Cabbage Soup

Soul Warming Cabbage Soup

Looking for a quick, healthy, and tasty meal option? This cabbage soup recipe is the perfect choice! Packed with nutrients and flavor, it’s a simple dish that will please the whole family. This hearty cabbage soup recipe combines browned ground beef and sausage, garden vegetables, and a perfect blend of spices. This will quickly become your favorite soup. If your family loves cabbage like mine, try my fried cabbage, cabbage and sausage, and haluski.

Cabbage Soup Ingredients

Start with a base of ground beef and pork sausage, followed by onions and garlic, and spices like marjoram, thyme, paprika, and bay leaves. Then add beef broth, brown sugar, Worcestershire Sauce, carrots, cabbage, tomato sauce, and fire-roasted tomatoes. Season with salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and parsley or basil.

How to make Cabbage Soup

Start by browning the ground beef and sausage over medium-high heat in a large Dutch Oven or pot. About halfway through the browning process, add the onions. Then, cook until the onions are soft and the meat is browned. Now reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, marjoram, thyme, paprika, and bay leaves. Cook for 1 minute while stirring constantly.

Then add the beef broth, brown sugar, Worcestershire Sauce, carrots, cabbage, tomato sauce, and fire-roasted tomatoes. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Cover and cook for 30 minutes or until the carrots and cabbage are tender. Remove the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour into bowls and garnish with fresh herbs.

Recipe Tips

• You can substitute ground beef, ground chicken, ground pork sausage, ground turkey, Polish polska kielbasa, or Italian sausage.
• For aesthetic purposes, peel the carrots and let that beautiful orange color shine through.
• You can substitute oregano for the marjoram, but if you have never cooked with marjoram, you really should treat yourself. With a woodsy citrus aroma, Marjoram is less pungent, milder, and sweeter.
• Chop your vegetables fairly small so that you can enjoy a variety of flavors in every spoonful.
• Go light on the salt, as the beef broth and tomatoes are already salty.

Storage and Reheat

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. They can also be frozen in an airtight freezer-safe container or heavy-duty zipper bag for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, and reheat on the stovetop over low heat or microwave at reduced power.

What to Serve with Cabbage Soup?

This is a hearty meal in itself, but if company is coming or if you are feeding a crowd, there are several options.

• Homemade Biscuits
• Simple Garden Salad
• Cornbread
• Pretzel Rolls
• Brussels Sprout Salad
• French Baguettes
• Arugula Salad

Can I Freeze Cabbage Soup?

Start by cooling the soup. For a quick and immediate cooldown, place the pot in an ice bath and stir to chill. However, do not submerge or allow any ice water into the soup pot.

Ladle the fully-cooled soup into quart or gallon-size freezer zipper bags, depending on how much you want to eat at a time. Be sure to mark the bags with the date and the contents. Remember that liquids expand when frozen, so leave about an inch at the top of the bag for expansion. On the other hand, you don’t want it to get freezer-burnt, so remove any excess air.

Lay the soup bags on cookie sheets in a single layer and place them in the freezer. Once fully frozen, stack the bags in the freezer to save on space.

Thaw in the fridge overnight. Then reheat on the stovetop on low or in the microwave at reduced power so as not to overcook any ingredients.

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