This Crockpot cabbage soup is hearty, warming, and packed with flavor! Throw everything in the slow cooker, and you'll come home to a piping hot bowl of delicious soup.
This slow cooker cabbage soup has pork sausage, white beans, little potatoes, a small head of cabbage, tomatoes, and an assortment of spices to make it wonderfully comforting and tasty.
My mom is Czech and I grew up with her wonderful cabbage soup recipe that had pieces of pork and a bit of sour cream in it to give it some tang. I still love that soup.
The reason I'm bringing it up is because a lot of the time when people think of cabbage soup, they think of the cabbage soup diet and detox and all that. I never thought of cabbage soup that way.
I guess maybe it's an eastern European thing to cook with a lot of cabbage?
This healthy Crockpot cabbage soup certainly isn't any kind of detox soup, but it is really tasty and not bad for you.
It has similar ingredients to the cabbage rolls that so many people (Polish or not) enjoy.
I've been using my Crockpot quite a bit lately. Recently I made a Crockpot vegetable curry and my tasty Crockpot turkey chili recipe. It seems like whenever cool weather hits I gravitate towards my slow cooker. Hopefully you guys do too and you're enjoying these recipes. 🙂
We've had some interesting weather lately... it actually SNOWED on Sept 18.
Yes, I live in Canada, but I don't live near mountains or anything, so that was a bit weird and depressing. Thankfully we have had some nicer weather since, but there's definitely a chill in the air... especially in the mornings.
Something about crisp September/October weather will always make me think of how I felt when I went back to school. I finished university almost 10 years ago now (yikes), but that back-to-school feeling I had since I was a kid will never go away.
Anyway, I wanted to come up with a slow cooker soup this time. I made sure to add a lot of good stuff in here, but like any good Crockpot recipe, it isn't complicated at all.
Lately I've been putting the Crockpot recipes on before bed on Friday evenings so I can photograph them on Saturday mornings.
It's strange waking up in the middle of the night and wondering what the heck is cooking haha.
My husband really liked this one. He runs on Saturday mornings and actually came back and had a bowl of this. For breakfast.
How to make slow cooker cabbage soup
A few tips:
- I used pork sausage for this soup (can't remember the exact flavor... my deli counter had it on special that day). Any uncooked sausage should work. Chicken, turkey, mild or hot Italian (they're usually pork)... etc. I bought 3 sausages that totaled a bit over a pound. Anything around that mark would work. You don't have to brown the sausage first, but you can do so if you prefer.
- You don't have to use little potatoes, but I find them the most convenient. As long as your potatoes are about 3/4 pound, cutting them into small-ish (but not too small) pieces will be fine.
- I chose dried beans because the canned ones can come apart after 8 hours of slow cooking. If you don't mind that, use canned ones.
- Soup can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Hope you enjoy this easy cabbage soup recipe!
Love comforting cabbage recipes? You may also like my Instant Pot cabbage soup, my cabbage roll soup, this kielbasa soup (with cabbage), my sautéed cabbage and chicken recipe or my sautéed cabbage and kielbasa recipe.
Questions? Ask me in the comments!
Crockpot Cabbage Soup
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound little potatoes cut into halves
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1 small cabbage sliced
- 1 pound uncooked pork sausages see note
- 1 (28 fluid ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 2.5 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 cup dried white navy beans rinsed
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prep your potatoes, onion, cabbage, and sausage. Add all ingredients to your Crockpot and give it a good stir (Crockpot will be quite full so it's a good idea to stir as you go along). A few of the ingredients contain salt, so I would wait until it's cooked before you add any extra salt.
- Cook on low for 7-8 hours.
- Taste & season with salt & pepper as needed. Serve immediately.
Notes
- I used 3 pork sausages totaling about a pound. Take the sausage meat out of the casings and either crumble or cut the meat into bite-size pieces. You can brown the sausage meat in a skillet first if you prefer (I'd also add the onions), then transfer it to your slow cooker.
- This is the 7-quart Crockpot that I used for this recipe.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Delano Ryan says
How do i adapt this for the instant pot?
Natasha says
I've only tested it as written - sorry.
Marie says
Yum! Made it vegan with 1/2 lb plant based sausage. I used two cans of white beans. I'm a little nervous cooking dry beans in the slow cooker, heard they don't get hot enough to cook out the things that are hard to digest? I also wound up adding an extra 1 TBS Italian seasoning, 1 tsp garlic powder, and extra no-chicken powder. Very yummy, and this makes so much! I froze half the recipe right away. Served it with sourdough bread. Thanks for an awesome, huge, delicious, nutritious recipe!!
Natasha says
I'm so happy you liked it, Marie!!
Michele says
Can you use chicken?
Natasha says
You could try, but you may want to up the seasonings as sausage is more flavorful. Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Sandra Sue Warrens says
So good! I did not have white potatoes so I used sweet potato.
Natasha says
Love that idea!
Karla says
Do you use uncooked sausage links? If so, do you remove the casings prior to cutting them in pieces?
Natasha says
Hello Karla! That's correct. 🙂 This is a pretty old blog post - I just checked, and it does say within the blog post that I used uncooked pork sausage (and gives a few suggestions on what else you can use), but I will update the recipe card itself to make it more clear. I would say taking it out of the casings and just crumbling it is easier than trying to cut it, and I will update to indicate that. Hope you enjoy the soup!
Mar gabbert says
Delicious. Will make again
Natasha says
Excellent!
AngelaML says
Hi Natasha! I just found your site and this is the first recipe that I tried. It came out delicious - and it was SO EASY! That is what I need - easy recipes that taste great! Before this one, I have THREE recipes that I make in my crock pot. How sad is that? So happy to add the 4th and I definitely plan to try out more of yours and add to it!
I read all the comments and made the dish with the following substitutions: chicken Italian sausage (I hate pork) and red kidney beans because I had them on hand. I also went with the smoked paprika, which I had never heard of before, so again thanks to the people who comment. It gave it a nice little kick, but not too much. I cooked on low for 7.5 hrs, using the sausage uncooked. Forgot to get the sour cream for my husband, but will buy it tomorrow for when we have some of the leftovers.
I love cabbage and grew up eating it. We do corned beef & cabbage (I'm in New England) and sauteed cabbage & onions. But this is awesome to have a whole meal using it. Thanks again!
Natasha says
Hi Angela! So glad you found me and enjoyed this recipe!! 🙂 I love cabbage too... it's definitely underrated. Let me know if you make any more of my recipes or have any questions!
Kathryn says
This looks great. May I substitute chicken instead of pork? I don’t eat pork.
Thank you! I’m new to your site, but the recipes look wonderful.
Natasha says
Hi Kathryn! So glad to have you here. Yes, chicken should work. Hope you enjoy the soup! 🙂
Megan says
This was wonderful! My husband and toddler both loved it! I substituted the navy beans with a can of light red kidney beans. I used a little over a pound of sausage (taken out of the casing) and large potatoes that I cut up. I left it on high for about 4 hours.Thanks so much for posting this! We have a new go-to meal!
Natasha says
Yay!! I'm happy everyone liked it. 🙂
Sarah says
What's your garnish? Cilantro?
Natasha says
Parsley 😄
don partlan says
This was very good. Easy to pull together and made a lot. For me, it was a little easier to cut up sausages after they were cooked.
Natasha says
So glad you enjoyed it! That's a good tip about cooking the sausages whole. 🙂
Lisalen says
Thanks for the recipe! I prepared this yesterday and I just ate for lunch - very good! I had a bumper crop of cabbage this year and it was a great way to use cabbage. Happy for the leftovers in the freezer!
Natasha says
Excellent! So glad you liked it.
Jason says
I ended up making an ungodly amount of this (but without the sausage). Do you think it's possible to freeze some of it? I have zero experience with freezing food, so I couldn't be sure.
Thanks for the great recipe!
Natasha says
Thank you! 🙂 Freezing it should be fine. Just fill up some Tupperware-style containers (not completely to the top because the soup will expand when frozen). It'll be ok in the freezer for 3 months.
Kevin J Hallisey says
Please help. What is "ITALIAN SEASONING"?
Natasha says
Hi Kevin! Italian seasoning is a herb blend that you can find in any grocery store in the spice section. It's a mix of basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme... and sometimes a few other additions depending on the brand you buy. I use this one from McCormick: https://www.mccormick.com/gourmet/spices-and-flavors/organic/organic-italian-seasoning
Michael Veilleux says
If i use canned beans , precooked kiabasa sausage , preshreded cabage , what kind of time frame we looking at
Natasha says
Hi Michael, if you're looking for a faster way to cook it, try it for 3 hours on high. I'd say 5-6 hours on low would be fine. As with most Crockpot recipes, I don't think they always need the full 8 hours, but it's convenient since people are either sleeping or at work, so it's a set it and leave it type of thing. I don't think cooking it on low for 8 hours would hurt either (like if you're asleep or out of the house). Enjoy!
Patricia Hollenbach says
What are the round orange pieces in the picture of your soup ? I thought they may be carrots, however I saw no carrot in the ingredients list. Just asking as I want to make this soup over the week end and need to buy the ingredients. thanks ! Pat
Natasha says
Hi Pat! I think you must be looking at the potato pieces (I used little potatoes and cut them into halves). They may show up with an orange tint on your computer screen since all screens vary a bit. I even double checked my handwritten notes, and there are no carrots in here. With that said, adding carrots in can't hurt if you really wanted to. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Michele says
Hi, I put my dish together this morning. Got my fingers crossed 🤞 on the success of this recipe. Thanks again
Natasha says
Hi Michele! Hope you enjoy the soup 🙂
Michele says
Hey Natasha, my soup turned out superb! Excellent flavor & texture 😉😋 Thanks for the recipe 👍🏽. I wish I could add a pic with my comment.
Natasha says
Yay!! I am so glad it turned out. Yeah, reader photos would be great... I wish they were a part of my site design haha.
Tracy says
Made this for dinner tonight and it was YUMMMM!! Even my 4 year old plowed through two bowls. The only thing I added to the spices was a tablespoon of my Marrakech Moroccan spice blend as I love to add it to everything. Thank you for a great and healthy recipe for me and my son!
Natasha says
That's so good to hear! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment, Tracy! 💛
Michele says
Hi, I have a couple of questions on this recipe. Could I use chicken STOCK instead of Broth? And could I use a roll of turkey sausage cooked & chopped up in the skillet? Thanks
Natasha says
Hi Michele, absolutely... chicken stock would be fine. Not quite sure what you mean by "skillet" (I just put everything directly into the Crockpot). Do you mean you'd brown the turkey sausage ahead of time in a skillet? That should be fine. I wouldn't pre-cook the sausage entirely since you'll be cooking it for 8 hours, but if you've already cooked it, I imagine it will be fine.
Michele says
Ok thank you...tans yes that’s exactly what I meant. Thanks for the tip
Natasha says
You're welcome!
Randy Youmans says
I used vegetable broth and used pinto bean and white and red kidney beans . Also used fire roasted tomatoes and left out the potatoes. Added some white cooking wine . This turned out awesome !
Natasha says
So glad you liked it, Randy! Your additions sound delicious. 🙂
Beth Weaver says
With my commute i am away from home for 10 hours during the day. Will the extra cool time be a problem?
Natasha says
I think it should be fine, Beth. 🙂
Sandy says
Probably a stupid question...do you brown the sausage first? (I hope so because I now have a crockpot full of this delicious-sounding soup with browned sausage.)
Natasha says
I did not, but it won't hurt. 🙂 If anything, I think it'll just add more yummy flavor. Enjoy!
Lorie says
On the menu
Natasha says
Enjoy! 🙂
Nobi says
I want to try this recipe but my crock pot is 6 quarts. Do you think it's large e6?
Natasha says
Hi Nobi! I think it could still work. You may want to add the water in last, and perhaps reduce the quantity of water if your Crockpot is starting to get really full. If you're having trouble fitting the cabbage in, use a bit less (maybe 1/2-3/4 of a small head of cabbage) and play it by ear.
Vanessa says
Would love to make this recipe but from what I understand of dried beans, they don't cook properly in the presence of acid. The tomatoes didn't cause a problem in this recipe?
Natasha says
Hi Vanessa! I had no problems. You can definitely sub in canned beans or other cooked beans if you prefer. I used dried beans because canned beans can come apart after 8 hours of cooking since they're already pretty soft. Hope you like this soup. 🙂
Nancy says
Is the canned chicken broth the condensed kind? What would be a good substitute for the 2 cans of chicken broth ??
Natasha says
Hi Nancy! Yes, I used Campbell's chicken broth, which is condensed. You could make your own chicken stock, use water + a stock/bouillon cube, or veggie broth. Hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂
Jan Lamothe says
Sounds wonderful. I wonder how long it eould be in s pressure cooker?
Natasha says
Thank you, Jan! I don't own a pressure cooker, so I really wouldn't want to speculate on how long it'll take. If you've made a similar recipe in your pressure cooker, you could probably adapt it, though. 🙂 Let me know how it goes!
Mnitba says
Should the beans soak overnight first?
Natasha says
Hi! I didn't soak mine overnight, and they were fine. Cooking them for 8 hours rehydrates them. Hope you like the recipe!
Belle says
This recipe sounds delicious! I wonder if it would work without the sausage as a vegetarian dish?
http://www.thislifeisbelle.com/
Natasha says
I don't see why not! 🙂 Thanks, Belle.