Easy Ground Beef Cabbage Soup

Sometimes you just need an easy meal that comes together quickly, and fills you up. This ground beef cabbage soup does just that. It is a hearty one-pot meal made with simple ingredients like ground beef, cabbage, tomatoes, and broth. Sometimes called cabbage roll soup or unstuffed cabbage roll soup, it has all the classic cabbage roll flavors without the extra work. This easy soup recipe comes together quickly, makes amazing leftovers, and is perfect for busy weeknights. Serve it with crusty sourdough bread for a comforting, filling meal.

This ground beef and cabbage soup is so simple, but so tasty! If you love soup, and are looking for other ideas try this beef and bean soup or this French onion soup. Also, no time to make sourdough bread? Give this sourdough discard bread a try. It produces a crusty bread great for soaking up soup.

Years ago I made a ground beef and cabbage soup after St. Patrick’s Day, as we ended up buy way too much cabbage. I didn’t write anything down as I was basically just using up ingredients we had in the house. Apparently Matt really liked it and has been requesting it for the past few month. He was able to remember the basics of what was in it, so I recreated it, making sure to actually write down the ingredients.

As I said earlier, I love how easy this was to make. Plus my kids (who aren’t really fans of soups) declared it was “pretty good”. In fact, the day I made it Annabelle had a friend over who ended up staying for dinner. I was a little worried, since I didn’t know how the soup was going to turn out. Thankfully she loved it, and even took some home with her.

Ingredients in Easy Cabbage and Ground Beef Soup

This cabbage roll soup uses simple pantry ingredients you likely already have on hand.

• ground beef
• vegetables: I stuck with the core celery, carrots and onion. Then of course the cabbage
• can of tomatoes: I used stewed tomatoes since that is what Matt says I used last time. I am sure it would taste just as good with diced
• stock: once again, you can use what stock you have on hand. I ended up using a combination of ham and beef stock. If you want to up your soup game, try making your own stock. While it does take some time, it is very low effort.
• spices: garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt, and some pepper

How to Make Ground Beef Cabbage Soup

I totally dropped the ball on taking pictures while making the soup, but I promise it is so easy! This cabbage and ground beef soup comes together in just a few simple steps.

1. Start by browning the meat in a large stock pot
2. Dice the carrots, celery, and onion. After the meat is browned, add to the pot and sauté in the fat from the ground beef.
3. Add the tomatoes, stock, and spices and bring to a boil.
4. While you wait for the soup to come to a boil cut up your cabbage into small pieces. Add them to the stock pot once boiling.
5. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for about an hour.

Helpful tips

• Dice the vegetables on the smaller side, that way each bite is filled with goodness
• Be sure to brown the meat well, those brown bits add so much flavor
• Don’t cook for longer than 60 minutes. You don’t want the cabbage to get overcooked
• Make extra so you have leftovers, this soup tastes great the next day

Substitutions and Variations

This is one of those soups that is very adjustable. You can change it up based on what you have on hand. Changing the ingredients will change the taste slightly, but it will still be amazing.

• Don’t like ground beef? Try ground chicken, turkey, or pork instead.
• Try diced tomatoes instead of stewed. Or to add a little bit of a kick use Rotel.
• Change up the stock based on what you have on hand. Chicken or vegetable would work too. I still highly recommended making your own stock, the flavor is so much better.
• Add some diced potatoes to make this soup even heartier.
• Add rice to make the easy cabbage and ground beef soup taste more like a cabbage roll
• Add red pepper flakes for a little bit of heat.
• Use bell peppers in addition to carrots, onions, and celery.
• Add a can of your favorite beans. Kidney beans, great northern beans, or cannellini beans would all be great choices.

How to Store and Reheat Cabbage Soup

This ground beef and cabbage soup makes for great leftovers! While you can reheat the soup in the microwave, I love using the stove. Simply put the leftover soup in a stock pot, bring to a simmer, and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.

If you plan on freezing the soup, do so in smaller 2 cup portions. Then the night before you plan to eat it, take it out and let it defrost in the fridge before reheating it like above. If you you forget to defrost it you can still throw it in a pot and heat it up, but it will take longer to defrost and come to simmer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you make ground beef and cabbage soup in a crock pot?

While I haven’t personally tried making this recipe in a crock pot, I think it would work great! You will still need to brown the prior (either in your slow cooker if you have that option, or separately on the stove). After the meat has been browned add everything to the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-7 hours or high for 3-4 hours.

Can you make cabbage soup in the instant pot?

Once again I have not tried this in the instant pot. I think this is a recipe that would work great in the instant pot ( I will update this when I try). My suggestion would be to brown the meat, then sauté the vegetables in the instant pot. After, add the remaining ingredients, lock the lid, and pressure cook for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, quick release the pressure.

Can I freeze ground beef and cabbage soup?

Absolutely! This soup freezes amazingly. Freeze it in smaller portions to make it easier to defrost.

This ground beef cabbage soup is one of those simple comfort meals you’ll find yourself making again and again. It’s hearty, budget-friendly, and full of flavor. Whether you call it cabbage roll soup or unstuffed cabbage soup, it’s a guaranteed family favorite.