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Cozy up with a big bowl of Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup and indulge in a hot, hearty, delicious and nutritious meal that’s good for your body while satisfying your cravings for something really tasty! If it is cabbage recipes you are looking for, you should also check out Why Cabbage is Great + 15 Delicious Recipes!
There’s just something ultra-satisfying, and extremely comforting about a big stockpot of homemade soup sitting on the stove.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this Cabbage Roll Soup recipe
All the crave-worthy comfort of homemade cabbage rolls without the hassle of actually rolling them! This delicious cabbage soup is:
- Great for Meal Prep: Our Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup is perfect for meal prep. Packed with lean protein from ground beef or turkey, just the right amount of complex carbohydrates from brown rice, and a massive dose of cruciferous veggies from cabbage, this soup is a nutritional powerhouse.
- Hearty and Healthy: With collagen-rich beef bone broth and a generous serving of cabbage, this recipe is high in fiber and protein, keeping you full and satisfied. Plus, it’s budget-friendly and tastes even better the next day.
- Gluten Free: This cabbage soup recipe uses brown rice to help thicken it instead of using flour.
Cabbage was on sale again at my local grocer this week, so I bought 4 large heads. It was a REALLY good sale so I’ve been including it every chance I get.
My weekly meal planning is completely decided by whatever I find ON SALE. This way, we’re always consuming an abundance of fresh produce while keeping our family budget in check.
Cabbage is a Very Underrated Vegetable
It’s very LOW in calories, HIGH in nutrients and fiber. Definitely, a vegetable that we could all be eating more of!
In terms of price per cup, a report by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has shown cabbage to be the second most economical vegetable in terms of price per edible cup. Yes! Grab some fresh cabbage next time you’re out & about!
Many people don’t know what a superfood cabbage really is. I’ve been eating it on the regular for the past 15 years – adding it to soups, roasted, and shredded or chopped into recipes like this.
I’m pretty obsessed – so here’s your gentle nudge to eat more cabbage.
Soup helps to stretch the family dinner budget while filling up those bellies with fresh, whole-food ingredients that you have carefully chosen yourself.
Can this recipe be doubled?
I often double up soup recipes because it tastes even better the next few days, and also freezes very well. So, after dinner, dish up your lunch containers for tomorrow and stash them in the fridge, then freeze the rest for the next time you’re craving this DELICIOUS & NUTRITIOUS Hearty Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup.
As with most soups – they taste even better the next day, so double or triple your batch while you’re at it, and your future self will thank you!
Stays great refrigerated for 4 days, or frozen for up to 2 months.
Cabbage is a great source of nutrition. Here are a few other cabbage recipes you should try if you are trying to add more cabbage to your diet: Crockpot, Instant Pot, or Stove top Cabbage Soup With Beef, Comforting Egg Roll Soup and Roasted Parmesan Cabbage.
Customize to your taste and nutritional preferences:
- Choose any broth to suit your needs. I used beef bone broth for the protein and collagen boost.
- Any ground meat or ground poultry works great, so buy what’s on sale.
- Any type of cabbage will be delicious in the soup, so grab what’s most affordable.
- You can add as much garlic and onions as you personally desire.
- Add any other vegetables sitting in your fridge needing to be used.
- Tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, or jarred diced tomatoes all work great, so use up what’s in your pantry.
- You could also make this recipe in a slow cooker or crockpot.
You can make your own bone broth using leftover bones:
Ingredients
The ingredients that come together to make this Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup recipe delicious are the following:
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil, olive oil, or tallow
- 1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef or ground turkey
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika
- sea salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
- 4 large carrots, sliced
- 4 ribs celery, diced
- 5 garlic cloves, pressed
- 1 large head coarsely chopped green cabbage (about 8 heaping cups)
- 8 cups beef bone broth
- 1 x 15oz can crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes in juice, or tomato sauce
- 1 cup uncooked brown rice, rinsed
- 3 bay leaves
- freshly chopped parsley, to garnish
See the recipe card for full information on all ingredients and instructions.
How to make Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup
Step 1. Heat your oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and season with smoked paprika, sea salt, and pepper to taste.
Step 2. Cook the meat while mincing it with a wooden spoon for about 4-5 minutes.
Step 3. Add in the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Step 4. Add the chopped cabbage, bone broth, tomato sauce, uncooked (rinsed) brown rice, and bay leaves to the pot.
Step 5. Bring your soup to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally for 30-40 minutes, or until the rice is tender.
Step 6. Remove the bay leaves. Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley, if desired.
Serving Suggestions
This delicious unstuffed cabbage roll soup is great on its own, but I also love pairing it with some of these clean sides:
Leftover Storage and Reheat Instructions
Refrigerate any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. You can also freeze this soup and it will keep for up to 2 months. Reheat using the microwave or on the stovetop.
Recipe FAQs
Do I need to cook the rice before adding it to the soup?
Nope. We’ve made it super easy. The brown rice cooks right into the soup. Be sure to rinse the rice first, then throw it in. The rice not only cooks in the broth but it soaks up a lot of flavor too!
Will the cabbage get too soft or mushy?
Cabbage has a unique ability to stay quite tender crisp once cooked. The cabbage will not become mushy, but it will become more tender the longer it cooks.
Are there any other types of ground meat that work in this recipe?
Oh yes! Everything works great here. Ground chicken or ground turkey. Ground lamb is always flavorful. Ground pork or sausage are good options too. Ground beef or Bison. You could even make this soup using ground deer or elk meat. Use what you have on hand, or what is on sale at the store.
Can I make unstuffed cabbage roll soup in a slow cooker or instant pot?
Yes.
Crockpot method: Brown your meat first on the stovetop, then add all the ingredients together in your slow cooker. 3-4 hours on HIGH. 6-7 hours on LOW.
Do you love soup as much as I do when it’s cold outside? If so, you may love one of these soup recipes; Comforting Egg Roll Soup, Hearty 3 Bean Soup, or Creamy Chicken + Mushroom Soup
Hearty Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil, olive oil, or tallow
- 1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef or ground turkey
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika
- sea salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 large yellow onion, finely diced
- 4 large carrots, sliced
- 4 ribs celery, diced
- 5 garlic cloves, pressed
- 1 large head coarsely chopped green cabbage, about 8 heaping cups
- 8 cups beef bone broth
- 1 x 15oz can crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes in juice, or tomato sauce
- 1 cup uncooked brown rice, rinsed
- 3 bay leaves
- freshly chopped parsley, to garnish
Instructions
- Heat your oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and season with smoked paprika, sea salt, and pepper to taste.
- Cook the meat while mincing it with a wooden spoon for about 4-5 minutes.
- Add in the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the chopped cabbage, bone broth, tomato sauce, uncooked (rinsed) brown rice, and bay leaves to the pot.
- Bring your soup to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally for 30-40 minutes, or until the rice is tender.
- Remove the bay leaves.
- Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley, if desired.
