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Whenever I ask my family what they feel like having for dinner on a given week, they always say soup. Which is pretty awesome because soups are easy, can use up whatever I have on hand, and it’s easy to fit in lots of protein and veggies. This beef cabbage soup is one of our faves. It’s super comforting, and somehow both hearty and light at the same time. Let me show you how to make cabbage soup with ground beef, soft veggies, and just 15 minutes of prep time. Make it with me!
Why You Need My Beef Cabbage Soup Recipe
- Beefy, veggie packed meal – This isn’t your average soup! It’s loaded with bold, beefy flavor and tender vegetables, striking a balance of hearty and cozy without feeling too heavy. If you like my hamburger soup and classic cabbage soup, you’ll love this combo of both.
- Easy to make, with hands-off cooking – There’s almost no chopping involved! And you can choose from three (hands-off) cooking options: Instant Pot, slow cooker, or stovetop.
- Perfect for meal prep – My hamburger cabbage soup stores beautifully, making it perfect for weekend batch cooking. I love it for light lunches all week or as a cozy dinner with a healthy salad and cauliflower breadsticks.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best ingredients for beef cabbage soup with hamburger, what each one does in my recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Cabbage – That shortcut I talked about? It’s coleslaw mix, so you don’t have to chop the cabbage! But you can easily chop a head of cabbage yourself and throw in some shredded carrots. Use the extras to make my kielbasa and sauerkraut or cabbage salad.
- Ground Beef – I like 85/15 grass-fed beef, which is flavorful without being too greasy, but use whatever you prefer. And while my recipe is for cabbage soup with ground beef, you can easily make it with ground turkey, pork, chicken, or even Italian sausage.
- Onion – White or yellow onions are my go-to, but red onion will work. You can also saute other sturdy veggies with it, like bell peppers or celery.
- Beef Broth – I love using homemade bone broth, but store-bought beef broth works great too. You can even swap in chicken or veggie broth if needed.
- Diced Tomatoes – I use this kind. You can also use fire-roasted for a smoky flavor.
- Herbs & Spices – Italian seasoning, garlic powder, bay leaves, salt, and pepper. Want heat? Add a pinch of cayenne.
- Avocado Oil – For sauteing. Olive oil works, too.
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How To Make Cabbage Soup With Ground Beef
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Saute the onions. Cook them in olive oil until they’re nice and soft. You can do this right in the Instant Pot if you’re using that method, in a pan for the Crock Pot method, or a Dutch oven or large pot if you’re cooking the entire soup on the stove.
- Brown the beef. Turn up the heat, add the ground beef, and cook it until it’s browned and crumbly.
- Add everything else. Transfer the beef and onions to the slow cooker if that’s how you’re cooking, or leave in the pot otherwise. Add the cabbage, tomatoes (with juice), broth, seasonings, and bay leaves.
- Cook it up. Let the beef cabbage soup cook until everything’s tender. A sprinkle of fresh parsley on top is a nice touch, but totally optional!
My Recipe Tips & Variations
- Do you really have to brown the beef and onions? Yes, I highly recommend it, even if you’re using the slow cooker or pressure cooker. It improves the flavor so much, and doesn’t take very long.
- Prefer a softer texture in your beef? A reader told me she cooked it with a little water and it came out softer. Give it a try if you like!
- Want a thicker beef cabbage soup? Add more cabbage or reduce the amount of broth a bit. It’ll feel more like a stew and super cozy for colder days.
- Want it more hearty? Toss in some drained cannellini or kidney beans, or diced potatoes.
- Flavor doesn’t seem quite right? Oftentimes, if something is missing, I find that something is salt! Add a little more and see if this helps. But if it’s too salty, a tablespoon of lemon juice can fix it. I have more tips on adjusting flavor in my vegetable soup recipe — the same applies here.
More Ground Beef Soup Recipes
If you like this hamburger cabbage soup, try one of my other healthy soup recipes with ground beef next:
Beef Cabbage Soup
By
This beef cabbage soup is loaded with hamburger and veggies in a cozy broth. Make it on the stove, in the Crock Pot, or in the Instant Pot!
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
Stovetop Instructions:
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Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onions. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to brown.
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Add the ground beef. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, breaking apart with a spatula, for 8-10 minutes, until the beef is cooked through.
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Add the cabbage or coleslaw mix, diced tomatoes, bone broth, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Season with more salt and/or pepper to taste.
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Increase the heat and bring the beef cabbage soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30-60 minutes, until the flavors develop to your liking.
Crock Pot Instructions:
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Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the chopped onions. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to brown.
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Add the ground beef. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, breaking apart with a spatula, for 8-10 minutes, until the beef is cooked through.
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Transfer the beef and onion mixture to a Crock Pot. Add the cabbage or coleslaw mix, diced tomatoes, bone broth, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Season with more salt and/or pepper to taste.
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Cook for 5-6 hours on Low or 2-3 hours on High. Remove the bay leaves before serving.
Instant Pot Instructions:
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Press the Saute button on the Instant Pot. Add the oil and chopped onions. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to brown.
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Add the ground beef. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Increase the saute temperature to "High". Cook, breaking apart with a spatula, for 8-10 minutes, until the beef is cooked through.
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Turn off heat. Add the cabbage or coleslaw mix, diced tomatoes, bone broth, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Season with more salt and/or pepper to taste.
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Cover and seal the Instant Pot. Press the Manual button and adjust the time to 20 minutes. When cooking is complete, let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then use quick release. Remove the bay leaves before serving.
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 cup
- Tips: Check out my recipe tips above to help you adjust the flavor and thickness of your soup, or even make it more hearty.
- Store: Cool first, then pour into airtight containers and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
- Meal prep: Shred the cabbage (or grab a pre-shredded mix) and cook the onions and beef ahead. Or make the whole soup—it stores great, so I often make a double batch!
- Freeze: Keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Reheat: Heat on the stovetop, in the slow cooker, or in the microwave.
- Note on serving size: 1 cup is a nice amount for a starter before your meal. My family sometimes has this as a light meal by itself and we just triple the serving size!
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I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Beef Cabbage Soup
362 Comments
Sonia Lamp
0I actually had a head of cabbage on hand and was looking for something to do with it when this recipe appeared in my inbox. It was very easy to make. I didn’t add anything extra or different from the recipe, but used only cabbage rather than the coleslaw mix, so it did come out a little bland. I might try kicking it up a little with some extra seasonings. It’s a good base that offers lots of options for variations.
Linda Cribari
0Hubby and I love cabbage. I made this recipe Friday evening and it was easy and delicious. I used a Dutch Oven on the stove top. I fried the onion and ground beef together and put the remaining ingredients in the Dutch Oven as instructed. I stirred the contents of the Dutch Oven then added the onion and ground beef into the Dutch Over ingredients and gave it a stir to combine. Hubby and I both loved this dish. Thank you Maya!
Brenda Karl
0I made this soup tonight in the crockpot for Sunday supper. It was terrific! Used a one pound roll of Italian sausage from Aldi, and the soup was just right. My husband added shredded cheese on top, ’cause he likes to do that with soups. 😉 I used pre-shredded coleslaw mix, but I think I’ll try it with shredded cabbage next time, so the cabbage shows up a little more. Will definitely be making it again. Thanks for a great, simple, yummy recipe!!
Jill A.
0I really liked the ease of making this recipe. It didn’t take much time before it came together and was in the pot cooking. I had some Tuscan kale I needed to use up so I switched out some of the cabbage for that. I also used fresh garlic, added some crushed red pepper and some smoked paprika. For a little extra nutrition I used chicken bone broth. The soup was delicious. Thank you for this really great recipe.
Linda
0Loved this recipe and have added it to my cabbage recipes. Before I do though I’m going to try adding and a little Parmesan cheese and ground pork, I’m an experimenter?
The recipe really doesn’t need a thing as it’s good just as is.
I’m on your mail list and love your recipes.
Brenda Dehart
0Made this soup as directed, but added garlic and a small can of V8 to up the flavor a bit. DELICIOUS! Thanks for the easy, tasty recipe!
Anna Nelson
0I feel obligated to tell you all that my dad and I were on the cabbage soup diet eons ago. He had sworn never to eat cabbage soup again after months on that diet much to my mom’s dismay. I made this soup tonight for him, my mom, my husband, and myself. Dad said he loved it! Miracle of miracles, I tell you! Dad has particular tastes so the fact that he loves this, says a lot! The rest of us also loved it. It was easy peasy to make in my slow cooker. I doubled everything but used half hamburger, half turkey burger because we didn’t have another pound of hamburger. Side note…Garlic Parmesan Biscuits from the Wholesome Yum Carboholics Cookbook were really good as a side to this soup. Definitely saving both in my recipe collection!
Maureen
0Tasty! I added kale, turkey, lots of garlic, zucchini ( it was close to going bad) and Parmesan. The whole family enjoyed . Def needed more salt . I think ground meat would be even tastier .
Donna Goldwasser
0Hello folks… I’m not a big cabbage fan, but decided to try this recipe. I was pleasantly surprised on how easy, hearty, tasty & filling this recipe is, plus the fact that you can add spices’ to your liking is a healthy plus for me. You can use a different meat, like sausage, and if you’re vegetarian, you can either omit the meat altogether, use a vegetarian “meat”, or use a firm tofu cut up. My family loved it, and even the leftovers were great! Try it to your liking, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. Looking forward to your other wonderful recipes.
Patrice mooe
0This was so easy to make. It makes a lot I am going to share at work tomorrow. I love cabbage and this soup is awesome.
Geisha Olavarria
0I love how it turned out! I used turkey ground meat and it was delicious!
Kim
0Family really liked the soup. Made it in the Instant Pot. I think I would like to add the cabbage or colemix after it was cooked so it would stay crisp. It had a great taste. Will definitely make again.
Teresa Thamer
0I prepared this in my 3 quart instant pot so cut the recipe in half but it was so quick and easy. The best part was the taste! The bay leaf and Italian seasonings gave it a unique but yummy flavor. I used vegetable broth but it was still very hearty and rich. I will definitely make it again.
Paul Goldie
0It is a cold winter Sunday and I had all the ingredients so I gave it a try. Wow, it is really easy and delicious. I do not have a crock pot but do have an instant pot but decided to make it in a pan on the stove. I followed the instant pot instructions but added more time to the cooking. Top it off with little red pepper flakes and a scoop of sour cream!
Kim
0This was a very good starting point for me. I turned it into more of an Italian-based vegetable dump soup as I had A bag of kale/cabbage/Brussel sprouts and little bits of other veggies I needed to use up. Added cut up green beans and carrots. I am not eating full keto but low carb so added a couple small Yukon Gold potatoes diced that I needed to get rid of too. For the meat used Abbott’s plant-based chorizo which is a Pea protein-based and very low carb. I browned it separately and added it at the end. Simmered on stove top it only needed to simmer a little over an hour. Thank you so much for jumpstarting my healthy fridge clean out.
Paula Sayre
0This was a winner with us! I made it with our own lean grass-fed ground beef, lots of finely-shredded cabbage and carrot, and added some sliced red radishes, and used avocado oil to saute and season. I used onion powder extra, instead of the garlic (Not a garlic fan!). I used the stovetop method, and let it simmer all afternoon. Oh, so good! We ate the entire pot full in one sitting! This will definitely be a regular on our healthy dinner table! Thank you!
Sherry
0This soup was so awesome! So easy to make,! I evan bragged about it at work. My husband also likes it! There’s nothing that i would change about it.
Cheryl Gaggins
0Love this soup! It has everything you need to make a delicious meal! Of course I always have leftovers to eat as my lunch for a few days and just love it! Easy to make and easy to enjoy! Thanks for a great addition to my soup recipes!
Ruth Taddy
0If you were like me a few decades ago, you joined Weight Watchers. A staple recipe in WW was their cabbage soup. It was good, but your cabbage soup is next level tasty because it has meat!!? And of course, it’s perfectly seasoned; so thank you for sharing it with us!
Laura J Jones-Cross
0I have made this soup (one just like it) for years! When I am feeling bloated, I make a big pot and eat if for a few days. It also freezes well.