This Olive Garden favorite is made using the Instant Pot. The familiar flavors of this favorite dish are duplicated in this Instant Pot Chicken and Gnocchi Soup.
This famous restaurant favorite is easy to make at home and makes enough for the family!
Olive Garden Copycat
Every time I go to Olive Garden the Chicken and Gnocchi Soup is my ultimate choice. In fact, I could just order this soup and skip the entree because I think it's that good!
This recipe has all of the familiar flavors of the original recipe and it makes about 6 servings!
Related: Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken
Rotisserie Chicken Makes the Difference
Using juicy and flavorful rotisserie chicken really makes this soup stand out. A helpful tip I have is to make sure to use a rotisserie chicken that is packed full of flavor and has well-balanced spices.
It really makes all the difference in how this soup comes out.
Related: Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
Instant Pot Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
Prepping all of these ingredients ahead of time will save time and frustration when making this recipe. The Instant Pot heats up fast on the saute setting so it's really ideal to have everything ready to go.
This recipe uses two settings: Saute and Soup settings. It really is that easy! This recipe takes only about 30 minutes and your family will have an Olive Garden favorite made with love and served at home.
Ingredients in Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
- Olive oil
- Garlic cloves
- Butter
- White onion
- Celery
- Carrot
- Chicken Broth
- Gnocchi - you can use gluten free gnocchi as well
- Flour - you can substitute with cornstarch to make this soup gluten free
- Half & half
- Spinach
- Rotisserie chicken
- Thyme
- Salt & Pepper
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken & Gnocchi Soup
Prepare the veggies- Dice, chop, and julienne all ingredients ahead of time.
Saute- Add the olive oil and the butter. Stir in the chopped garlic, carrot, onion, and celery.
Stir in the broth- Stir in the 4 cups of chicken broth and saute for a few minutes.
Add the chicken and thyme- Stir in the chopped rotisserie chicken and sprinkle in the thyme, salt, and pepper.
Pressure cook - Close the lid and the vent and pressure cook on the soup setting for 15 minutes. You can also pressure cook on the MANUAL/HIGH PRESSURE setting.
Naturally release pressure - Allow the Instant Pot to naturally release pressure for 5 minutes before releasing the remaining pressure by hand. *Refer to your pressure cooker's manual for how to safely perform this function.
Saute- Remove the lid and set the Instant Pot back to saute and add in the gnocchi, half & half, and the spinach.
Make a slurry of water and flour and add it to the pot. Saute for 4-5 minutes and stir frequently.
Make Instant Pot Chicken and Gnocchi Soup Gluten Free
Substitute the flour for a ¼ cornstarch with a few tablespoons of water. Also, gnocchi contains flour but there are gluten free options for gnocchi that you can purchase.
CHECK OUT THESE OTHER RECIPES:
- Instant Pot White Cheddar Jack Mac N Cheese
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- Instant Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
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On June 15, 2021, the photos for this recipe have been updated but the recipe has not been altered.
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Chicken and Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden Copycat)
This Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi Soup is made using the Instant Pot and is an Olive Garden favorite. This recipe makes enough to feed the family and tastes just like - if not- better than the original!
Ingredients
To Saute
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 1 small white onion, diced
- 2 stalks celery, chopped
- 1 carrot, julienned
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 8 oz gnocchi
- ½ cup flour
- 2 cups half & half
- 1 cup spinach, chopped
To Cook on Soup Setting
- 2 cups rotisserie chicken, chopped into mini pieces
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- pepper, to taste
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Dice, chop, and julienne all ingredients ahead of time.
- Set Instant Pot on Saute setting and add olive oil and butter.
- Add in garlic, carrot, onion, and celery.
- Stir in 4 cups of chicken broth, stirring frequently.
- Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add in rotisserie chicken and thyme.
- Flavor mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
- Set Instant Pot to soup setting and set timer for 15 minutes.
- Allow Instant pot to naturally release for about 5 minutes and then quick release.
- Return to Saute and add in gnocchi, Half & Half, spinach, and flour.
- Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Notes
Garnish with mozzarella cheese and serve with breadsticks or garlic bread.
The rotisserie chicken that you choose will change flavors within this recipe so make sure it's good quality and flavorful rotisserie chicken that you use!
Refer to your pressure cooker's manual for how to safely operate your pressure cooker's functions.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1 servingAmount Per Serving: Calories: 455Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 145mgSodium: 1130mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 28g
Nutrition calculation is a rough estimate and can vary depending on the cooking technique and the exact ingredients used. For informational purposes only.
Dana is an experienced recipe creator who crafts easy and delicious recipes for all levels of home cooks.
Her recipes range from classic comfort foods to healthy and nutritious meals, and she is always on the lookout for new and exciting ways to bring flavor and variety to the table.
Meg says
How long will this soup last in the fridge? My son wants it for his lunch for the week. Will it hold up that long??
Dana says
I'm not sure how long because it's never lasted that long here but I would say a few days. I would worry about the gnocchi breaking down.
Natalie White says
Very vague in direction I didn’t know to put the lid on had to google it when said to set the instant pot to soup setting you need the lid
Dana says
Natalie, Anytime you pressure cook you need the lid on for the pot to come to pressure. Checking out the user manual is very helpful when just starting out using an Instant Pot! If you are using an Instant Pot branded pressure cooker it comes with directions for a "water test." Here I linked to it for your convenience 🙂 https://instantpot.com/initial-test-run/
Sheila says
Do you precook the gnocchi or just put them in the sauce and cook together?
Dana says
Gnocchi cooks quickly so it's just added in on the saute setting at the very end with the heavy cream.
Stacie says
Hi I was wondering instead of flour can you substitute for corn starch and what would the measurement be? Because I know I can find gluten free gnocchi I would like to try to make this recipe gluten free? Thanks!
Dana says
You absolutely can! You would substitute the flour for 1/4 cup of cornstarch. Anytime you swap the two, use half of what the flour calls for in the recipe. It works great as I have swapped the two quite a lot when I make this soup. Enjoy! 🙂
Jenn says
I made this tonite but the flour clumped in small circles…any idea why?
Dana says
To prevent the flour from clumping, it's a good idea to stir together a bit of water with the flour before adding it into the soup. Creating a slurry breaks down the flour and prevents lumps.
Haley says
This was AMAZING, tastes exactly like olive garden. I added raw chicken instead of the rotisserie and it cooked perfectly. I also added an extra 3/4 cup of half and half to make it creamer.
Sherry Tolbird says
Made this tonight had to accommodate for a gluten dairy issue but it was so delicious great recipe!
Dana says
Thanks for sharing your substitutes and I'm happy to hear you enjoyed it!
mindy says
I am making this recipe tonight with our left over turkey from Thanksgiving!!
Dana says
Oh, that sounds good! Please come back and share how it goes!
Cam Moore says
I made this tonight and it was wonderful!! I didn’t have rotisserie chicken so cut up chicken tenders in small pieces and sautéed them with seasoned salt, garlic powder, onion powder and ground pepper. Adjusted the half & half to 1 cup almond milk, 1/4 cup whole milk and 1/4 heavy cream. It worked just fine! Really good! Will definitely make it again!
Dana says
Thanks for sharing that you liked the recipe, Cam!
Benda says
I made this tonight. It was delicious. I didn’t have rotisserie chicken on hand so used thawed chicken breasts.
Kathleen says
Oh my goodness this is fantastic! So decadent and delicious.
Deb Conley says
What size InstantPot is this recipe for? 6? 8? I have an 8 qt so was thinking I could increase all ingredients by 50%?
Dana says
It is for a 6qt
Deb says
@Dana, thanks! Making it tonight!
Deb Conley says
@Dana,
So, we made it in our 8 qt instant pot, increased all ingredients by 50%, and it was amazing! Used a Sam's Club rotisserie chicken. Next time, we will pick up some OG breadsticks to have with the soup! Definitely a "keeper" recipe. Thanks so much!
Savita says
The chicken soup looks so delicious and so easy to make that too in the instant pot. Loved it.
Veronika says
We don't have Olive Garden in Canada but this soup looked so good I had to make it! Definitely a keeper, I'm not sure why I never tried gnocchi in soup before, it was really good!
Ann says
This sounds like the perfect heart warming dish! Love that you can make it in the Instant Pot too!