This One-Pot Unstuffed Cabbage Soup is flavorful, simple to make, packed with veggies and protein, and makes for a hearty dinner. Make it on the stovetop or cook it up in your slow cooker or Instant Pot. It is a delicious and comforting dinner recipe!
We are deep into soup season, TNNers. Which I love and adore. Because not only are soups delicious, comforting, and often easy to make….but veggie-loaded soup recipes are a wonderful way to get vegetables onto the table in an extra delicious way.
When I say I am head-over-heels in love with this Unstuffed Cabbage Soup, I mean it. I don’t see myself as a cabbage lover, but I 100% practice what I preach when it comes to trying veggies in lots of different ways in a quest to find the way I DO enjoy them. And so, I’ve been working on exploring cabbage recipes like Skillet Sausage, Cabbage & Potatoes and Tex-Mex Roasted Cabbage Steaks.
Not only do I love how flavorful, hearty, and easy this One-Pot Unstuffed Cabbage Soup is, but I nearly fell out of my chair when I watched my cabbage-iffy tween daughter happily eat up her bowl at dinner. I think the magic of this soup is not only how delicious it is, but how small the veggies are cut, helping to get all sorts of different textures in one bite. Made with cabbage (of course), this soup also has carrots, tomatoes, onions, and garlic. Made extra hearty and flavorful from cooked ground beef, we’ve added some rice to the mix to make this one-pot soup a complete meal. Gluten free for those who need it, this comforting soup makes about 6 servings and cooks up in one pot in about 30 minutes.
How to select a cabbage
I see fresh cabbages in the store pretty much all year long, so this cabbage soup is great to enjoy during any season. However, when selecting a cabbage at the store or market, be sure to look for:
- a cabbage that is firm. A soft cabbage means that it is old and on its way to the compost pile.
- heads of cabbage with crisp leaves. Avoid heads that have yellowing or wilted looking leaves.
- cabbage that is free of cracks or bruises. These will result in a cabbage rotting faster.
How to core and cut your cabbage
Cabbages have a hard core in their center that is tough and not super fun to eat. Luckily, it is very easy to remove the core of a cabbage to then make chopping the tender leaves into bite size pieces easy. Here’s how:
Have leftover cabbage? Check out my tips & tricks for storing cabbage so it stays crisp and fresh for your next veggie-loaded recipe!
Suggested Adaptations
- Use a different meat. Ground beef gives this recipe that traditional stuffed cabbage taste. However, a dark meat ground turkey could also work as a substitute.
- To make this unstuffed cabbage soup vegetarian, either use a plant-based meat replacement like Beyond Beef or add 2 cups cooked lentils when you add the brown sugar. Also, be sure to use vegetable broth and a vegan Worcestershire to make this recipe plant-based.
- Use a different grain. Brown rice will take much longer to cook, so I don’t recommend adding it uncooked. Instead, add cooked brown rice, cooked farro, or even cooked orzo at the end of the cooking process.
- Omit the brown sugar. Stuffed cabbage is traditionally served with a sweet tomato sauce, so that’s why I have a little brown sugar in this recipe. However, if you prefer to leave it out, the soup will still taste great.
- To make this soup in the Instant Pot, use the sauté function for Steps 1 to 4. Cancel, then secure the lid and set to Manual High Pressure for 10 minutes. Release pressure then continue with Steps 6 and 7.
- To make this soup in the Slow Cooker, cook the onion and ground beef in a sauté pan on the stove (Steps 1 to 3). Add that to your crockpot then add in the rest of the ingredients. Set the cooker to low for 6 to 7 hours or high for 4 hours.
Can this soup be made ahead of time?
Yes, I love this soup as a quick leftover for lunch and it lasts in the fridge beautifully for about 3 days. However, rice tends to absorb liquid as it sits in the soup and won’t be as firm as freshly cooked. And since it will soak up the broth after cooking, you might find your reheated Unstuffed Cabbage Soup thicker than it was originally. If you make your soup ahead of time, you might need to add some water to thin it out.
Can I freeze this soup?
Sure! I find this soup freezes beautifully after cooking and lasts for about 2 months.
Other hearty veggie-loaded soup recipes to add to your dinner rotations
- Chicken & Veggie Pot Pie Soup
- One-Pot Quinoa Chicken Vegetable Soup
- Creamy Mushroom Vegetable Rice Soup (dairy-free)
- Slow Cooker Creamy Vegetable Chicken Stew
- Slow Cooker Chicken & Butternut Squash Stew
- Instant Pot Black Bean & Butternut Squash Soup
- Mexican Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
Did you try this cabbage soup and now you’re hungry for more?
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One-Pot Unstuffed Cabbage Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
- 1¼ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 cups low sodium beef or chicken broth*
- 15 ounces diced tomatoes
- 14 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 2 large carrots peeled and diced
- 14 ounces green cabbage, cored & cut into bite-sized pieces about 1 small head of cabbage
- ½ cup long grain white rice
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar optional
- Chopped fresh parsley optional garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté until translucent and softened, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the ground beef and cook, stirring frequently, to break the meat up into crumbles. About 5-7 minutes.
- Once the meat is cooked, add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste, salt, and pepper.
- Slowly add the broth, scrapping up any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Stir in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, and rice.
- Bring the pot up to a boil then cover and lower the heat to medium-low to maintain a light simmer. Cook until the rice is cooked through, and the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
- Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and sugar, if using. If a lot of the liquid has evaporated during cooking and the soup is too thick for your liking, stir in a cup of water to thin it out. Carefully taste the soup for seasoning and add more salt and pepper as needed.
- Ladle soup into bowls then top with a sprinkle of chopped parsley.
Notes
-
- Use a different meat. Ground beef gives this recipe that traditional stuffed cabbage taste. However, a dark meat ground turkey could also work as a substitute.
-
- To make this unstuffed cabbage soup vegetarian, either use a plant-based meat replacement like Beyond Beef or add 2 cups cooked lentils when you add the brown sugar. Also, be sure to use vegetable broth and a vegan Worcestershire to make this recipe plant-based.
-
- Use a different grain. Brown rice will take much longer to cook, so I don’t recommend adding it uncooked. Instead, add cooked brown rice, cooked farro, or even cooked orzo at the end of the cooking process.
-
- Omit the brown sugar. Stuffed cabbage is traditionally served with a sweet tomato sauce, so that’s why I have a little brown sugar in this recipe. However, if you prefer to leave it out, the soup will still taste great.
-
- To make this soup in the Instant Pot, use the sauté function for Steps 1 to 4. Cancel, then secure the lid and set to Manual High Pressure for 10 minutes. Release pressure then continue with Steps 6 and 7.
-
- To make this soup in the Slow Cooker, cook the onion and ground beef in a sauté pan on the stove (Steps 1 to 3). Add that to your crockpot then add in the rest of the ingredients. Set the cooker to low for 6 to 7 hours or high for 4 hours.
Nutrition
The nutritional information is provided as an estimate only and may vary based on the product type, servings and other factors. If you are following a diet, please consult with a professional nutritionist or your doctor. Stay healthy!
Comments
We love cabbage rolls in this family but sometimes I find they can be a little overwhelming. Just a bit too much cabbage, even though I love the taste. So I was hopeful and tried this one tonight. After all, the last recipe I tried “Healthy Hamburger Helper” was an absolute winner and now on our menu rotation.
The recipe is quick and easy and full of flavour! Subtle but flavourful. My family told me to skip the cabbage rolls and, “Just make this but make more mum!”
What a delightful review! I’m so glad it helped you keep a dish on the menu that you love in a way the whole family can enjoy!
I had some cabbage I needed to use up and was eager to try this recipe, so made it with the only protein I had on hand, Apple chicken sausage. Skipped the brown sugar since the sausage already has some sweetness and added a little red pepper flake for some heat. It turned out great and the leftovers were even better as it thickened up! Can’t wait to try it again with the ground beef as written!
Oh so glad you enjoyed it, Lindsay! Love the adaptations you made!
Really yummy and I am already looking forward to the leftovers! I do have an iffy cabbage eater who is still in the learning to enjoy cabbage stage, but he enjoyed the other parts a lot 😂. My other son gobbled his up. Thank you!
That it something I love about this kind of soup or dish, Erin! Veggie-iffy eaters can still be exposed to a new veggie, eat what they feel comfortable and skip the rest. The family still eats the same meal but everyone feels comfortable! I’m so glad you enjoyed it as much as we did. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
Made a plant based version of this tonight in the instant pot. Subbed mushrooms & plant crumbles for the meat, leeks for onions, and mixed lentils for the rice. Everyone enjoyed it! Thanks for another good recipe for the whole family!
I love the adaptations you made, Kayla! Many people have been asking for suggestions on how to make this recipe plant based. I’ve been suggesting cooked lentils but the mushrooms + plant crumbles sound delicious. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
My sister and I made this for dinner tonight. It was delicious! We had a bit of trouble while making it, but that was entirely my fault. The cabbage I had was about 2.5 lbs and I wasn’t thinking when I added all of it. It was way too much cabbage for my 6 qt Instant Pot, so I had to wait for it to cook down a bit before I could put the lid on. I also ended up fishing out about a cup or two of the cabbage out of the soup. There was still probably a lot more than called for, but it turned out very tasty anyways. I think we’ll get more than 6 servings out of it (the instant pot was almost to the max fill line); maybe because of all the extra cabbage bulking it up? The veggies in ours were also a bit more cooked since we boiled it for a bit to cook down the cabbage, and then I also forgot to release the pressure until about 6 minutes after it finished cooking. We like our veggies soft though, so that worked out well. I am definitely adding this to my ‘make again’ list and I look forward to trying some of your other soups that I have my eye on!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this, Lexi! Cabbage does tend to add a lot of volume, so I’m betting thats why your IP was so full. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review! I always appreciate it.
Delicious!! Great flavors (I skipped the sugar) and so hearty. Our toddler had 2 bowls!
Toddler approved is always like winning an Emmy to me!
Loved this recipe!! Came together so quickly with a little prep and so tasty! I added a can of lentils and about 2 cups of riced frozen cauliflower as well. I sliced the cabbage into thin matchsticks and they because almost noodle-like! I’d recommended using the sugar and Worcestershire, just gave it that extra cabbage roll taste!
I’ve got lots of leftovers and I’m looking forward to eating it all week!!
So glad you loved this soup as much as we do, Chantel!
Quick, easy, and YUM! Even my 7 year old ate a huge helping! This is a great way to have all the delicious flavor of stuffed cabbage without all the time-consuming rolling! Love it!
So delighted to hear that your kiddo enjoyed it! Always such a win when it comes to a veggie-loaded recipe.
I was a bit overwhelmed with all the chopping, slicing, shredding, and physical effort I had to put into a simple soup. Then I tasted it, after 2 hours in my crockpot.. That one taste made it all worthwhile. The overall flavor I wanted also allowed me to use up some carrots and fresh green beans I bought for a different recipe but this was a really good idea. Overall the taste was beefy and fresh, I highlighted the spices and herbs witha rough chop of fresh bacon bits and let it reduce in the coockpot overnight on low. The rice made it thick and solid, almost a stew texture. I will keep my changes as they are and put this in my rotation as a regular dish. It’s got to be tested for freezing too, because if it will freeze as a base, I can then thin it out with more broth for a hearty dish and very few dishes. Homemade sourdough bread is added just for the overall pleasure of everything being fresh and beautiful. Thanks for posting this.
I agree that the one downside to my approach of veggie-loading is that the chopping and shredding of veggies can be a bit time consuming. But getting so many more veggies in and in a way love makes it so worth it to me! I have found that using a food processor with the “S” blade is a great way to quickly chop veggies and I bet would work great with different parts of the prep for this soup! So glad you enjoyed it and thank you for taking the time to leave a review!
So good, so simple to prepare.
So glad to hear that, Rose!