When you’re looking for a simple and cozy soup that tastes like it’s simmered all day, this 45-minute Chicken and Cabbage Soup is the perfect recipe. It’s hearty and filling but, thanks to all the veggies, it doesn’t weigh you down. Dress it down with a hunk of hearty bread, or dress it up for guests with fresh parsley and a lemon-infused olive oil for drizzling over the soup and dipping bread in.
I developed a love for developing soup recipes when I worked at Cuisine at Home magazine as an Assistant Editor. One of our special publications (or SIB as the industry calls them—Special Interest Book) was a soup book. We’d publish a new one every few years, which means it was all-hands-on-deck when we had to get the 100-recipe book to the printers.
I’ve worked on all kinds of soup recipes over the years, but one of my favorites is reimagining chicken soup. It’s so universally loved while also being insanely versatile. Want to give it a Greek spin? Easy. Need it done in 30 minutes? Can do. Got a head of cabbage to use up? Throw it into a pot of chicken soup.
The options are endless when it comes to chicken soup—which is why you’ll find so many of them amongst my soup recipes. This Chicken and Cabbage Soup recipe is actually inspired by my popular Ham and Bean Soup—so if you like this combo of flavors, be sure to try that soup as well.
Ingredients Needed
- Butter: I like butter here, but olive oil can also be used.
- Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base: this is one of my favorite ingredients for homemade soup. It’s easier to store than boxes of broth and it’s far more flavorful.
- Carrots and Celery: both are cut into huge chunks which help them retain their texture during cooking (and reheating leftovers).
- Onion: I recommend a yellow onion though white with also work.
- Italian seasoning: a versatile seasoning blend that adds layers of flavor with just one ingredient. I recommend using one that is made up of dried herbs and spices—no salt added.
- Garlic: you’ll need a couple of large garlic cloves to get 1 tablespoon of minced garlic.
- Cooked chicken: the ultimate weeknight shortcut is to use up leftover cooked chicken or grab a rotisserie chicken from the store.
- Cabbage: this recipe uses half of a medium head of green cabbage. Use a traditional green cabbage—not napa or savoy.
- Vinegar: just about any vinegar will work here—red wine, white wine, apple cider. You could even use lemon juice. Just avoid using any type of balsamic vinegar.
How Easy It Is to Make
- Start by lightly cooking the Better than Bouillon—I find this develops a bit of flavor. Just cook it briefly, you don’t want it to dry out and burn.
- Stir in the celery, carrots and onion with 2 teaspoons of salt. Cook the veggies until they start to soften and release some liquid—the onions should release quite a bit into the pot.
- After about 10 minutes, stir in the garlic and italian seasoning and cook for a couple of minutes, you should be able to smell the fragrant garlic and spices!
- Add the water (yes, 10 cups!) and season with a bit more salt. Bring the soup to a boil then stir in the cabbage and chicken. Bring the soup back to a simmer and cook just until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Right before serving, stir in the vinegar and season with additional salt to taste. Enjoy!
Soup Tips
- I like this soup best when the veggies are cut really big. It helps to retain some texture on the veggies during cooking. If you cut them smaller the soup will cook faster! You will only need about 5 minutes of cooing before adding the water.
- Avoid boiling the soup too vigorously, just bring it to a boil initially, add the cabbage and the chicken and simmer until everything is tender. Boiling will cook the vegetables aggressively and make them overly soft.
- Any kind of brothy soup needs a little acid at the end. I like vinegar for this soup, but lemon juice will also work (consider topping the serving with some lemon zest and fresh parsley if you do this, yum!).
Variations
- Swap out the cooked chicken for cooked turkey (great way to use up leftover Thanksgiving Turkey!) or cooked ground chicken.
- Play around with different spice/herb blends. Herbs de Provance would be delicious here. Or use just a combo of dried basil and dried oregano with a dash of red pepper flakes.
- For an even cozier soup, stir in some heavy cream right at the end (don’t bring it to a boil!).
- Add some starch to the soup with diced Yukon gold potatoes (add at the same time as the carrots and celery) or stir in your favorite small pasta when you stir in the chicken and cabbage (you’ll need more water).
Storage and Reheating
Store chicken cabbage soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. While you technically can freeze this soup, I don’t recommend it since the freezing will negatively affect the texture of the large-cut vegetables.
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Chicken and Cabbage Soup Recipe
Description
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 ½ tablespoons Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base
- 6 stalks celery, cut into 1 ½-inch chunks (3 ½ cups)
- 3 large carrots, cut into ½-inch pieces (1 ½ cups)
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced (2 cups)
- kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
- 4 heaping cups shredded cooked chicken (1¼ pounds)
- 8 cups chunked green cabbage, about ½ medium head of cabbage (1 pound)
- 1 tablespoon vinegar, such as red or white wine, apple cider vinegar or white distilled vinegar
Instructions
- Heat butter in a very large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium. Add Better than Bouillon, increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and bouillon starts to stick to pan, about 1 minute.
- Add celery, carrots, and onion to drippings; season with 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Reduce heat to medium and cook until vegetables start to soften and there’s a good amount of liquid in bottom of pot (scant ½ cup), about 10 minutes.
- Stir in Italian seasoning and garlic; cook 2 minutes.
- Add 10 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt; increase heat to high and bring to a boil then stir in chicken and cabbage; bring back to a simmer and cook until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.
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