Unstuffed Cabbage Soup {Instant Pot Recipe}

I put cabbage in my cart at the grocery store yesterday because I needed to make some cabbage soup. Key word is “needed”. I needed to and I wanted a soup that was a little more healthy. I also wanted a soup that I could freeze for when I don’t want to cook and I don’t want to go out to eat (toddler..that’s all I have to say there).

Have you ever made stuffed cabbage rolls? I did ONE time. One.  That was enough.  They were delicious but I don’t have the time to pull apart the cabbage and stuff and roll. Pulling apart the cabbage alone takes a good day. Not really but it’s hard.

I had all the ingredients at home to make this soup besides the cabbage so I was in!

What I love most about my Instant Pot is that I can brown my meat and onions and add all other ingredients to the pot and walk away and do other things like laundry. Kidding!  Then when I open it up it always looks perfect like I was sitting at the stove stirring the soup the whole time.

I opened my Instant Pot lid and this is exactly what it looked like. It was perfect.

This recipe can easily be adapted to the stove top as well.  It can even be a one-pot dish just like using the Instant Pot!

Print Recipe
Unstuffed Cabbage Soup {Instant Pot Recipe}
Servings
servings
Ingredients
Servings
servings
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. On your Instant Pot, push the saute button and allow for the pot to become HOT. When hot, add in 1-2 TBS oil and your ground beef. Break up and allow to cook. When almost done, add in onion and garlic and allow to heat for 2 minutes.
  2. While meat is preparing, chop and core head of cabbage. Cut into small 2" pieces.
  3. Once meat is done, layer the ingredients in the following order: Cabbage, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, beef broth, water, rice and spices.
  4. Close the lid on the Instant Pot and push the select manual button and adjust the time to 10 minutes.
  5. When timer beeps allow for a 8-10 minute natural pressure release. Once time is up, release remaining pressure and open pot.
Share this Recipe


27 thoughts on “Unstuffed Cabbage Soup {Instant Pot Recipe}”

      • Hi Phyllis, when you see “manual” you’ll need to press the “pressure cook” feature. It was changed to newer models and I will be changing my recipes to reflect this! 🙂

  • Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I have searched for an unstuffed cabbage roll instant pot recipe for some time now. The only ones I could find actually called for cooked rice. I knew the rice could be cooked with the casserole in the instant pot but I wasn’t sure about the measurements of the rice and the liquid. Finally, I have found this recipe, thank you so much!!!

  • Thank you for this recipe. I used a 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes in lieu of the other tomatoes and Jasmine rice because that’s what I had on hand then made up the missing 2 oz with water. I added red pepper flakes for a little spice. Released the pressure after 10 minutes. It is more a stew than a soup, nice and hearty and filling. Very good!! I’m a soup/stew fiend in the winter and will definitely being cooking this often! Thanks again!

  • This cabbage soup is amazing!! I added about 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce for a little extra flavor. So much easier than cabbage rolls, and the flavor is so good. A very thick soup depending on the size of your cabbage head (mine was bigger), hearty & delicious for fall/winter. Love it!!!

    • I have never cooked wild rice in mine but I have heard that it takes a lot longer, more like 35 minutes. Let me know what happens using this. 🙂

  • If I substitute the rice with barley for some added nutrients, how much longer should I set the time for without making cabbage mush?

    • I have had success with having barley in a few soups and pressure cooking for 10 minutes. I would not go any longer than 12 minutes.

  • Thank you for this amazing recipe! I have made it twice since I found it with excellent results.
    One modification for brown rice, I advise adding half the cabbage, the rice, and then the rest of the cabbage. When I layer as the recipe is written, some of my rice ends up high and dry on top of the cabbage. It seems to get suspended above the soup.
    Once again thank you for your excellent site and awesome recipes 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *