Instant Pot Thai Green Chicken Soup

Silky smooth, exceptionally flavourful Thai Green Chicken Soup. This Thai soup is made using a whole chicken, butternut squash, bell peppers, carrots, onions, coconut milk and Thai spices. 

Low-Carb Thai Green Chicken Soup Recipe

So much healthiness in a bowl of the most flavourful low-carb Thai soup. The best part, this soup recipe is made using only nine ingredients. And, by using Instant Pot, this soup is made in a jiffy. 

This budget-friendly soup is hearty and can easily replace a meal. It is filled with nutrient-packed veggies, fiber, protein and is naturally gluten-free. And for big appetites, you can add gluten-free butter rolls, and make the soup into a meal.

Why use Instant Pot for Thai green chicken soup?

First, the soup is cooked at a fraction of the time. But, the flavour is more intense, and by cooking the vegetables in an Instant Pot, the soup will retain more nutrients than if you cooked the soup on the stove.

Another reason I love to use the Instant pot is, no messy stove to clean, and you can walk away as soon as you start the cooking process. Once you set the time, you can leave and finish the soup when you get back.

Thai green chicken soup recipe overview

You will need 10 minutes to prepare the chicken, butternut squash, bell peppers, carrots and onions. 

Start with seasoning the chicken. Yes, this is not just boiled chicken. The chicken is rubbed with Thai green curry paste. The curry paste adds so much flavour to the chicken and the soup.

prepare the veggies,

Start with the butternut squash. There is no need to peel the squash. Instead, you can eat the entire squash, flesh and skin included. Once the squash is cooked, the skin becomes tender and delicious.  

The butternut squash is rich in fiber and is good for your immunity because it’s full of beta-carotene and alpha-carotene. Your body converts them to vitamin A, which is essential for your immune system. 

Place the onion slices in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Then top with chicken, all the vegetables and sliced cilantro stalks. Add 4 cups of water and cook on high pressure for 18 minutes. 

I used a 3 pound whole chicken. Any larger chicken may not fit in regular size Instant Pot. It takes 6 minutes per pound for a whole chicken to cook in an instant pot, following 15 minutes of natural steam release.

next, remove the whole chicken onto a platter,

This Thai green chicken soup is made with a whole chicken. In this step, carefully remove the chicken onto a platter. The chicken will be later shredded and used as a topping for the soup.

to finish the Thai chicken soup

Once the chicken is removed from the Instant Pot, add the coconut milk, fresh lime juice and half the cilantro leaves. If you prefer, you can add the coconut milk at the same time as water, the soup will taste the same, but you will notice tiny curds in the soup. 

The Thai green chicken soup is now ready to be enjoyed. I like to add fresh cilantro leaves and lime wedges to the bowls for added freshness. 

Thai red curry paste vs green curry paste

The colour is the one main difference between red curry paste and green curry. This is because the red curry uses dry red chillies as a base for its paste, and the green curry paste requires fresh green chillies.

Is there a flavour difference between red and green curry paste?

The red curry paste is more versatile and can be used in many dishes. However, the Thai green curry paste has a tantalizing unique flavour and is typically less spicy.

I always use the Thai Kitchen curry paste brand because it is gluten-free and vegan. The red curry paste ingredients are red chilli pepper, garlic, soybean oil, lemongrass, galangal (Thai ginger), salt, shallot, spices and kaffir lime peel.

The green curry paste ingredients are green chilli pepper, garlic, lemongrass, galangal root (Thai ginger), salt, shallot, spices, coriander root, and kaffir lime peel.

Some curry paste brands contain real shrimp, so be aware!

Can I change this dish to Thai red chicken soup?

If you prefer the red curry flavour, you can substitute red curry paste for the green curry paste, following the same cooking directions.

Do you like Thai chicken soup spicy?

Add a Thai Jinda Chili Pepper. This pepper is found in many Thai dishes. The Thai Jinda Chili pepper is the most common chilli pepper used for Thai cooking.

You will notice I did not add salt to the soup. This is because the Thai green curry paste is heavily salted. I found that the soup did not need more salt. However, taste the soup once it is finished, and season as needed.

How to serve Thai green chicken soup?

This is the fun part. First, divide the soup into bowls. Then, using forks, shred as much or as little chicken and add to your bowl of hot soup. Top with cilantro leaves and a squeeze of lime juice. 

If you want the soup’s texture to be thicker, get a potato masher and mash some of the veggies. This will give you a thick Thai green chicken soup.

Can I add noodles to Thai chicken soup? 

Absolutely, you will need to add one extra cup of water to the Instant Pot. Prepare gluten free Thai rice noodles as per package directions and pour the hot chicken soup over the noodles. Then top with shredded chicken and cilantro. Enjoy!