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This Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Soup recipe is totally hearty and comforting, full of the best savory flavors, easy to make, and it’s guaranteed to warm you right up!
Guys, this soup.
It’s only the middle of September, and I have already made it threetimes this past month. And when I say three times, keep in mind that I’m now married to a handsome vegetarian who won’t come anywhere near this one. Which means this huge, simmering, delicious pot of soup (plus leftovers) are exclusively for Yours Truly.
And I still can’t get enough of it!
This is probably due in part to the fact that I’m about 30 years late to the party that is cabbage soup. I’m not sure why, but our family never grew up eating it, and for years I used to only think of it only in terms of those crazy fad diets, and never really tried a good bowl until a few years ago. But the second I did — oh man, guys — it was cabbage soup love at first bite. Especially when you add some smoked kielbasa sausage to the picture, and some hearty potatoes, and lots of savory and garlicky seasonings — this feel-good, hearty, savory, delicious soup is comfort food to the max.
I wish I squeeze you all around my table and ladle you up a steaming bowl for yourself right now. But instead, I’m just going to beg you to stir up a pot for yourself. Because this soup = magic. ?
Cabbage Soup Recipe | 1-Minute Video
And the good news? It’s also incredibly easy to make!
Begin with your starring ingredient — a small head of green cabbage. We’re going to use it all in this pot of soup. And even though it’s going to turn into a small mountain of greens once it has been chopped, don’t worry, because it’ll all wilt down once we add it to the soup.
The second most important ingredient here is a good package of kielbasa sausage. Really, you can use just about any kind of smoked sausage here (or even bratwurst). But I’m partial to kielbasa here with its smoky, garlicky flavors (that usually include caraway, too). You’re welcome to use traditional pork sausage here, or chicken or turkey or vegan sausage. You pick.
Begin by sautéing the sausage for a few minutes in a large stockpot(affiliate link) until it is lightly browned. Then transfer it to a separate plate to save for later.
Sauté the rest of your veggies and all of that cabbage, then add the remaining ingredients and let the soup simmer until those potatoes are nice and tender. Season with salt and pepper (I recommend extra black pepper with this one), and soon enough…
…these delicious bowls of cabbage soup will be yours to serve and enjoy.
This Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Soup recipe is nice and hearty and comforting, it’s full of the best savory flavors, and it’s guaranteed to warm you right up!
Ingredients
Scale
1 pound kielbasa sausage*, sliced into bite-sized pieces
1 small green cabbage, chopped into bite-sized pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 pound red potatoes, diced
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, homemade or store-bought
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
Instructions
Add sausage to a large stockpot and cook over medium-heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring and flipping occasionally, until the sausage is lightly browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a separate plate, and set aside.
Add the olive oil, leeks, carrots and celery to the pan, and stir to combine. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the cabbage and garlic, and sauté for 4 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the stock, potatoes, Italian seasoning, bay leaf, cooked sausage, and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the soup reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked and tender.
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Taste and season with a few generous pinches of salt and black pepper as needed. (Also, depending on how seasoned your sausage is, feel free to stir in a extra few teaspoons of Italian seasoning if you think it needs some extra flavor. A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes will also help bring out the flavors.)
Serve warm. Or refrigerate in sealed containers for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
*Feel free to use traditional kielbasa sausage, or any kind of smoked pork, chicken, turkey, or vegan sausage that you’d like. (Bratwurst also works!)
**If making this recipe gluten-free, be sure to double-check that your sausage is certified GF.
Making this for the third time and it’s delicious and hearty .
Barb Nelson —
Absolutely love this soup. I have made it a lot and have shared the recipe with friends.
I add a little sweet chilli sauce to give it a kick as well a Chilli flakes.
Great soup.
Barb Nelson.
Unbelievable and incredible soup. Thanks for the recipe.
Shaun Vaughan —
Delicious soup, reminded me of a rustic style soup I had in Spain once. I ommited the celery and used Italian pork sausages which I removed the skin from and fried the chopped sausage so it was like mini meatballs.
I love brothy soups with lots of vegetables and tomatoes. I made this with chicken andouille sausage, used 8 cups of broth, a quart of my home canned Italian stewed tomatoes and substituted cubed Butternut squash in place of potatoes. OMG… this is fabulous!
I love this recipe! I’ve been using it for a couple years now, and it turns out great every time! This last time my local grocery store didn’t have any green cabbage, so we substituted red cabbage! I’ll say, it didn’t LOOK quite the same and had a purple-ish hue, but it still tasted delicious – in case anyone else has to substitute like me!
This was wonderful soup! O full of flavor. I used Chicken Andouille sausage but otherwise just like it called for in the recipe. Will definitely be making again!
I will be making this tonight and am also wondering if anyone has the nutrition facts, to save me some time on figuring it up myself. My brain may hurt a little after attempting that, ha! Thanks!!
I followed the directions as stated cooking in the Instapot. After combining everything I pressed soup button and set timer to 12 minutes. I think this was a little too long. Next time I’ll set timer to 10 minutes.
Currently have a delicious smelling pot of soup on the stovetop!!!! My family absolutely loves this soup! And we have shared it with a few of our friends as well. All love it! I took some to my older sister and her family of 9 kids and they can’t get enough of it, She is sharing the recipe with others as well. Thank you so much!
I really enjoyed this. It was my first soup and I found it delicious, comforting, and filling. For anyone who may be interested, here are some things I learned:
1 Sausage is key for this recipe. The flavor of the soup is dependent on the amount of flavor and fat you can render from the sausage. My advice is to buy more sausage than you think you are going to need. For me, one pound wasn’t enough. I was in the stage of simmering my soup when I realized it didn’t have enough flavor. So I cooked more sausage and then added everything (sausage and drippings) to the soup. It helped enormously!
2. Play with seasonings. For me, the Italian seasoning was a little deficient. I ended adding a little bit of Hungarian sweet paprika and then some fresh parsley. Someone else mentioned caraway seeds which sounds like a great idea. I might try that or some rosemary and/or thyme on my next attempt. Find what works for you.
3. This might take a lot longer than you think. Soups seems to have a mind of their own. They let you know (by their flavor) when they are done.
4. Get the soup flavor to where you want it and then add potatoes. I made the smart decision to hold off on adding the potatoes and that kept them from becoming over cooked because it took a couple of hours before I was satisfied with the taste of the soup. My advice: hold off on the potatoes until the very end. Once you are happy with everything else, add the potatoes and let them simmer for 15-20min.
Just made this soup and it’s delicious, what a great flavor combo. I went ahead and blended half the soup before adding the sausage back in because I like a thicker soup, and it turned out great.
This soup is so very flavorful, and it’s the best soup I think I have ever made. Absolutely delicious soup!! It will be a regular at our dinner table. You must try it! I did add a few cubes of sweet potato and it enhanced the cabbage flavors in the soup. I also used a fresh link of polish sausage, sliced, which gave more flavor, but any will do nicely.
Awesome soup recipe. Thank you! My favorite to make all for all times of the year. This time, I didn’t have enough ingredients for Italian seasoning, so I added a can of Italian seasoned diced tomatoes and some red pepper flakes. I might keep doing that.
I love, love, love this soup! I’ve passed it around to my friends. I added two things: a dollop of sour cream and a handfull of unsalted pepitas (shell less pumpkin seeds) makes this the perfect soup!
I make this soup in crockpot often and love it! I do omit potatoes and substitute cauliflower florets for Keto friendly soup. It is delicious either way! Lots of black pepper and red pepper flakes for this old girl! Thanks for recipe!
First time making this soup and we are very pleased with the flavors. I agree a lot of the flavor comes from the type and amount of sausage/kielbasa used. Also browning the meat is very important.
I will be making it again because it certainly made a good quantity! Not sure if I should freeze it because of the nature of the cabbage.
Any thoughts?
Thanks for posting this delicious soup recipe.
I followed steps and this soup was amazing. My husband didn’t eat anything but meat! He even loved it!!! Thank you so much. Oh and I addd lots of black pepper!
Perfect soup for a dreary fall day in New England! I followed the recipe but did make a few minor additions. When cooking the kielbasa I added yellow mustard and a bit of chicken broth so it soaked into the kielbasa. I sautéed fresh herbs from the garden (thyme, rosemary and parsley) along with a couple freshly pickled jalapeno slices (they were VERY hot so I only added a couple) and diced up a garden tomato before adding the celery, carrots and leeks. I did add a bit of Italian seasoning as well as one bouillon cube along with my homemade chicken broth. It is delicious and everyone in the family agreed! It’s a keeper!
My sweet daughter in law made this soup and brought us some.
It was sooo tasty!
Will be making a pot of it next week to be sure.
I am Polish so love Cabbage and Kielbasa so right up my alley- even my non Polish husband loved it!
Comfort food at its finest. I didn’t have leeks so I used yellow onion and added a little more seasoning to taste (smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme) and about a tablespoon of Dijon mustard and the result was delicious. Perfect for a snowy winter day!
Very tasty on a cold day. I used plant based sausage and vegetable stock. Doubled garlic and used extra Italian seasonings. After done I added some red pepper flakes.
Followed exactly and came out great. I plan to freeze as not to waste a teaspoon. Thanks!
Making this for the third time and it’s delicious and hearty .
Absolutely love this soup. I have made it a lot and have shared the recipe with friends.
I add a little sweet chilli sauce to give it a kick as well a Chilli flakes.
Great soup.
Barb Nelson.
Unbelievable and incredible soup. Thanks for the recipe.
Delicious soup, reminded me of a rustic style soup I had in Spain once. I ommited the celery and used Italian pork sausages which I removed the skin from and fried the chopped sausage so it was like mini meatballs.
I love brothy soups with lots of vegetables and tomatoes. I made this with chicken andouille sausage, used 8 cups of broth, a quart of my home canned Italian stewed tomatoes and substituted cubed Butternut squash in place of potatoes. OMG… this is fabulous!
Can you make this in a crockpot?
I make it in crockpot. It’s great. Trade the potatoes for rudabagas or other low carb substitutes. Yum
This is a great recipe!! Delicious!!
I love this recipe! I’ve been using it for a couple years now, and it turns out great every time! This last time my local grocery store didn’t have any green cabbage, so we substituted red cabbage! I’ll say, it didn’t LOOK quite the same and had a purple-ish hue, but it still tasted delicious – in case anyone else has to substitute like me!
Thank you for the great recipe!
This was wonderful soup! O full of flavor. I used Chicken Andouille sausage but otherwise just like it called for in the recipe. Will definitely be making again!
Any idea what the calorie count is on this soup?
I will be making this tonight and am also wondering if anyone has the nutrition facts, to save me some time on figuring it up myself. My brain may hurt a little after attempting that, ha! Thanks!!
Pretty good soup minus the Italian seasoning. Kinda boring. Made it with hot cherry peppers and spicy sausage the next time and it was much better.
Great soup! Made as directed, loved it!
Has anyone made this in an instant pot?
I followed the directions as stated cooking in the Instapot. After combining everything I pressed soup button and set timer to 12 minutes. I think this was a little too long. Next time I’ll set timer to 10 minutes.
Currently have a delicious smelling pot of soup on the stovetop!!!! My family absolutely loves this soup! And we have shared it with a few of our friends as well. All love it! I took some to my older sister and her family of 9 kids and they can’t get enough of it, She is sharing the recipe with others as well. Thank you so much!
I love this soup! Very tasty!
I really enjoyed this. It was my first soup and I found it delicious, comforting, and filling. For anyone who may be interested, here are some things I learned:
1 Sausage is key for this recipe. The flavor of the soup is dependent on the amount of flavor and fat you can render from the sausage. My advice is to buy more sausage than you think you are going to need. For me, one pound wasn’t enough. I was in the stage of simmering my soup when I realized it didn’t have enough flavor. So I cooked more sausage and then added everything (sausage and drippings) to the soup. It helped enormously!
2. Play with seasonings. For me, the Italian seasoning was a little deficient. I ended adding a little bit of Hungarian sweet paprika and then some fresh parsley. Someone else mentioned caraway seeds which sounds like a great idea. I might try that or some rosemary and/or thyme on my next attempt. Find what works for you.
3. This might take a lot longer than you think. Soups seems to have a mind of their own. They let you know (by their flavor) when they are done.
4. Get the soup flavor to where you want it and then add potatoes. I made the smart decision to hold off on adding the potatoes and that kept them from becoming over cooked because it took a couple of hours before I was satisfied with the taste of the soup. My advice: hold off on the potatoes until the very end. Once you are happy with everything else, add the potatoes and let them simmer for 15-20min.
5. It goes great with a crusty bread!
This looks really good, l can’t wait to try.
I have already made this soup 3 times. I have been using Italian sausage removed from casings and am in love with this! My family can’t get enough!
Just made this soup and it’s delicious, what a great flavor combo. I went ahead and blended half the soup before adding the sausage back in because I like a thicker soup, and it turned out great.
This soup is so very flavorful, and it’s the best soup I think I have ever made. Absolutely delicious soup!! It will be a regular at our dinner table. You must try it! I did add a few cubes of sweet potato and it enhanced the cabbage flavors in the soup. I also used a fresh link of polish sausage, sliced, which gave more flavor, but any will do nicely.
Can I add tomatoes to this soup
Great tasting soup! Definitely fills one up. The whole family enjoyed it. Will make it again.
Awesome soup recipe. Thank you! My favorite to make all for all times of the year. This time, I didn’t have enough ingredients for Italian seasoning, so I added a can of Italian seasoned diced tomatoes and some red pepper flakes. I might keep doing that.
I love, love, love this soup! I’ve passed it around to my friends. I added two things: a dollop of sour cream and a handfull of unsalted pepitas (shell less pumpkin seeds) makes this the perfect soup!
I make this soup in crockpot often and love it! I do omit potatoes and substitute cauliflower florets for Keto friendly soup. It is delicious either way! Lots of black pepper and red pepper flakes for this old girl! Thanks for recipe!
First time making this soup and we are very pleased with the flavors. I agree a lot of the flavor comes from the type and amount of sausage/kielbasa used. Also browning the meat is very important.
I will be making it again because it certainly made a good quantity! Not sure if I should freeze it because of the nature of the cabbage.
Any thoughts?
Thanks for posting this delicious soup recipe.
I followed steps and this soup was amazing. My husband didn’t eat anything but meat! He even loved it!!! Thank you so much. Oh and I addd lots of black pepper!
Gonna try today. We need a warm, hearty meal tonight. Thanks for the recipe.
Perfect soup for a dreary fall day in New England! I followed the recipe but did make a few minor additions. When cooking the kielbasa I added yellow mustard and a bit of chicken broth so it soaked into the kielbasa. I sautéed fresh herbs from the garden (thyme, rosemary and parsley) along with a couple freshly pickled jalapeno slices (they were VERY hot so I only added a couple) and diced up a garden tomato before adding the celery, carrots and leeks. I did add a bit of Italian seasoning as well as one bouillon cube along with my homemade chicken broth. It is delicious and everyone in the family agreed! It’s a keeper!
This went into my EXCEPTIONAL folder! Simple ingredients but exceptional results.
Easy ,very tasty, this is a keeper at my house !
I love this soup and would like to receive more recipes!!
This soup is absolutely amazing! I add some sweet onion and use pepperjack smoked sausage to kick up the flavor. My family gobbles it up!
Wonderful soup , perfect on a cold winters day . So easy to make , we really enjoyed it .
My sweet daughter in law made this soup and brought us some.
It was sooo tasty!
Will be making a pot of it next week to be sure.
I am Polish so love Cabbage and Kielbasa so right up my alley- even my non Polish husband loved it!
I’ll be making this subbing an onion for the leeks as I’m allergic to leeks
This soup is fantastic! Next time I’m going to double it lol. I added some paprika too!
I love cabbage and leeks so this one is yum!
Serving serve? Calories per serving?
I cant wait to try it but need this info if the author knows the answers. Thanks for sharing!
Comfort food at its finest. I didn’t have leeks so I used yellow onion and added a little more seasoning to taste (smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme) and about a tablespoon of Dijon mustard and the result was delicious. Perfect for a snowy winter day!
Made this last week and making it again this week! Amazing taste and so easy to make. Thank you!
How many calories per serving?
This is my absolute favorite soup. So versatile and I never get tired of it. It was a great use of leftover turkey and herbs from Thanksgiving!
Delicious on a bone chilling winter day! I prepared it exactly as written. Love your recipes, thank you!
Very tasty on a cold day. I used plant based sausage and vegetable stock. Doubled garlic and used extra Italian seasonings. After done I added some red pepper flakes.
Any chance of getting nutritional information for this recipe?
My daughters said this was the best soup I’ve ever made! I loved it, too, and will be making it again next week! Hahaha