Stuffed Cabbage Soup (stove or pressure cooker)
This stuffed cabbage soup is made from all the ingredients that you would use to make cabbage rolls. It’s super easy, feeds a crowd, and freezes well.
Servings 8 servings
Calories 448kcal
Ingredients
- 2 medium onions
- 1 large carrot
- 3 tablespoons frying oil
- 1 ½ lbs ground meat (650g) I used a mix of beef and pork
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 jar tomato passata 24 fl oz / 680ml, OR 2 (14 oz/400ml) cans crushed tomatoes
- 6 cups water or vegetable/chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 ½ lbs white cabbage (700g) 7 ½ cups chopped cabbage
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
- chopped dill to garnish
- 1 cup rice 7oz/200g, + 2 cups water
Instructions
On the stove:
- Prepare all the vegetables: Dice the onion and the carrot, finely chop the garlic (should not be pressed), chop the cabbage into big, 1-inch pieces.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil over high heat in a big pot, add the meat in an even layer. Don't stir for the first 1-2 minutes (letting it brown), then cook, stirring, until the meat is cooked through. Transfer the meat to a plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the pot, then add the chopped onions and carrots. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onions are soft. Add the spices (paprika, thyme, and oregano), and garlic, cook for 1 minute.
- Add the meat back to the pot. Add the tomato paste, tomato passata, cabbage, and water to the pot. Season very lightly with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 45 minutes. Take the pot off the heat.
- Season the soup with salt, pepper, sugar, and Worcestershire sauce to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls, add rice, and stir in chopped parsley.
- Cook the rice separately (add to a medium pot with 2 cups of water, season with salt, cover, bring to a boil, then cook over very low heat for 15 minutes).
- If you would like to cook the soup with rice (read more in the notes): simmer the soup for 30 minutes, then add the rice and 2 cups of water into the pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes more. Season as described above.
- Enjoy!
In a pressure cooker:
- Prepare all the vegetables: Dice the onion and carrot, finely chop the garlic (should not be pressed), chop the cabbage into big, 1-inch pieces.
- Press the saute setting on your pressure cooker and heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the pressure cooker pot. Add the meat in an even layer. Don't stir for the first 1-2 minutes, then cook, stirring, until the meat is cooked through. Transfer the meat to a plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the pot, then add the chopped onions and carrots. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onions are soft. Add the spices and garlic, cook for 1 minute.
- Add the meat back to the pot. Add the tomato paste, tomato passata, cabbage and water to the pot. Season very lightly with salt and pepper.
- Cover the pot with the lid, lock it into its position. Make sure the steam release valve is in the 'sealing' position. Press cancel then choose the Pressure Cook setting. Set manually to pressure cook for 15 minutes.
- Cook the rice separately (add to a medium pot with 2 cups of water, season with salt, cover, bring to a boil, then cook over very low heat for 15 minutes).
- When the soup is ready, do the quick release on the pressure cooker. Using a wooden spoon, push the valve to the venting position. Wait until the pin drops (pressure and steam are released). Open the pressure cooker.
- Season the soup with salt, pepper, sugar, and Worcestershire sauce to taste. Ladle the soup into bowls, add the rice, and stir in chopped parsley.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Stove vs Pressure cooker: Cooking time is the same whether you'll cook the soup on the stove or in the pressure cooker (it needs 25 minutes to come to the pressure + 15 mins cooking time). So, choose the method that you personally prefer. I tested this recipe with Instant Pot Duo 6qt/6l.
- Rice: You can cook the soup with the rice, instead of cooking the rice separately. I would do that if I was preparing the soup for a large number of people. If you're cooking the soup just for a small family and plan to eat it the next day or freeze it, it would cook the rice separately. Rice will soak up the liquid from the soup pretty fast and will become mushy. The soup with separately cooked rice (it's added to the soup just before serving), taste so much better. If you're cooking the soup in the pressure cooker you need to cook the rice separately, otherwise, you would need to stop the pressure cooker (make the QR), then add the rice and let it come to the pressure again and cook the rice for 4 minutes. It would just take too much time. You would also need a bigger pressure cooker than 6qt/6l.
- Meat: I used ground pork and beef mix and this is what I highly recommend. You can also use just beef, but in my opinion, a mix of pork and beef tastes much better. You can also use ground turkey for a lighter soup.
- Tomato passata: you can also use canned crushed tomatoes. Don't substitute for tomato paste or tomato sauce.
- Calories = 1 serving. This is only an estimate!
Nutrition
Calories: 448kcal