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Cabbage Roll Soup is a filling, savory comforting soup, perfect for a chilly evening meal. Cabbage, ground beef, bacon, beef broth, smokey fire roasted tomatoes and paprika mix together to create an easy and filling soup!
Fall is fast approaching which means we need to have those filling soup recipes ready to simmer on the stove. You guys are going to love this Cabbage Roll Soup recipe as the weather gets cooler. This soup mixes together ground beef, bacon {optional}, fire roasted diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth cabbage, spices and rice to create a hearty meal. It is pure comfort food! Growing up my grandma made stuffed cabbage rolls and this soup reminds me of that but in an unstuffed cabbage soup form.
If you are fan of cabbage like I am, then this recipe is for you. I often will rotate it with this Vegetable Soup with Cabbage. When making this soup you can use ground turkey, chicken or pork instead of the beef or just leave the meat out all-together and do a vegetarian version. I also love that you can easily freeze this soup for later making it an easy dinner. I often will make a double batch of this soup and freeze half. If you like hearty soups you also might like this Chicken Tortellini Soup, Chicken Lentil Soup Recipe, Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup or this Homemade Minestrone Soup.
Recipe Ingredients
You will love this easy recipe and the simple ingredients it uses. It is one of my favorite hearty soup recipes for a busy weeknight.
- Bacon: Adds a nice, rich flavor to the soup. You can skip it if you don’t want bacon in the soup.
- Beef: This soup uses lean ground beef. I like to use 80/20 for a little extra flavor from the fat. You also can use ground turkey, ground pork or ground chicken.
- Vegetables: The vegetables in this soup are carrots, cabbage, fire roasted tomatoes and tomato sauce.
- Rice: I like to add rice to this soup. You can add long grain rice, white rice or brown rice.
- Spices: The spices are my favorite in this soup. The mixture is smoked paprika, thyme, marjoram and bay leaves.
How do you Make Cabbage Roll Soup
Step 1: Cook Bacon: Heat a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and then add the bacon and onion. Cook up the bacon and onion until the bacon is nearly cooked.
Step 2: Add Bacon and Onion to Crockpot: Spoon out the bacon and onion and place in the crockpot and drain the grease from the cooking pan.
Step 3: Cook Beef: Add another 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Add the ground beef to the pan and cook. Drain the ground beef and add to the crockpot.
Step 4: Add Remaining Ingredients: Add the rest of the ingredients to the crock pot. Cover and set the slow cooker on high for 3 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
Remove the bay leaves and serve in a bowl with fresh parsley and Parmesan cheese. Store the leftover soup in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Recipe Modifications
- Vegetables: You can add any vegetables you might have on hand. Some that I really like are zucchini, bell pepper, mushrooms, carrots and celery.
- Cheese: I often add Parmesan cheese when the soup is ready to be served. Other cheese options would be cheddar, mozzarella or pepper jack cheese.
- Greens: Adding greens is a nice way to add extra nutrition. I especially like kale, spinach and swiss chard.
- Spice: If you like your soup spicy try adding cayenne pepper, crushed red pepper flakes or hot sauce
- Grain: Instead of long grain white rice try other grains like barley, brown rice, wild rice or farro.
- Spices: There are a lot of other spices that can add flavor to this soup. A few I like are Italian seasoning, onion powder and garlic powder.
Storage Tips
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- When you have leftovers or if you make a double batch this soup can be frozen. Let the soup cool completely before you freeze it. Place in single serving portions in freezer bags. Place on a tray or cookie sheet to freeze then you have stackable single serving portions. Otherwise you can freeze the soup all in a large container. These can be stored for up to 3 months.
More Soup Recipes
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Cabbage Roll Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 pound thick bacon, diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 5 cups cabbage, chopped
- 1 – 28 ounce fire roasted tomatoes, diced
- 1 – 16 ounce tomato sauce
- 6-8 cups beef broth, start with 6 and add more if the soup is not thin enough
- 3/4 cup long grain rice
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon marjoram
- parsley, for garnish
- Parmesan cheese , for garnish
Instructions
- Heat a large saute pan over medium high heat. Add 1 Tablespoon olive oil and then add the bacon and onion. Cook up the bacon and onion until the bacon is nearly cooked.
- Spoon out the bacon and onion and place in the crockpot and drain the grease from the cooking pan.
- Add another 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. Add the ground beef to the pan and cook. Drain the ground beef and add to the crockpot.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the crockpot. Cover and set the slow cooker on high for 3 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
- Remove the bay leaves and serve with fresh parsley and Parmesan cheese.
Notes
- The hamburger can be substituted for ground chicken or turkey.
- Another option is replacing half the ground beef for spicy or Italian ground sausage.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Leftovers or if you make a double batch this soup can be frozen. Place in single serving portions in Ziplock freezer bags. Place on a tray or cookie sheet to freeze then you have stackable single serving portions. These can be stored for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This soup is amazing! Definitely a new favorite!
So glad you liked it!
Could I use crushed tomatoes vs diced in the soup. Not really a tomato person.
Thanks, Jan
Yes you could- and just use as much as you like. Crushed would work great. You can take the tomatoes down to a minimal amount or honestly you could even try it without the tomatoes and maybe add other vegetables instead.