This cabbage soup recipe is deeply flavorful, thanks to aromatic veggies and fire-roasted tomatoes. Pair it with good bread for a simple, nourishing meal.
This cabbage soup recipe does the impossible: it uses an entire head of cabbage in one go! Nearly every time I buy a cabbage, I whittle away at it for weeks, adding some to a slaw, some to a bowl, more to a taco, and so on. So the first time I made this cabbage soup recipe, I was shocked. I started by adding half of my cabbage. As it wilted down, it melted into the soup with the aromatic veggies and herbs. I didn’t want it to disappear – I was making cabbage soup, after all – so I added more. Before I knew it, every last ounce of my cabbage was in the pot!
If you’re on the fence about cabbage, don’t despair. All that cabbage doesn’t overwhelm the soup at all. Instead, it adds a slight sweetness, which balances perfectly with a touch of tangy white wine vinegar. As a whole, the soup is deeply flavorful and comforting. It’s healthy, nourishing, and soup-er (sorry!) simple to make. I think you’re going to love it.
Cabbage Soup Recipe Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy cabbage soup:
- Cabbage, of course! You’ll need one small green cabbage for this recipe, about 1 pound.
- Onion, carrots, and celery – This classic trio fills the soup with aromatic flavor.
- Garlic and dried thyme – They add even more depth to the soup.
- Potatoes – They make the soup nice and hearty.
- White beans – For plant-based protein! I often use little navy beans in this recipe, but other white beans, such as cannellini beans, would work here too. Chickpeas would also be great.
- Diced fire-roasted tomatoes – Along with vegetable broth, they create the soup’s brothy, flavorful base.
- White wine vinegar – For tang.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – It adds richness.
- And salt and pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Cabbage Soup Serving Suggestions
When you’re ready to eat, ladle the cabbage soup into bowls, and garnish each one with a sprinkle of fresh parsley. Enjoy the soup on its own, with good crusty bread for sopping up the flavorful broth, or pair it with a sandwich or salad for a larger meal. I love it with a classic grilled cheese or this sweet potato salad.
How to Store and Reheat
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. It’s easy to reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Can you freeze cabbage soup?
Yes! Cabbage soup also freezes well. Allow it to cool to room temperature. Then, transfer it to freezer-safe containers and store it in the freezer.
Frozen cabbage soup will keep for up to 3 months. Allow it to thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating on the stove or in the microwave.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
If you love this soup, try one of these delicious soup recipes next:
- Vegetable Soup
- Tortellini Soup
- Cauliflower Soup
- Best Lentil Soup
- Creamy Asparagus Soup
- Tomato Basil Soup
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Or any of these 35 Best Soup Recipes!
Cabbage Soup
Equipment
- Le Creuset Dutch Oven (I like using my Staub for making soup)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 celery rib, diced
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 (14.5-ounce) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 (15.5-ounce) can cooked white beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 garlic cloves, grated
- 2 Yukon Gold potatoes, diced
- 1 small green cabbage, about 1 pound (9 cups chopped)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- Fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion, celery, salt, and several grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes.
- Add the vinegar, stir, and then add the tomatoes, broth, beans, garlic, potatoes, cabbage, and thyme. Cover and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the potatoes and cabbage are tender.
- Season to taste, garnish with fresh parsley, and serve.
Would this work in a slow cooker?
yep!
So wonderfully warm and filling. Because i dont like my veggie soups extra tomatoey, i used only one can of tomatoes and whirred them in a food processor a few times to puree them.
We added feta cheese at serving time and paired with sour dough bread. Delish!
I’m glad you loved it!
Tasty… Even the kids enjoyed i!
So glad the soup was a hit, Joyce!
This soup turned out great! I did add a teaspoon of sugar just to balance the bitter taste from tomatoes. We will definitely have it on these cold winter nights.
Hi Kathy, I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Loved this made a giant pot and it’s delicious, comforting and even my kids asked for seconds. Would love to have the nutrional info though.
I’m glad it was a hit! I’m sorry, we don’t post nutrition facts but you can plug the ingredients into an online nutrition calculator.
Am I missing where the nutritional value of a serving is? I cant find it anywhere.
Hi Dana, I’m sorry, we don’t post nutrition info but you could plug the ingredients into an online nutrition calculator.
Do you think a red cabbage would work as a substitute?
Hi, yep! You could use red cabbage here. It will give the soup a red/purple color, but it should still taste great.
I’m sure that I just missed it.But how many calories what a serving have?
This soup is delicious! My hubby absolutely loved it, and is still commenting on it! The only thing I did differently was adding leftover smoked turkey leg meat. Fabulous! Thanks for the recipe!
Made this today. It is delicious. I took an idea from an Etruscan soup recipe and cooked the cannellini beans and garlic cloves separately, stick blended them and then added to the soup to make a slightly creamy broth. I topped with grated pecorino cheese. A new favorite.
I’m so glad you loved it!
I just made this soup today. The only thing I tweaked is I added beef broth instead of vegetable. I also added a chunk of roast beef, cut up in small chunks that we had leftover the other night. The soup was very thick so I added another 2-3 cups of broth. Other than that, it was very tasty & flavorful.
I’ll be making this again. Thanks for sharing this yummy recipe
I added Cajun seasoning to add a bit more heat. Delicious!
I made this soup. I added a rotisserie chicken. My husband loved it. I will be making this soup definitely this winter.
This soup is seriously AMAZING. I made a huge pot last week and it lasted us four glorious days. Made another batch last night. My entire family loves it.
The recipe is perfect as is and I followed it 100% — my only addition was bay leaves and fresh thyme from the garden. I personally add lemon (lemon addiction) and a tiny bit of Tabasco to my bowl, but the family loves it as is.
So healthy and delicious! Looking forward to trying more of your recipes — thank you so much!
Wanted to add that I didn’t use the fire roasted tomatoes, just the plain low sodium canned. Was going to try the second round, but ended up loving it too much to change anything 🙂
Was excited to make this, but my soup ended up tasting like hot salsa due to using the roasted tomato cans. Didn’t really like it.
Try again with the non-fire roasted tomatoes — it is seriously delicious. Oh, and a little squeeze of fresh lemon juice to your bowl!
Love this soup! Easy and quite nutritious. Reminds me of my days at Louis Basque Corner where I was a bartender. They fed us daily and cabbage soup was always on their rotation as they served Family Style meals.
Thank you so much for this simple delicious recipe!
I made this soup for husband’s lunch. He said my soup making was taken to a new level. I drizzled a very good evoo with a sprinkle of nutritional yeast . This soup recipe is perfection ! Will make again
Hi Diana, I’m so glad you loved it!
Does this freeze well?
it does!
Love this recipe! Make it a few times a month!
Love the cabbage soup recipe. The next day, I seared Polish sausage slices, added to the mix of the soup.. Had breakfast biscuits to the side..