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This cabbage soup recipe is easy with big, bold flavor! Cozy up to a bowl of this veggie-packed healthy soup.
Looking for a flavor-packed healthy soup? Try this easy cabbage soup recipe! Confession: we adore cabbage. It’s really not the most popular of vegetables, is it? But though it’s humble, cabbage makes incredibly satisfying dishes dressed up as sauteed cabbage or coleslaw. Here it makes a hearty, satisfying soup, packed with veggies that swim in a savory-spiced broth of fire roasted tomatoes. Ready to cozy up to a bowl?
Ingredients in cabbage soup
This cabbage soup recipe is hearty and healthy, featuring white beans, loads of veggies, and a super flavorful broth. It’s a great way to use up green cabbage, and makes a warm bowl for cozying up to during soup season.
While we’re 100% passionate about cabbage soup, we don’t recommend it as part of the cabbage soup diet: a fat diet that encourages unsustainable weight loss. Eat this cabbage soup simply because it’s delicious and nutrient-packed! Here’s what you’ll need for this cabbage soup recipe:
- Butter or olive oil
- Yellow onion
- Carrots
- Celery
- Garlic
- Green cabbage
- Canned white beans
- Fire roasted tomatoes
- Vegetable broth
- Sugar
- Salt
Use fire roasted tomatoes if possible
The best way to pack flavor into the broth of this cabbage soup recipe? Fire roasted tomatoes make the best flavor. This type of tomato is roasted over an open flame before canning, which makes a sweet and smoky flavor right out of the can.
Can’t find fire roasted tomatoes? Substitute the best quality crushed tomatoes you can find. If you’d like, you can mimic the flavor by adding an extra 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon smoked paprika to the broth.
How to cut cabbage
The one part of this cabbage soup recipe that requires a little technique? Shredding the cabbage! A large head of cabbage can be tricky to cut into thin shreds. But we’ve got a trick that makes quick work of it. Here’s how to cut cabbage:
- Slice off the root: Remove any outer layers of the cabbage that seem tough or are not fresh, and discard them. With a large chef’s knife, slice off the root of the cabbage.
- Quarter it: Slice the cabbage in half through the stem. Then cut it into quarters.
- Slice out the root: Remove the root by cutting it out with two diagonal slices.
- Slice crosswise: Thinly slice the cabbage in the short direction, using a circular motion with the knife.
What to serve with cabbage soup
This cabbage soup recipe is a hearty soup that can work as a meal in itself. However, you’ll probably want to pair it with a salad or sandwich for a filling meal. Here are some ideas for what to serve with cabbage soup:
- Grilled cheese like Gourmet Grilled Cheese or Grilled Cheese in the Oven
- Salad like Arugula Salad, Watercress Salad, Goat Cheese Salad, Brussels Sprout Salad or Pear Salad
- Crackers and cheese like smoked gouda or Havarti
- Toast with goat cheese
- Muffins like Classic Cornbread Muffins or Popovers
More cabbage recipes
Got a big head of green cabbage and not sure what to do with it? Cabbage is a healthy cruciferous vegetable that’s very versatile for using in the kitchen. Here are a few cabbage recipes to try:
- Go for Sauteed Cabbage or Boiled Cabbage
- Opt for Steamed Cabbage
- Make a fresh Cabbage Salad, or add creamy dressing for our Best Coleslaw Recipe
- Fire up the grill for Grilled Cabbage Wedges
- Learn How to Make Sauerkraut
This cabbage soup recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Cabbage Soup
This cabbage soup recipe is easy with big, bold flavor! Cozy up to a bowl of this veggie-packed healthy soup.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, small diced
- 2 medium carrots, small diced
- 2 celery ribs, small diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons each garlic powder and dried basil
- 1 teaspoon each dried oregano and dried thyme
- 1/2 medium green cabbage, shredded (6 to 7 cups)
- 15-ounce can white beans
- 28-ounce can crushed fire roasted tomatoes* (or best quality crushed tomatoes)
- 1 quart vegetable broth
- 1 ¼ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- Chopped Italian parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the butter or olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 to 10 minutes, until the celery is tender and the vegetables have released their juices.
- Add the garlic, garlic powder, basil, oregano, and thyme and cook for 1 minute. Add the cabbage, white beans, crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, salt, and sugar. Bring to a simmer and simmer 10 to 15 minutes until the cabbage is tender. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley.
Notes
*Can’t find fire roasted tomatoes? Substitute the best quality crushed tomatoes you can find. If you’d like, add an extra 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon smoked paprika to the broth.
I used diced fire roasted tomatoes and it turned out delicious. I also used black beans because I did not have any white beans in my pantry. I will make this soup again!
I made this tonight to counteract the cold and gloom. It did its job! I added the cabbage to the vegetables after I sautéed the them and sautéed it for 10 minutes or so and then added the rest of the ingredients. Tasty and healthy, so it’s a keeper.
This humble-seeming soup was so incredibly flavorful and delicious! Also, easy and gets better the longer it sits. So so good.
You indicate that you should serve this soup immediately. Can it be made ahead of time (1-2 days) and reheated?
Hi! Yes, it will stay well in the fridge.
Wonderful soup recipe!
I like that you included nutritional info on your Tuscan Kale soup. You should do that for all your recipes.
looking for plant based or vegan + keto recipes
Followed the recipe exactly – but my soup appeared much paler than the photograph. Added 15 oz canned tomato sauce, simmered, and topped each bowl with shaved Parmesean cheese – beautiful and delicious!
Love…love…love the recipes! I’m a fan for life.
Thank you!