Instant Pot Tom Yum Soup

Ditch the Thai restaurant take-out soups for this delicious homemade Vegetarian Tom Yum Soup in under 45 minutes.

 Hot, sour and slightly sweet this warm broth based soup is FULL of vegetables and tofu.

Soups are perfect for cold days. A warm bowl of soup with a delicious side is our favorite for dinner.

We are big fans of soups and stews and Asian soups TOP the list of favorites! We make a lot of them from scratch and get them for take-outs too. Vegetarian Hot Pot, Instant Pot Manchow Soup and Miso Ramen are amongst the top picks.

My favorite part is that these soups are generally easy to make at home and taste super amazing with only a handful of ingredients. It is all in the flavoring ingredients we use here, so get the BEST ingredients for these soups.

Most of these soups are broth based and FULL of vegetables and can become protein rich by adding tofu or paneer. Noodles blend in with these really well too. I like to make the broth/stock from scratch and always use this Quick and Easy Instant Pot Stock Recipe.

This is the Vegetarian version of a Thai classic; Tom Yum Soup. It is made with vegetables, tofu and a super flavorful lemongrass and lime based broth. 

Jump to:

• What is Tom Yum Soup
• Why this Recipe works
• Ingredients and Substitutions
• How to make this recipe
• Expert Tips and Notes
• Recipe FAQs
• Pairings
• More Soups to try
• Instant Pot Tom Yum Soup

What is Tom Yum Soup

A super flavorful broth based Thai soup, Tom Yum is very popular all over the world.

Served in Thai restaurants and made at home, this soup is hot and sour with a slight sweet taste and great with all the vegetables added to it.

Per Wikipedia, Tom means the process of boiling and Yum is mixed. So the soup can easily be understood as a preparation made using flavorful ingredients that are boiled together.

In order to replicate the flavors of boiling it for hours, we pressure cook the aromatics, hardy vegetables and broth using the Instant Pot. It extracts all the flavors from the aromatics and cooks the vegetables as well.

Tom Kha is another popular soup that can be made from this Tom Yum soup. It is essentially this soup with some coconut milk or coconut cream. The addition of cream makes it thicker and rich tasting. 

Why this Recipe works

• This soup is Vegetarian and Vegan friendly. Once you ensure your Tom Yum paste is Vegan, there is nothing that is non-vegan here.
• It is a one pot recipe and it comes together in under 30 minutes. Hello busy weeknights!
• It is super flavorful from all the aromatics and spices used. The paste has a lot of spices and we are adding some whole ones too. Together they make the broth and the soup amazing!
• This is a broth based soup. Convert it to a thicker and more fuller Tom Kha soup by adding some coconut milk to it.

This soup is perfect for a cold winter dinner with a great mix of vegetables, aromatics and broth.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Vegetables: For this soup we use a mix of vegetables. While I like to add carrots, baby corn, broccoli, cucumber and mushrooms to the soup; adding spinach, bamboo shoot, green beans, cauliflower and cabbage is an option too.
• Pick vegetables and divide them into quick cook and those that need some time. Add the ones that need time to the broth while cooking and the rest later. 
• Aromatics: Given that the soup is a super flavorful one, some ginger or galangal, lemongrass, kaffir like leaves and green onions are used. We cook the aromatics with the vegetables and the broth to get the maximum flavor from them.
• Vegetable Stock: Making this soup is best with vegetable broth. It adds so much more flavor to the soup compared to just water. Store bought stock, Homemade Stock or better than bullion works here.  
• Tom Yum Paste: Available at Asian stores and on Amazon, this paste is perfect for the soup. It is full with flavor and perfectly umami. I like to use this tom yum paste as it is Vegetarian friendly (no shrimp, fish etc.).
• Tofu: To add some protein to the recipe I have added firm tofu as it makes a great vegetarian protein source. Paneer, tempeh or a protein of your choice will work for the recipe; however it can be skipped if you want only a vegetable based soup.
• Tomatoes: As tomatoes add a lot of taste and sourness to the soup I would strongly recommend not skipping them. They do not have an absolute substitute but adding lots of lemon juice and some zest does help.
• We also use salt, pepper, a hint of sugar and some soy sauce.

See the recipe card for detailed ingredient information, measurements and nutrition.

How to make this recipe

1- Add vegetable stock to the Instant Pot. 

2- The aromatics go in next; add the lemongrass, green onion whites, lemon leaves and ginger. 

3- Then add in chopped baby corn, carrots and mushrooms.

4- Finally some salt, sugar and black pepper powder. Mix well.

5- Close the Instant Pot lid and set the mode to pressure cook. Turn the valve to sealing and time to 5 minutes. Once the cooking is complete, wait for 2 minutes and then release all the pressure in small successions till the valve drops.

6- Then open the Instant Pot and fish out the lemongrass and lime leaves. Discard them.

7- Next, add the tomatoes, broccoli, chopped cucumber and firm tofu.

8- Then add in the tom yum paste and soy sauce. Mix well. 

9- Turn the Instant Pot mode back to sauté and let the soup simmer for 4-5 minutes. 

10- Turn the Instant Pot off and serve the soup immediately. Top it with chopped cilantro and green onions. 

Expert Tips and Notes

• Use homemade or store bought vegetable stock for the recipe instead of water. It adds a lot of flavor. 
• Tom Yum paste is a great way to add all the flavoring agents together. If you do not have that, use 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste, ¼ teaspoon lemon zest and ¼ teaspoon tamarind extract.
• Adjust the salt based on the salt in vegetable stock, tom yum paste and soy sauce. They all tend ti have some salt in them.
• The same recipe can be made on the stove top. Cook the broth and vegetables for 10-12 minutes before adding the remaining ingredients. 
• Adding some coconut milk or cream makes this soup into Tom Kha Soup.

Recipe FAQs

Pairings

This soup pairs really well with Thai Entrees. It makes a great meal with all these or some of these for sure.

More Soups to try