Whether or not you’re a fan of cabbage like me, you’re sure to love this hearty cabbage soup. Cabbage is perfect in soup recipes because it’s affordable and accessible year round, and a little always goes a long way. It’s the star in this slow-cooker soup, where you’ll use a whole head of cabbage and other vegetables like carrots, onion and celery.

Cabbage is such a versatile ingredient with tons of nutritional value. It’s full of fiber, vitamin C and vitamin K, is antioxidant-rich, and has zero fat and few calories per serving. It can be prepared raw, cooked or fermented. Whatever variety you use—green, savoy or napa—cooked cabbage gets soft and sweet, especially when simmered in a soup.

Our cabbage soup is also loaded with beans, making it flavorful, protein-packed and filling. Best of all, once you start your slow cooker, you don’t have to think about it again until it’s time to set the table.

Cabbage Soup Ingredients

• Cabbage: Green cabbage is best for this recipe for its texture and sweetness when cooked. It’s easy to shred cabbage by hand, but you could buy a bag of pre-shredded cabbage or use napa or savory cabbage in a pinch.
• Chicken stock: Chicken stock and broth are pretty interchangeable. The main difference is that you use bones for stock, which is cooked much longer and tends to be a little more flavorful and thicker. Use one of our recommended store-bought chicken broth brands for a quick soup, or try our homemade chicken stock.
• Tomato paste: Tomato paste adds a depth of flavor and a nice color to this soup. It’s also full of umami!
• Celery: Celery is a vital aromatic that adds flavor and texture to this cabbage soup.
• Carrots: Carrots are essential for mirepoix, the mixture of small diced carrots, onion and celery that forms the base of many soups, sauces and stews.
• Onion: There are many types of onions, but we like yellow onions for this soup because they’re mild and not too sweet.
• Beans: Our recipe uses a can of great northern beans, but if you’re into cooking dried beans, use those instead.
• Garlic: I rarely make a soup without garlic, as it’s such a flavorful ingredient! I always use fresh chopped garlic if possible.
• Seasonings: Dried thyme and bay leaf bring a lot of flavor to this cabbage soup.
• Parmesan cheese: This soup tastes fantastic topped with a heap of shredded Parmesan cheese. I love fresh grated Parmesan, but pre-shredded works as well. If you have a Parmesan cheese rind, pop it in the soup while it simmers!

Taste of Home