, sliced ½ inch thick
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 8 cups of Rotisserie Chicken Broth (from above)
- 4 ounces baby red potatoes, quartered
- 1 cup wide or extra-wide egg noodles
- Breast meat from the rotisserie chicken, shredded
- 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- ¾ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- Minced parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Pressure cook the broth for 60 minutes with a Natural Pressure Release: Cut the chicken breast meat off of the rotisserie chicken and set aside for later. Add the rotisserie chicken carcass, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaves, and salt to the pressure cooker pot, then add the 8 cups of water. (It should just cover the rotisserie chicken - it’s OK if the knobs of the drumsticks are poking up.) Lock the lid and pressure cook on high pressure for 60 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric PC (Manual or Pressure Cook mode in an Instant Pot) or 50 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally – about 30 minutes. (It takes a long time for all that water to cool off. If you’re in a hurry, let the pressure come down for at least 20 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.) Scoop the chicken carcass and vegetables out of the pot with a slotted spoon and discard; they’ve given their all to the broth. Strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer, and set aside for later.
- Sauté the aromatics: Wipe out the pressure cooker pot liner, then put it back in the pressure cooker base. Add the butter and melt over sauté mode (medium heat for a stovetop PC). Add the onion, celery, and carrot, and sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of salt and the dried thyme. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften and turn translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Everything in the pot: Add the shredded chicken breast meat, potatoes, and the egg noodles. Pour the rotisserie chicken broth into the pot, and give everything a stir.
- Pressure cook the soup for 4 minutes with a Quick Release: Lock the lid, and pressure cook for 4 minutes on high pressure. (Use the same timing for Instant Pot, electric PCs, and stovetop PCs). Quick release the pressure. (If the steam that is released starts to sputter and spit out starch, shut the valve and let the pressure come down naturally for 5 minutes before trying the quick release again.)
- Season the soup: Stir in 1½ teaspoons of fine sea salt and the fresh ground black pepper. Serve, sprinkling each bowl with a little parsley. Enjoy!
Notes
You can make the entire batch of broth ahead of time if you need a quick weeknight recipe. Finish step 1, then freeze the broth in 2 cup containers. When you’re ready for soup, grab 8 cups of broth from the freezer, and continue with step 2.
You can make this recipe from rotisserie chicken leftovers. Save the bones and any remaining meat from 2 rotisserie chickens. Pick the meat from the bones - you want about 2 cups of shredded chicken - and use the bones and any clinging meat to make the broth.
Tools
6-quart or larger pressure cooker. I love my 6 quart Instant Potelectric pressure cooker.
Slotted Spoonand Fine Mesh Strainerfor straining the broth.
A second inner pot for your pressure cooker makes straining the broth easy - pour from one pot to the other.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Category: Sunday Dinner
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
How to Make Ahead
If you want a weeknight soup, make the broth ahead of time. Refrigerate the broth and diced chicken breast for a few days, or freeze it for a few months. Then, continue with the "sauté the aromatics" step, and the soup will be done in no time.
If you have leftovers, they freeze beautifully. I freeze them in 2-cup containers for up to six months.
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Buffalo Chicken Wings
Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub
Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
My other Instant Pot and Pressure Cooker Recipes
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Elizabeth Zampogna
Fall of 2018 I had a Costco chicken rotisserie and needed a recipe. I have made this soup so many times and it's way past time for a "Thank You"! We love it. I have not used the potatoes yet. The broth is perfect.
Leah
2nd time making this. Worth the effort. Economical and healthy way to make another meal out of our usual Costco chicken and Caesar salad dinner.
Elizabeth Nielson
This is exactly what I was looking for!! I made this 5 days ago and it was perfect. I doubled the noodles and took out the potatoes, and it was just the right amount. I also brightened it at the end with a splash of vinegar and a splash of hot sauce. Not much, at all. The flavors and textures of your recipe are spot on. Thank you!
Mike Vrobel
Thanks!
Emily
This recipe rocks! I skipped potatoes, not really into those in soup 🙂 Although a bit time consuming, it's hands off for at least the 60mins you cook the stock. Thanks!
Mike Vrobel
You're welcome!
Patricia
I had never made chicken noodle soup before and this past winter with daily sickness I took the plunge with this recipe and it’s fantastic! Makes the Instant Pot even more necessary! Another pot going right now
JC
Loved it! The broth was super flavorful. I added matzoh balls at the end instead of noodles. 🙂
I do wish there was a shortcut on the broth-making, though. I particularly like how the broth made this way (straining the fat/cartilage/unknown gunk) is so clean and healthy.
I'm making again tonight in fact!
Thanks for sharing!
Michelle S.
This was delicious. I used a soup sock and stuffed it with the veggies and chicken carcass. Once the stock was done I didn't have to strain it, thanks to the soup sock. My husband even commented on how flavorful the soup was. This is a keeper.
Lori
I have never liked chicken noodle soup, but the recipe sounded so good that I had to try it last night. It was amazing! Even my husband, who is an extremely picky eater, loved it. I will definitely be making this on a regular basis.
Thank you, Mike!
Tula M.
This worked well, thanks for the recipe! Just a note - I I'm guessing that's a typo about taking 3 minutes to melt 1 TBS butter on sauté mode. Maybe takes 30 secs. Another version of this that might be nice is using mushrooms and wild rice.
Mike Vrobel
You're right - typo. Fixed, and thanks for mentioning it!
Daniel
Been looking for a good stock recipe for the Costco rotisserie chicken. This one was a jackpot! My wife said this was the best chicken noodle soup recipe she's ever had. She wouldn't stop talking about the depth of flavor, the wonderful savory smell, or how chunky it was. She also said it was so easy, and that I think we have our keeper recipe. Well done Mike!
Mike Vrobel
Thank you!
Daniel
Update! We tried this with our leftover Thanksgiving turkey bones, and it turned out just as good! Amazing!
Mike Vrobel
Glad to hear it! Of course, you could also follow my https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/pressure-cooker-day-thanksgiving-turkey-carcass-soup/ recipe.
Steve Coppage
Great taste! The broth adds so much depth to the soup. I’m pretty sure we just found our favorite recipe. Thanks!!
Jen
fantastic recipe. I've made this twice now with Costco rotisserie chicken using the Instant Pot and it's easy to follow with minimal prep time and no fancy ingredients. The soup broth is deep and flavorful, my whole family, including the 2 year old, loves this.
Mike Vrobel
Glad you like it!
TC
Just made this and it was good! Thank you for all your recipes. I'm not sure how many potatoes 4 oz is so I used 2 small red potatoes and it worked out.
Elizabeth Cole
This recipe was a great find! Wasn't sure anyone out there could tell me how to cook ROTISSERIE chicken in an INSTAPOT!! But this recipe did it. Much better soup than I had been able to make by myself in a regular pot. Thanks for the great recipe!!
Mike Vrobel
You’re welcome!
Ted
If using a "whole" carcass, pulling the legs, thighs and wings loose will let it pack better into the pot, and expose those connective bits to the water. When it's chilled, it's almost like chicken jello, and that stuff is great for your hair, skin, nails, and joints.
Mike Vrobel
Thanks, Ted! If you want to pull apart the carcass, go right ahead - it can't hurt! - but cutting off the breast meat was enough to get the carcass to flop open and fit under the water line in my Instant Pot.