Slow-Cooker Hamburger, Cabbage & Vegetable Soup
The dish in your photo looks like a hearty ground-beef and cabbage vegetable soup made in a slow cooker, with carrots, celery, cabbage, tomatoes, and a savory beef broth. This version is designed to give you the same chunky vegetables, tender cabbage, browned beef, and rich reddish-golden broth.
Yield: 6–8 servings
Prep: 20 minutes
Slow-cooker time: 6–8 hours on LOW or 3–4 hours on HIGH
Cuisine style: American comfort food
Ingredients
Meat
1½ lb (680 g) lean ground beef, preferably 85–90% lean
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
Vegetables
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium carrots, sliced
3 celery stalks, sliced
½ small green cabbage, about 5–6 cups chopped
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced — optional
1 small zucchini, diced — optional
Broth & tomato base
6 cups (1.4 L) beef broth
1 can (14–15 oz/400 g) diced tomatoes
1 can (8 oz/227 g) tomato sauce
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Seasonings
1½ tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
1 bay leaf
½ tsp black pepper
Salt to taste
1–2 tsp brown sugar, optional, to balance the tomato acidity
Optional finishing ingredients
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1–2 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
Parmesan cheese for serving
Crusty bread or crackers
Detailed Instructions
1. Brown the ground beef
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the ground beef, salt and pepper.
Break the meat into small crumbles as it cooks.
Cook for approximately 6–8 minutes, stirring frequently, until thoroughly browned.
For food safety, ground beef should reach 160°F (71°C) internally when measured with a food thermometer; color alone isn’t a reliable indicator of doneness.
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Food Safety and Inspection Service
+1
Drain excess grease.
Tip: Don’t make the beef into large chunks. The photo shows small, loose crumbles distributed throughout the soup.
2. Sauté the aromatics
In the same skillet, add:
Diced onion
Garlic
Cook for approximately 2–3 minutes, just until softened and fragrant.
You can skip this step and put everything directly into the slow cooker, but sautéing the onion and garlic gives the soup considerably more flavor.
3. Prepare the slow cooker
Add the following to a 6-quart slow cooker:
Cooked ground beef
Onion and garlic
Carrots
Celery
Potatoes, if using
Diced tomatoes
Tomato sauce
Tomato paste
Pour in the beef broth.
Add Worcestershire sauce and all the seasonings.
Stir well.
4. Add the cabbage
Cut the cabbage into approximately 1-inch pieces.
Add it to the slow cooker.
It may look like there’s too much cabbage initially, but don’t worry. The cabbage will collapse substantially as it cooks.
For soup resembling the photograph, keep some cabbage pieces fairly large rather than shredding it finely.
5. Slow cook
LOW setting
Cook for approximately 6–8 hours.
HIGH setting
Cook for approximately 3–4 hours.
The soup is ready when:
Carrots are tender
Potatoes are cooked through
Cabbage is soft but still has some structure
The flavors have blended
The beef is tender
Remove the bay leaf before serving.
6. Final seasoning
Taste the broth.
Add additional salt and pepper if needed.
If the tomato flavor tastes slightly sharp, add 1–2 teaspoons brown sugar.
For a brighter, more balanced flavor, stir in 1–2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or lemon juice immediately before serving.
Finish with fresh parsley.
How to Get the Look in Your Photo
The photograph has large, recognizable vegetable pieces, rather than a finely chopped soup.
For the closest result:
Cut carrots into thick rounds.
Cut celery into approximately ½-inch pieces.
Cut cabbage into large bite-size chunks.
Use small crumbles of ground beef.
Don’t overcook the cabbage.
Keep the broth relatively thin rather than making it stew-like.
Add a little extra tomato sauce for the beautiful orange-red broth.
The combination of ground beef, carrots, celery, cabbage, tomato and beef broth is also characteristic of classic crock-pot hamburger soup preparations.
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Food.com
Optional: Add Rice
If you want the soup to be more filling, add:
Cooked rice
Stir in 1–1½ cups cooked white or brown rice during the final 15 minutes.
Uncooked rice
Add approximately ½ cup uncooked long-grain rice during cooking, but increase the broth by about 1 cup.
Important: Rice absorbs a lot of liquid, so the finished soup will be thicker.
Optional Variations
Spicy hamburger cabbage soup
Add:
½ tsp red pepper flakes
¼–½ tsp cayenne
½ diced jalapeño
Italian-style
Add:
1 tsp oregano
½ tsp basil
Parmesan rind while cooking
Beef & barley
Replace the optional rice with ½ cup pearl barley and add extra broth as necessary.
Low-carb/keto
Skip:
Potatoes
Rice
Barley
Use extra cabbage, celery and zucchini.
Creamy version
For a creamy soup, stir in ½ cup heavy cream during the final 10 minutes. Don’t boil vigorously after adding it.
Serving Suggestions
Serve hot with:
Crusty French bread
Garlic bread
Cornbread
Saltine crackers
Dinner rolls
A simple green salad
For the appearance in your photo, ladle plenty of beef, cabbage and carrots into the center of the bowl and make sure the broth surrounds the vegetables.
Nut & Allergen Information
Nuts
This recipe contains no peanuts or tree nuts as ingredients.
There are also no:
Almonds
Cashews
Walnuts
Pecans
Pistachios
Hazelnuts
However, if this is being prepared for someone with a severe allergy, check the labels of packaged broth, Worcestershire sauce, tomato products and seasonings for facility/allergen statements.
Other common allergens
Milk:
Not present in the basic recipe. Parmesan is optional.
Egg:
None.
Soy:
Usually none, but check Worcestershire sauce and broth labels.
Wheat/gluten:
The basic ingredients can be gluten-free, but Worcestershire sauce and beef broth vary by brand. Choose products specifically labeled gluten-free when required.
Fish:
Some Worcestershire sauces contain anchovies. If avoiding fish, select a fish-free Worcestershire sauce or omit it.
Celery:
es. Celery is an ingredient in this recipe.
Mustard:
Some Worcestershire sauces may contain mustard, so check the label if this is an allergy concern.
Recipe Q&A
Can I put the raw ground beef directly into the slow cooker?
You can cook ground beef in a slow cooker, but browning it first is strongly recommended for better flavor and texture. It also makes it easier to drain excess fat.
Do I have to brown the beef?
No. But browning produces much better flavor and gives you the small browned beef crumbles visible in the photograph.
Why is my soup too thick?
Add hot beef broth or water, approximately ½ cup at a time, until you reach your desired consistency.
Why is my soup too watery?
Remove the slow-cooker lid and cook on HIGH for approximately 20–30 minutes to allow some liquid to evaporate.
You can also mash a few potatoes into the broth if you included them.
When should I add cabbage?
For very soft cabbage, add it at the beginning.
For cabbage that looks more like the photograph—tender but still visibly chunky—you can add it during the last 2–3 hours on LOW.
Can I use red cabbage?
Yes, but it will change the color of the broth considerably. Green cabbage is the better choice for the appearance shown.
Can I use frozen vegetables?
Absolutely. Frozen carrots, mixed vegetables or cabbage can be used. Add frozen vegetables toward the latter portion of cooking so they don’t become excessively soft.
Can I use ground turkey?
Yes. Substitute 1½ lb ground turkey for the beef.
Because ground poultry should reach 165°F (74°C), check it with a food thermometer.
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Food Safety and Inspection Service
Can I use ground pork?
Yes. Ground pork should also reach 160°F (71°C).
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Ask USDA
Can I make this on the stovetop?
Yes.
Brown the beef in a large Dutch oven, sauté the onion and garlic, then add everything except the cabbage. Simmer approximately 25–30 minutes, add the cabbage, and cook another 15–20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
Can I freeze it?
Yes. Cool the soup promptly, portion it into freezer-safe containers, leaving room for expansion, and freeze.
For best texture, consume within roughly 2–3 months.
How long does it last in the refrigerator?
Store leftovers promptly in the refrigerator and use within approximately 3–4 days.
Can I make it ahead?
Definitely. The flavor is often even better the next day.
The cabbage will soften further overnight, so if you prefer firmer cabbage, slightly undercook it initially.
Can I make it without tomatoes?
Yes. Replace the tomato sauce/diced tomatoes with additional beef broth and add a little Worcestershire sauce. The result will be a lighter, more traditional beef-and-vegetable broth.
Can I make it vegetarian?
Yes, but you’ll need to replace the beef with a plant-based ground meat or beans and use vegetable broth. Also check the Worcestershire sauce, since traditional Worcestershire can contain anchovies.
Why does my cabbage taste bitter?
Older cabbage or very long cooking can produce a stronger sulfurous flavor. Fresh cabbage, moderate cooking time and a small amount of acid at the end—such as lemon juice or apple cider vinegar—can help balance it.
Can I add beans?
Yes. Add 1–2 cans of drained kidney, pinto or white beans during the final hour of cooking.
How can I make it more flavorful?
The biggest improvements are:
Brown the beef well.
Sauté the onion and garlic.
Use good-quality beef broth.
Add Worcestershire sauce.
Don’t under-season.
Finish with a tiny amount of vinegar or lemon juice.
My Recommended Version
For the closest combination of appearance + flavor to your photograph, I’d use:
1½ lb ground beef + ½ cabbage + 3 carrots + 3 celery stalks + onion + garlic + 6 cups beef broth + diced tomatoes + tomato sauce + tomato paste + Worcestershire + Italian seasoning + paprika.
Skip the potatoes and rice if you want the bowl to look like the picture, where the beef, cabbage, carrots and celery are the stars.
