Early Autumn Soup in the Instant Pot

This simple, nourishing soup with acorn squash, zucchini and ground beef is the perfect early autumn soup recipe, made in an Instant Pot. Healthy comfort food at its finest. AIP, Paleo and Whole 30 compliant.

One of my favorite ways to utilize seasonal produce is to make a simple, comforting soup with it. So when I received an acorn squash, some zucchini and some onions in my local produce box last week, I knew I had to combine them with my homemade bone broth for a savory, nutrient-dense Early Autumn Soup and share it with you all.

Making soup in my Instant Pot is one of my favorite meals to make. Not only is it super nourishing and comforting (especially on those cool autumn evenings), I can utilize almost any vegetables I have on hand. Plus, it’s mostly a hands-off process. I can get it started and then just walk away. No worrying about getting the stovetop temperature just right. Never a need to worry about it boiling over. No babysitting my dinner.

Plus, it makes plenty for leftovers, so I only have to cook once and I can eat multiple times. Plus, soup almost always freezes well, so I have plenty of quick and easy meals on hand for busy weeks.

How to make Early Autumn Soup in an Instant Pot

As always, you’ll want to gather your ingredients and make sure you have everything you need, first. I have a recipe for AIP all-purpose seasoning on the blog that I know you’ll love. It’s super simple to whip up and tastes amazing. If you don’t have the ingredients you need for it, or if you already have another all-purpose seasoning, feel free to use it. Paleo Powder has an AIP all-purpose seasoning you can use.

Make sure you have some bone broth on hand for this, as well. I have instructions for how to make bone broth in an Instant Pot, but if you already have some store-bought bone broth, that will work here as well.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this Early Autumn Soup:

• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb grass-fed ground beef
• 1 acorn squash, peeled and diced
• 2 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
• 1 tsp AIP all-purpose seasoning
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 4 cups bone broth

this recipe!

Instructions

First, prep the onion, garlic, acorn squash and zucchini. I like to pre-chop everything and put them in bowls to easily add to the recipe when I need them.

Turn the Instant Pot to sauté mode and add a small amount of avocado oil, lard or tallow to the insert. Once hot, add the onion and garlic to the pot and sauté, stirring occasionally for 3-5 minutes, or until onions have softened and are translucent.

Add the ground beef and sauté until almost cooked through, about 5 minutes. Turn the Instant Pot off (push cancel).

Add the acorn squash, zucchini, all-purpose seasoning, sea salt and bone broth to the pot, and give it a quick stir. Close the lid and make sure the release valve is set to “seal.”

Set to high pressure for 6 minutes. When the cooking cycle is complete, allow the pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes before doing a quick release. Be sure to use a towel to cover the valve, to prevent splatters and burns. Give the Early Autumn Soup a quick stir and ladle into bowls to serve.

How to store Early Autumn Soup leftovers

If you’re serving a lot of people, you might not have any leftovers. But if you’re anything like me, you make extra so you always have leftovers. Soup makes the best leftovers!

To store this Early Autumn Soup (or any soup, really), I like to divide it into individual portions, first. Pint-size mason jars are the perfect serving size, in my opinion. Just ladle the soup into the jars, trying to divide the ingredients and broth evenly. If you plan on freezing them, be sure to leave at least an inch of space to allow for the liquid to expand as it freezes. And be sure your mason jars are freezer-safe.

I leave the soup-filled jars on the counter for about an hour to cool, before I place them in the fridge. That way, the heat from the soup doesn’t heat up the fridge too much, compromising the safety of the food that’s already in there. But don’t leave the soup out for too long, either, or it will be in the “danger zone” where bacteria is most likely to proliferate and cause food poisoning. Two hours is the absolute max.

If you plan on freezing your soup, be sure to cool it in the fridge first, to not only prevent heating up your freezer, but also to prevent the drastic temperature change that can cause glass to crack.

This Early Autumn Soup will store in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Be sure to label your jars, so you know what is in it and when it was made. I like to use freezer tape and a permanent marker to write the name of the food and the date it was made on the lid.

How to reheat

If the soup is frozen, you’ll need to thaw it in the fridge for a day or two before reheating. To reheat, you have two options: microwave or stovetop. For the stovetop, just pour the soup into a pot and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until warm. For the microwave, pour the soup into a microwave safe container and heat on high for 2-3 minutes, depending on how hot you like your soup. I like mine super hot, so I heat mine for 3 minutes. Stir halfway through heating.

Other recipes to try

If you love soup, and you love your Instant Pot as much as I do, be sure to try these other soup recipes on the blog:

Flavorful Zuppa Toscana with Only 6 Ingredients! (AIP)

Instant Pot Irish Beef Stew Recipe (AIP, Paleo)

Hearty AIP Chicken Vegetable Soup (Paleo, Whole30)

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