The Best One-Pot Cabbage Roll Soup
All the cozy flavors of classic cabbage rolls, without the extra work. This one-pot vegan cabbage roll soup is hearty, comforting, and perfect fwhen you want something warm and nourishing. Big pot, simple ingredients, and plenty of leftovers for later.
Ingredients
Base
- ½ cup water OR 2 tablespoons oil, plus more water as needed
- 1 onion diced
- 2 small carrots diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tomato diced
- 3 stalks celery diced
- 2 parsnips peeled and shredded
Tomato & Broth
- (2) 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- (1) 6-ounce can tomato paste
- 7-9 cups water adjust for thickness
- 3 vegan bouillon cubes if using water instead of stock
Seasonings
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons dried dill
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
Grains & Veggies
- ¾ cup bulgur
- ¾ cup uncooked white or brown rice
- 1 head of roughly chopped cabbage about 5 cups
Finish & Toppings
- 1 tablespoon salt or to taste
- ½-1 tablespoon sherry or balsamic optional, to taste
- dried or fresh parsley to garnish
- 1 dollop vegan sour cream substitute
Instructions
- Heat water or oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- Add onion, carrots, garlic, tomato, celery, and parsnips. Sauté until softened, about 5–10 minutes. Add more water as needed so the vegetables don’t dry out.
- Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, water or stock, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, dill, cayenne, bay leaves, bouillon (if using), Worcestershire sauce, and maple syrup. Bring to a boil.
- Lower heat to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 10 minutes.
- Add bulgur and rice. Cover partially and cook for another 10 minutes.
- Stir in the cabbage. Cover partially and continue cooking until the rice is tender and the cabbage is soft, about 10 more minutes.
- Finish with sherry, starting with ½ tablespoon and adding more if desired.
- Season with salt to taste.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
- Serve garnished with parsley and a dollop of cashew sour cream.
Notes
- I used white long-grain rice for this recipe. If you use brown rice, add about 15 extra minutes of cooking time and wait to add the cabbage until the last 10–15 minutes, depending on how tender you like it.
- Most of the prep happens while the soup cooks, so the total time is closer to 50 minutes.
- Make sure to make the vegan sour cream substitute (or store-bought); it turns an already delicious soup into something really special.
- As the soup sits, it will absorb the liquid. Add more water if you like it brothier, or enjoy it thicker like a stew the next day. You may want to adjust seasonings if you add more liquid.
- This makes a big pot, so leftovers are definitely part of the plan.
Nutrition
Calories: 209kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 1203mg | Potassium: 630mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 3348IU | Vitamin C: 54mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 2mg
