Vegan Cabbage Soup Recipe (2024)

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A simple vegan Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup recipe of Eastern European origins, using both sauerkraut and fresh shredded green cabbage. Slow cooked smoky flavors from fire roasted tomatoes, caraway and smoked paprika are coming through in every bite, no meat ever!

Jump to Recipe Vegan Cabbage Soup

1-Pot, low calorie pure vegetarian sweet and sour cabbage soup that can easily become a stew by simply cutting back the liquid or adding in some whole grains like brown rice, lentils or quinoa. It’s a healthy, light and detoxing version of our unstuffed cabbage stew, ready in about 30 minutes and perfect for a healthy weeknight dinner.

Soup Origins – Polish, Greek, Italian, Romanian, German, Russian, Jewish, Hungarian, believe it or not, they all claim the rights to the best version of this easy soup. They are all right of course, so long as it is clean and plant based!

Recipe Tips

The Cabbage – By combining both sauerkraut and fresh cabbage you effortlessly achieve the perfect balance between sweet and sour. However, once it is all done you can balance the flavors with some apple cider vinegar or maple syrup to ultimately make your taste buds happy.
Herbs + Spices – Don’t forget the fresh dill + caraway! Cabbage calls for them both to make a pot of magic, they truly belong together in this European classic.
Add Ins – To make it a heartier meal you might like to add in some spicy vegan Italian sausage, smoky tempeh bacon, vegan “meatballs”, hot dogs or these vegan ribs. Traditionally we just served it with sour cream and freshly cracked pepper then wiped our bowls clean with crusty bread.
Storage – Refrigerate any leftovers up to 5 days in tight lidded containers or freeze up to 4 months. Thaw out overnight before reheating.

You’ll Love this Soup:

helps with weight-loss

anti-inflamatory

warming, nutritious + good for you

cabbage is the lowest calorie food on the planet

loaded with antioxidant + anticancer benefits.

More Cabbage Recipes:

Cabbage and Noodles
Cabbage and Potato Soup
Vegan Corned Beef and Cabbage
Italian Cabbage
Cabbage and Rice Casserole.

Vegan Cabbage Soup - Sweet and Sour

A simple vegan cabbage soup recipe using both sauerkraut and fresh shredded green cabbage for the ultimate sweet and sour balance. WFPB vegan!

Print Recipe

Prep Time:5 minutes mins

Cook Time:35 minutes mins

Total Time:40 minutes mins

Ingredients

1 head small green cabbage - shredded
16 oz sauerkraut - shredded
1 onion - diced
1 carrot - diced
2 ribs celery sliced
1 green bell pepper - diced
15 oz canned fire roasted tomatoes - crushed
2 leaves bay
2 tbsp smoked paprika
1.5 tbsp caraway seeds
1 tbsp peppercorns
1 pinch sea salt
10 cups water or vegetable broth (low-sodium)
1 bunch fresh dill
2 tbsp parsley - roughly chopped
2-3 tsp olive oil (use water for WFPB)
2 tbsp maple syrup (optional)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Heat up a large heavy bottom pot on medium flame. Add a drizzle of olive oil (or a splash of water for WFPB + Plantricious compliance) and sautee the onion with a pinch of sea salt for a couple of minutes.
1 onion, 2-3 tsp olive oil
Stir in the carrot, celery and bell pepper together with the caraway seeds and sautee another 3 minutes or so.
1 carrot, 2 ribs celery, 1 green bell pepper, 1.5 tbsp caraway seeds
Stir in the fresh cabbage and cook 5 to 10 minutes until wilted.
1 head small green cabbage
Add the smoked paprika, sauerkraut, tomatoes, bay leaves, 1/2 bunch of the dill and peppercorns. Cover with the water or vegetable broth and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 25 minutes until the cabbage is cooked to your liking.
16 oz sauerkraut, 15 oz canned fire roasted tomatoes, 2 leaves bay, 2 tbsp smoked paprika, 1 tbsp peppercorns, 1 bunch fresh dill, 10 cups water or vegetable broth
Taste and adjust seasonings with sea salt. The soup should be sour enough from the kraut but If you prefer more sweetness add the maple syrup at this point.
1 pinch sea salt, 2 tbsp maple syrup
Serve hot garnished with the remaining fresh dill and parsley.
2 tbsp parsley

WFPB & Plantricious

Omit any oil and sautee in water to make this recipe compliant!

Notes

Herbs + Spices - Don’t forget the fresh dill + caraway! Cabbage calls for them both to make a pot of magic, they belong together!
Add Ins - To make it a heartier meal you might like to add in some spicy vegan Italian sausage, smoky tempeh bacon, vegan "meatballs" or vegan ribs. Traditionally we just served it with sour cream and wiped our bowls clean with crusty bread.
Storage - Refrigerate up to 5 days or freeze up to 4 months in tight lidded containers.

Nutrition

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Italian, Polish, Romanian

Keyword: plant based, Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup, vegan cabbage soup

Servings: 8 people

Calories: 91kcal

Author: Florentina