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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!
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Healthy Ebook Bundle!
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
Ev
0Amazing soup!!! Do easy to make and delicious. It’s one of my favourites!
Annette Erdtsieck
0Grab half a parsnip and piece several times with sharp knife.
Add to soup and cook with everything else. Remove before serving
Heaps of parsely!
Annette Erdtsieck
0wow, I actually make this exact same soup on the regular. Nice to see a recipe of it for others to have. Nice use of bay leaf as a lot of people don’t think it makes any difference to the flavour.
It does. Hard time writing this recipe due to all the pop ups… hmm
Prescilla Molitor
0One of the easiest recipes to make. Thank you for another tasty recipe.
Susan
0Love this soup on a cold winter day! I add coriander and paprika for extra flavoring.
Karen
0Super simple! Making it tonight as I have all the ingredients in my pantry!
Kelly
0LOVE IT!!!! Had a bag of coleslaw sitting in the fridge & did not have time to make it so it came in very handy making the soup in my crockpot. It is Delicious.
Sharron
0I made this a week ago and it was very simple, nice and hearty. It made a lot. We got 4 meals out of it. My suggestion is to add a spice element. I was adding hot sauce to it when I re heated it but if I make it again I would probably add red pepper flakes, chili powder, cayenne and maybe a little cumin. A few cans of green chilies and instead of regular tomatoes, a can of fire roasted would be a good addition as well.
Gail A Holcomb
0I used fire roasted tomatoes but kept the rest of the ingredients the same, and I simmered on top of the stove for about an hour because I don’t have the other appliances. We all loved the soup and reminded me a bit of the eggroll in a bowl but in a soup version! Thank you for the great recipe!!
Jolee
0This recipe was amazing. The preparation was super easy and I loved the cabbage mix. Much easier than chopping from scratch. The bay leaves and bone broth gave it the touch of flavour goodness. 5 star for sure.
Tammy Duncan
0I made this soup for my daughter and me. We loved it! It is so rich and tasty. It has all of the best combinations to blend smoothly on your tastebuds. These kind of recipes really help make keto easier.
Sherry Kammler
0I have made this before, I had to add extra garlic and couple of other spices. It was delicious and actually froze leftovers, getting out for lunch today and sure they will be more tastier today. This is a very challenging part of my life learning how to cook healthier and eating low carb. I have tried several recipes and have found a few that was not good, but cannot please everyones taste. Keep creating, I am enjoying!
Carol Oh
0I made this soup last night, using hot Italian sausage instead of hamburger. It was delish! We all had second helpings.
Tonya Lawson
0Loved this recipe/idea! I made mine with Cabbage and smoke sausage. I used green, red, orange peppers and sweet white onion.
Seasonings I used Italian, garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt, and pepper.
Doris
0I have been making cabbage soup for years, followed this recipie and it was a hit. The entire family loved it and have asked me to make more ?
Brenda Mooney
0Wow, made this last night in my instant pot. Made what I thought was enough to have several days of leftovers.
Wrong…hubby devoured ALL but 2 bowls for today. lol
Guess I’ll be fixing this pretty regularly. ?
Julie bertram
0I make this soup a couple of times a year. My last batch i added celery and green peppers. I often add extra veggies depending on what i have, and what needs to be used. I have also added spinach and zuchinne. This soup is a family favorite.
Angela Dobson
0This cabbage soup is one of my go-to lunch soups. It will fill you up and keeps you full until supper you can pack 2 ir 3 good servings of veggies for your day in one bowl! My variation instead of hamburger I sometimes saute med. Hot Italian sausage and remove the fat before adding the rest of the ingredients . I have also made it without meat and added leftover cooked chicken. Thanks – I do not have a photo though, I’m too busy eating it to take pictures!!
Tonda Malone
0I love making this, so I made your recipe but I added 2 tbsp of lite Brown sugar, and diced green peppers. Instead of hamburger, I tried diced chicken breasts and it was sooooo good! I also used fire roasted diced tomatoes which was perfect. I will make this agsin soon! Great soup for low carb diet. ?❤️
Shelly Becker
0Delicious, changed the seasoning a bit, using fresh garlic and Hawaij (a Yemenite seasoning mix) instead of Italian seasoning.