If you’ve ever heard of the cabbage soup diet, and thought it sounded like drudgery, that’s because you’ve never tried this Cabbage Soup! This healthy cabbage soup recipe is low in calories, coming in at only 91 calories per cup, but the best part is that it is big on flavor! The lemon, dill, garlic and touch of caraway are so delicious with the tender cabbage and hearty veggies. This high-fiber bowl of goodness is 100% meatless, and will keep you full without weighing you down. 

one large dutch oven full of cabbage soup and a wooden spoon on the left top corner with two bowls full of soup in the mid-lower right corner

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Why We Love Cabbage Soup

After all the richness of the holiday season, I steer clear of heavy comfort food and meat and potato meals and instead pick low-calorie chicken dishes, big entree salads, and light soups like today’s original recipe for Cabbage soup. My guess is you’re here because you agree!

This Cabbage Soup is chock-full of tender chunks of seasoned cabbage and vegetables and loaded with dietary fiber. It is the perfect light and low-calorie weight loss soup to make when you’re wanting a lighter meal. So even if you are not looking for the Cabbage Soup Diet recipe, you can follow along for a delicious low-calorie meal that everyone will love – no matter what your weight loss goals are.

Recipe Highlights

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Ingredients for this Weight Loss Cabbage Soup Recipe

ingredients for low calorie cabbage soup include carrots, olive oil, garlic, lemon, onion, cabbage, salt, broth, celery, leek, canned tomatoes, dill, paprika, caraway, thyme, and black pepper.
  • Cabbage: We’ve used regular green cabbage (also called white cabbage) for this recipe, and savoy is another option that works well. We don’t recommend purple or red cabbage as they will color the broth. And pass on the Napa cabbage because it will be too tender for the longer cook time. Here’s how to chop cabbage if you’re needing step by step photos.
  • Vegetable Broth: You can either buy premade vegetable broth or use our homemade vegetable stock recipe. If you buy premade broth/stock, we’d suggest reduced sodium so you can control the amount that goes into your soup yourself. 
  • Vegetables: Onion (diced), garlic cloves, leek (white and light green parts only – here’s how to chop and clean leeks), carrot, celery. 
  • Seasonings: Salt, ground pepper, paprika. I have tested this with smoked paprika too, and it was delicious. So if you like smoky taste, use smoked paprika instead of regular paprika.
  • Herbs: Thyme, caraway seeds (optional), fresh dill. 
  • Olive Oil: For cooking the veggies, you’ll want extra virgin olive oil or your preferred cooking oil. I also give the option of drizzling some on before serving. If you are counting calories, note that the nutritional values are based on no extra oil.
  • Lemon: Juice and zest. Make sure to zest your lemon before you squeeze the juice. One tester added more zest and highly recommended the additional zesty boost.
  • Diced Tomatoes: Canned diced tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted. When in season you can use fresh peeled, seeded and diced tomatoes.

How To Make Low Calorie Cabbage Soup

The left photo is a dutch oven full of chopped veggies with a 1 printed over it, and the right has a two printed over it and it's a shot of the dutch oven with the seasonings added on top of the vegetables

Step 1: Caramelize Veggies

Heat your oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and then add garlic, large onion, leek, carrot, and salt. Cook, stirring often until the vegetables start to brown, which will take about 5 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to medium-low and continue cooking the veggies, stirring occasionally, until they are very soft and caramelized. That will take about 13 to 15 minutes. 

Note: As the veggies cook, add 1 to 3 tablespoons of water if necessary to prevent the veggies from browning too much before they soften entirely. Allow the liquid to evaporate in the last three or four minutes so that the veggies can fully brown.

Step 2: Add Seasonings

Add the paprika, thyme, carraway and pepper and cook – stirring – until the spices are fragrant, 10 to 45 seconds.

The left photo has the number 3 in the corner and it shows a hand squeezing lemon in the pot to deglaze it, while the right photo shows number 4 and the addition of tomatoes, celery, cabbage and broth being poured into the dutch oven

Step 3: Deglaze

Deglaze the large pot with lemon juice, stirring and cooking until the liquid is evaporated, which will take 10 to 30 seconds.

Step 4: Add Remaining Ingredients

Add the canned tomatoes, stock or broth, raw cabbage, and celery. Increase the heat to high, cover, and bring the soup to a simmer.

the left photo with a five on it shows the blue dutch oven with the top slightly askew, and the right photo with a 6 on it shows the soup near completion with herbs on top

Step 5: Simmer and Adjust Heat

Once the soup comes to a simmer, tilt the lid to an askew position, reduce the heat to medium-low, and continue simmering gently. All the while, stirring occasionally until the cabbage is meltingly tender – 30 to 40 minutes.

Step 6: Serve

Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the lemon zest and dill. Serve your cabbage soup drizzled with a little olive oil if desired.

a large dutch oven full of diet cabbage soup
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FAQs For This Healthy Cabbage Soup

Is cabbage soup good for losing weight?

Low Calorie Density: Cabbage soup is one of the least calorie-dense meals you can eat because it is broth-based and made with low cal and low carb veggies containing essential nutrients. A relatively large serving (2 cups) fills you up for less than 200 calories making it a great addition to a low-calorie diet.

High Fiber: The vegetables and cabbage in this soup are high in fiber which slows digestion and promotes saitety.

Low Glycemic: This version of cabbage soup doesn’t contain potatoes or rice. The vegetables in this meal also are medium and low glycemic (not starchy) which may help regulate blood sugar.

In other words, cabbage soup is both low in calories and filling which makes it a veggie-packed way to keep your calories in check and therefore can be a healthy part of a weight loss plan. Check with your dietitian or doctor before following any weight loss program.

Is cabbage good for you?

Cabbage is a vegetable with a lot of different health benefits! It can lower cholesterol, blood pressure, reduce inflammation, and improve digestion, among other things. 

What is the best kind of cabbage to use for cabbage soup?

Green cabbage or savoy tends to be the best variety for soup because it is the most sturdy. It can handle simmering in a soup for a while without falling apart – instead, it’ll result in perfectly tender chunks! 

What is the cabbage soup diet?

The 7-day cabbage soup diet is a restrictive meal plan that results in quick weight loss. While we don’t necessarily recommend the diet itself, cabbage soup is a delicious recipe and healthy! Eating it in moderation can be an excellent addition to a balanced diet. 

Note: Before starting any sort of restrictive diet, we recommend talking to your doctor about what’s best for you.

What To Serve With Vegetarian Cabbage Soup

Our low-calorie cabbage soup is a great recipe on its own, or you can serve it with a variety of complementary elements!

Make Ahead, Storage, Freezing, Reheating

Cabbage soup is an excellent dish to make ahead – and the leftovers are just as delicious!

  • Make Ahead: The healthy soup recipe itself will last four to five days in the fridge if you want to make it ahead of time, but you can also chop the veggies in advance and then cook the soup when you’re ready. 
  • Leftovers + Storage: Leftover cabbage soup can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to four days. We recommend you portion the soup out before storing it in single-serve containers to make for a quick lunch. You can also freeze your soup for up to three months. 
  • Reheating: Reheat on the stovetop until the soup is heated through.

Variations To Try and Substitutions

  • You can substitute the carrot and celery for additional low-calorie, low-carbohydrate vegetables like red bell peppers, green beans, cauliflower, baby spinach, or zucchini. Or, add them to the soup with the carrot and celery for more variety in this flavorful vegetable soup!
  • Add cubed sweet potatoes to create a heartier meal. The potatoes will make your cabbage soup higher in calories and carbohydrates so make sure that aligns with the meal plan you’re following. 
  • You can add crumbled cooked ground meat like ground turkey or Italian sausage. You can also use fully cooked linked sausage like Kielbasa or Andouille cut into half moons. 
  • On the other hand, you can increase the protein while keeping it vegan and part of a heart-healthy diet by adding kidney beans, navy beans, or chickpeas. 
  • In the last 5 minutes of simmering, add cooked ground beef and a little cooked leftover rice for a stuffed cabbage roll inspired soup!
  • If you’re not worried about keeping this dish vegan/vegetarian, you can use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth/stock. 
  • How to make cabbage soup in a slow cooker: Follow through step 3 and then then scrape the mixture into the insert of a slow cooker. Add the tomatoes, broth, cabbage, and celery, and then cook on low for 4 hours. Add dill and zest to finish as directed.
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cabbage soup in four bowls

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More Diet-Friendly Soups

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Happy Cooking! ~Katie

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a large bowl of cabbage soup on the left top corner with two smaller bowls of soup to the right

Cabbage Soup {Low Calorie}

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5 from 3 reviews

  • Author: Katie Webster
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 5 servings 1x
  • Diet: Low Calorie
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Description

If you’ve ever heard of the cabbage soup diet, and thought it sounded like drudgery, that’s because you’ve never tried this Cabbage Soup! This soup is low in calories, coming in at only 91 calories per cup, but the best part is that it is big on flavor! The lemon, dill, garlic and touch of carraway are so delicious with the tender cabbage and hearty veggies. This high-fiber bowl of goodness is 100% meatless, and will keep you full without weighing you down. 

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 large sweet onion, diced
  • 1 large leek, white and light green parts only chopped, washed and drained (about 3 cups)
  • 1 large carrot, finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon paprika, smoked if desired
  • 1 teaspoon dry thyme
  • Pinch caraway seeds, optional
  • Freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice plus 1 teaspoon lemon zest for serving
  • 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted
  • 8 cups vegetable broth
  • 6 cups chopped cabbage
  • 2 stalks celery, diced
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Instructions

  1. Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch Oven over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onion, leek, carrot and salt and cook, stirring often until the veggies start to brown, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until they are very soft and caramelized, 13 to 15 minutes. {Note: as the veggies cook, add 1 to 3 tablespoons of water if necessary to prevent the veggies from browning too much before they soften entirely. Allow the liquid to evaporate in the last four minutes so that the veggies can fully brown.}
  2. Add paprika, thyme, carraway and pepper and cook stirring until the spices are fragrant, 10 to 45 seconds.
  3. Deglaze with lemon juice, stirring and cook until the liquid is evaporated, 10 to 30 seconds.
  4. Add canned tomatoes, stock or broth, cabbage and celery. Increase heat to high, cover and bring to a simmer.
  5. Once the soup comes to a simmer, tilt lid to askew, reduce heat to medium-low and continue simmering gently, stirring occasionally until the cabbage is meltingly tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
  6. Remove from the heat and stir in lemon zest and dill. Serve drizzled with a little olive oil if desired.

Notes

Make Ahead: The soup itself will last up to four days in the fridge if you want to make it ahead of time, but you can also prepare the veggies in advance and then throw them into the soup when you’re ready to cook. 

Leftovers + Storage: Leftovers can be stored in fridge iin an airtight container for up to four days. We recommend you portion the soup out before storing into single serve containers to make for a quick lunch. You can also freeze your soup for up to three months. 

Reheating: Reheat on the stovetop until the soup is heated through.

  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Active Time: 25 mins
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Category: Soups and Stews
  • Method: Stove Top
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 2 cups
  • Calories: 181
  • Sugar: 11 g
  • Fat: 9 g
  • Carbohydrates: 24 g
  • Fiber: 6 g
  • Protein: 4 g

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