This vegetarian cabbage soup recipe makes a massive pot from some of the cheapest vegetables available. It’s hearty, it’s comforting and above all it’s economical!
Early spring means allergy season for me. I’ve been living off nothing but spicy ramen for the last two days in an effort to clear my sinuses and get some oxygen in me.
I was starting to feel gross about all that ramen so decided to switch over to homemade vegan soup recipes. First was this roasted red pepper soup and now this vegetarian cabbage soup!
Don’t be concerned about the name, this recipe has no eggs or dairy and is in fact a vegan soup (I’m just targeting a higher volume keyword in Google J).
I had half a cabbage leftover from the vegan coleslaw I made for my banana peel vegan pulled pork sandwich. That’s not enough to bother making homemade sauerkraut (which I LOVE), but the perfect amount for a big pot of soup to keep us fed for the next couple of days!
To make this vegetarian cabbage soup even heartier, I threw in a couple of potatoes and a can of white beans. But this it really the kind of soup that you can throw whatever vegetable scraps you have in and it will always be delicious.
To give major flavour to otherwise bland vegetables I used hot smoked paprika and dill. I consider myself something of a smoked paprika connoisseur and it’s definitely my favourite and most-used spice.
My favourite brand is pimentón de la Vera La Dalia. It’s definitely one of the smokiest brands I’ve tried and just a little goes a long way. If you’ve got a sub-standard brand of paprika (sub-standard by my standards, which are high), you may need to add more that the teaspoon called for in this recipe.
I also used the hot variety due to my aforementioned sinus congestion but you can swap it out for just regular smoked paprika if that’s what you have, no biggie.
In addition to that I added dill, which is probably my favourite herb and goes really well with plain old cabbage. You can also swap it out for your favourite herb if you’re not a fan of dill or use a couple teaspoons of your favourite dried herb if you don’t have anything fresh.
I wouldn’t be stingy if I didn’t try to skimp in some way in my recipes. For soups I like to use a bit of water in place of vegetable stock and then use strong seasonings (like smoked paprika) to make up for it. Of course you can use all stock if you’re worried about watering down the soup and aren’t as stingy as me!
So to make this vegetarian cabbage soup you’ll need just one big pot. Fry the onions and garlic until soft and flavourful then add the paprika and give it a few seconds to bring out the flavours.
Then literally just throw everything else in the pot and simmer it until the potatoes are tender. That depends on how big you cut them but for me it was about 10 minutes.
Season and stir in the beans and dill or your favourite herb and serve it up in big bowls with some delicious crusty bread on the side!
Vegetarian Cabbage Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or water if you are oil free - $0.08
- 1 medium onion diced - $0.24
- 2 cloves of garlic minced - $0.16
- 1 teaspoon hot smoked paprika* - $0.10
- 4 cups (1 litre) vegetable stock - $1.80
- 2 cups (280 ml) water (or additional vegetable stock if you’re not stingy) - $0.00
- ½ head Savoy cabbage shredded - $0.75
- 2 potatoes diced - $0.61
- 1 can (15 oz / 425 grams) white beans drained and rinsed - $0.50
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill or your favourite herb plus a bit more to garnish - $0.38
- 2 teaspoons salt or to taste - $0.04
- Pepper to taste - $0.02
Instructions
- Heat the oil or water in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and fry until soft and beginning to turn golden brown. Add the garlic and fry, stirring, for another 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add the paprika and fry, stirring, for 15 seconds to bring out the flavour.
- Add the stock and water. Cover the pot and raise the heat to bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add the cabbage and potatoes. Reduce the heat to a simmer and partially cover the pot. Simmer until the potatoes are tender – for me it was about 10 minutes.
- Add the beans and dill. Taste and add salt as necessary – I added 2 teaspoons – and pepper. Give it a couple minutes to heat the beans through then serve garnished with a few sprigs of dill.
Notes
Nutrition
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Jo Bayly says
I made this on the weekend. Very delicious. The only thing I added was a dash of caraway seeds. Thanks.
Krissy says
I did too as I didn’t have any dill. I was delicious
Alexandra says
Vegan greetings from Germany! Very delicious indeed! I added kidney beans, because i like them and had some leftovers in the fridge. And i left out the dill and added savory instead. Thank you for the inspiration!
Becky R. says
We only found Napa cabbage which worked great in the recipe. We added sage, tarragon, nutritional yeast, shredded carrots, and frozen succotash blend from Trader Joe’s to add more dimension. Had to leave out beans for a picky kiddo.
Becky R. says
And we would make this again, quick and easy to prepare!
Rachel says
I love this recipe!!! I usually use great northern beans but I’ve also used garbanzo beans and they were just as delicious. Also added a splash of coconut milk. However the recipe is perfect just as it is!
Sarah says
This was surprisingly delicious! I used smoked paprika and dried dill in the main batch. Then we dished up individual portions and I added turmeric and salt to mine, while my boyfriend chose oregano and parsley, and topped both with homemade croutons. I'm going to try adding some fresh grated ginger next time as well as escarole for some green color. After this batch, we'll definitely be making this again! Thanks for creating earth-friendly recipes 🙂
Tara says
Heck yes, this is exactly what I wanted in a cabbage soup recipe. I used a T of vegan margarine and cut wayyy back on the liquids (used 3 cups of liquid stock overall) and pureed a bit at the end. Absolutely lovely, thank you. PS I was out of smoked paprika so used 1/4 tsp regular and a dash of liquid smoke.
Pamela Shull says
Made this last night and was amazed how well it went over with the family. I actually grated cabbage with grader which I think added some good texture to the soup. I didn’t use dill or sat or pepper it was a hit here. We are transitioning to a plant based diet and will be one of my easy go to meals.
Lindsey Adams says
Awesome turnout, thank you!
Allison Vogel says
Love this soup! Very different from the flavors I normally cook with. I added some kale and the caraway another person mentioned. A bout a tablespoon of white vinegar and more paprika was great. Mine was just smoked but not hot smoked. Thanks for a wonder meal!
Brooke says
Thank you for your recipe I came accross it on pintrest. I originaly was looking for a vegitarian hungarian cabbage roll recipe but, I couldn't find one that didn't include meat but I am going to try finding one and replace the meat and sausage with the new plant "meat" I'm learning how to cook vegaterian and your recipe helped me allot I did use your recipe more as a rue and guide and added my own twist to my flavor pallet. I used everything u had suggested but I only had reg smoked paprika I used 4 cups of veg broth and 4 cups of water bcus, I added carrots and a stock of celery I used northern white beans. I did add garlic salt some onion powder a dash of cumin 2 good shakes of red pepper flakes a dash of reg paprika and more salt n pepper bcus I had added the extra water I did need to add more flavor. I have adhd so I had put the broth in the pan b4 i sauteed the rue then added it to the broth and added some water to get all of the spices off of my skillet to keep ur yummy flavors. The soup came out absolutely delicious. I really thought that sour cream and sauerkraut with an extra dash of salsa or pepper flakes would have been a wonderful add on which I will try next time I didn't have anything. I also baked layed biscuits and had them on the side. I am so full and this soup was just what I needed. So thank u ps love dill too I've been making gyros lately and i really didnt know I could use it in soup so yum. I did think maybe adding some caraway seeds might add a bit of flavor I might try next time .. Thank you for the inspiration and rue 😊🙌
R Shankar says
Delicious! I was searching for a new recipe to use for cabbage and stumbled on this gem. I loved it as is. After trying as is I did add a sprinkling of fennel seed and topped my bowl w a hunk of local smoked gouda. Delish!!
Jini says
Delish! I added caraway seed, dill seed and dried dill (what I had on hand) plus a little cayenne pepper since I had smoked paprika not hot. Also some shredded carrot as suggested. Love it!
Jini says
PS This is the kind of cooking more people should know about - delicious, inexpensive, nutritious- it would help people with their budget and health plus save them time!!
Stacey adamick says
Made this was delicious I added carrot, celery and potatoes with all spices and added dry mustard it was delish I had three bowls! Yummmmmmmm used all vegetable stock no water
Jennifer says
So delicious. Didn’t know such a simple and easy recipe could be so yummy. A new favorite for us 🙂
Lori says
Perfect as written. Thanks so much for the quick and easy dinner idea! We both loved it and there's enough left for lunch tomorrow.
Lauren says
This was great! I did not add dill, but a couple good dashes of red pepper and diced carrots. Wonderful, healthy vegan dish. Thank you!
Lorna says
I loved this. I used 1 tsp. of dried dill, added 2 cubed potatoes, 3 sliced carrots, and scant 1/16 tsp cayenne pepper.
dmitri says
I make this cheaper by using my own veggie broth (I just collect the trimmings from veg prep (onion, celery, and carrots) and put them in water with an extra carrot and a few smashed cloves of garlic and a bay leaf), but then offset the savings by adding a diced turnip 🙂
Kim says
Made this and I love it! I do like it a little bit spicier so I added some pickled jalapeño slices just to make it a little more spicy and it’s perfect. I also only had some shredded cabbage on hand I don’t think it was Savoy but that didn’t affect it. So healthy and also vegan, finding recipes like this makes it easier to transition to plant based eating.
Briana A says
I made this exactly as the recipe called for, except I used parsley instead of dill and added some extra paprika. It’s really good and hearty, but still light. It made me nostalgic for snow days as a kid. I think it would be good with some crusty bread on the side or some good crackers.
Kris W says
I've made this many times & absolutely love it. Best cabbage soup ever.
Sue says
We love this cabbage soup. I doubled the recipe and added a little harissa paste at the end. It is on our regular rotation. Thanks!
Cathy says
This recipe looks good. I’ll try it this week. Your prices are certainly out of date though.
Thanks Cathy
DD says
I'm a pre-diabetic; therefore, I didn't add the potatoes. I really liked this recepie; it is flavorful and satisfying.
Cat says
Fantastic, simple vegetarian recipe. I made as is although I only had smoked paprika not hot so added more as you mentioned. Thank you for this delicious recipe, a new staple for us!