This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Soup recipe is totally hearty and comforting, full of the best savory flavors, easy to make, and it’s guaranteed to warm you right up!
Guys, this soup.
It’s only the middle of September, and I have already made it threetimes this past month. And when I say three times, keep in mind that I’m now married to a handsome vegetarian who won’t come anywhere near this one. Which means this huge, simmering, delicious pot of soup (plus leftovers) are exclusively for Yours Truly.
And I still can’t get enough of it!
This is probably due in part to the fact that I’m about 30 years late to the party that is cabbage soup. I’m not sure why, but our family never grew up eating it, and for years I used to only think of it only in terms of those crazy fad diets, and never really tried a good bowl until a few years ago. But the second I did — oh man, guys — it was cabbage soup love at first bite. Especially when you add some smoked kielbasa sausage to the picture, and some hearty potatoes, and lots of savory and garlicky seasonings — this feel-good, hearty, savory, delicious soup is comfort food to the max.
I wish I squeeze you all around my table and ladle you up a steaming bowl for yourself right now. But instead, I’m just going to beg you to stir up a pot for yourself. Because this soup = magic. ?
Cabbage Soup Recipe | 1-Minute Video
And the good news? It’s also incredibly easy to make!
Begin with your starring ingredient — a small head of green cabbage. We’re going to use it all in this pot of soup. And even though it’s going to turn into a small mountain of greens once it has been chopped, don’t worry, because it’ll all wilt down once we add it to the soup.
The second most important ingredient here is a good package of kielbasa sausage. Really, you can use just about any kind of smoked sausage here (or even bratwurst). But I’m partial to kielbasa here with its smoky, garlicky flavors (that usually include caraway, too). You’re welcome to use traditional pork sausage here, or chicken or turkey or vegan sausage. You pick.
Begin by sautéing the sausage for a few minutes in a large stockpot(affiliate link) until it is lightly browned. Then transfer it to a separate plate to save for later.
Sauté the rest of your veggies and all of that cabbage, then add the remaining ingredients and let the soup simmer until those potatoes are nice and tender. Season with salt and pepper (I recommend extra black pepper with this one), and soon enough…
…these delicious bowls of cabbage soup will be yours to serve and enjoy.
This Cabbage, Sausage and Potato Soup recipe is nice and hearty and comforting, it’s full of the best savory flavors, and it’s guaranteed to warm you right up!
Ingredients
Scale
1 pound kielbasa sausage*, sliced into bite-sized pieces
1 small green cabbage, chopped into bite-sized pieces
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 pound red potatoes, diced
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, homemade or store-bought
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
Instructions
Add sausage to a large stockpot and cook over medium-heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring and flipping occasionally, until the sausage is lightly browned. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a separate plate, and set aside.
Add the olive oil, leeks, carrots and celery to the pan, and stir to combine. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the cabbage and garlic, and sauté for 4 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the stock, potatoes, Italian seasoning, bay leaf, cooked sausage, and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the soup reaches a simmer. Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked and tender.
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Taste and season with a few generous pinches of salt and black pepper as needed. (Also, depending on how seasoned your sausage is, feel free to stir in a extra few teaspoons of Italian seasoning if you think it needs some extra flavor. A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes will also help bring out the flavors.)
Serve warm. Or refrigerate in sealed containers for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
*Feel free to use traditional kielbasa sausage, or any kind of smoked pork, chicken, turkey, or vegan sausage that you’d like. (Bratwurst also works!)
**If making this recipe gluten-free, be sure to double-check that your sausage is certified GF.
Absolutely a new fave! So yummy. I stayed very close to original recipe only I didn’t have leeks I used green onions. I added some sweet basil. Used al fresco’s Chicken N sweet apple sausage total bomb! Will definitely make this a regular dish. Thanks for sharing!
I’m eating a bowl of this as I write this. Wonderful recipe! Easy to follow, quick to make, and it’s delicious! The only modification I did make was to add a small chopped onion. Next time I’m going to be sure to have some dark rye on hand – I think a buttered slice of that would be the perfect accompaniment.
I’m a huge fan of soup and have made a pot at least weekly, year round, for years. I have another recipe for cabbage and potato soup, but this was different with the addition of sausage and absence of tomatoes, so I gave it a try. It was not a keeper and I’m not sure why.
Janice —
Might you be willing to share your favorite soup recipe using cabbage and potatoes?
So much flavor! Vegetables, kielbasa and herbs/spices compliment eachother extremely well and bring out the best flavors! This meal is surprisingly filling. I also made jasmine rice and poured the soup over it. I love this recipe and will be making it again!
This was really, really good, and far superior to another cabbage and sausage recipe that’s made with noodles. This was super easy to make, and the only thing I changed was the sausage–I used skinless turkey sausage. Very tasty!
I have been making this recipe… almost the same… for over 30 years. We called it Salvation Army Soup as I made it in a large canning pot! It fed many youth of our church’s youth group, and you’d think this wouldn’t be liked by “kids”… HA! They loved it!! Us old folks loved it too!
This is the most delicious soup I’ve ever made, which says a lot, because I’ve made hundreds of different types. This soup has the perfect blend of vegetables and spices. Usually I favor cream soups, but this recipe beats them all, hands down, with its hearty, savory flavors. The only thing I do differently is adding more carrots and celery than the recipe calls for.
I thought it was delicious, I ate too much the first night. I also thought the smoke flavor from the kielbasa took over the soup, not that its a bad thing.
Surprisingly delicious. I was skeptical at first but I really like how the sausage flavor enhances the overall taste of the broth. Very fulfilling! I’ll be making this again. I used chicken sausage and omitted Marjoram because I didn’t have any on hand. It still turned out great! I will only use one leek next time. I felt like the recipe calls for too much.
This is a keeper! Great flavor!! It took a bit more liquid to cover everything in the stockpot. I added extra water and chicken bullion to keep the flavor on the soup. Next time I add using corned beef instead of summer sausage for St. Party’s Day! I made copycat Ceddar Bay Biscuits to compliment the soup.
I loved this soup! Easy to make and so tasty. After making it for my family I also made it for my church’s Lenten soup supper and got many compliments.
Just came across this, and am definitely going to make it! I think that my first attempt will be on St. Paddy’s Day, and I’ll swap out the Kielbasa with Corned Beef. Yum!
Thank you for sharing. This has become one of our family’s favor meals. My kids will even eat it. We followed the recipe and made no substitutions. It’s perfect.
I made this sausage, cabbage, and potato soup. I love to make this type of soup. I will make this again. The best part, it really wasn’t way to much for 1 person. I made it in my Dutch oven, and it was less than half full. So perfect for 2 people, if making for a large family you would want to double the recipe.
I made this tonight…….fantastic! It took only 15 minutes to throw together, I used my homemade chicken broth with thyme instead of Italian seasoning and smoked chicken apple sausage, also no leeks as I didn’t have any but it was still wonderful! I will definitely make this again.
Making this for the fifth time in two months. I just double the meat. My favorite comfort food. I love this. So happy I ran across the recipe. It’s perfect.
My husband and I really enjoyed this soup, I even made it a second time! I cheated and used a pre shredded bag of cabbage to save some time, still was good!
A new addition to the lineup for me. I used Kielbasa and eliminated the olive oil. Came out absolutely fantastic even for the fussy eater at the table.
Might I suggest, since my hubby and I are vegetarian like your hubby, that this would be a wonderful soup with just a tiny tweaking! That is to say, either going a good quality began sausage (or make it yourself,since it’s not difficult and is mostly seasonings to give the kielbasa flavoring), OR MAKE THE ENTIRE RECIPE BUT WITHHOLDING THE SAUSAGE UNTIL YOU DIVIDE IT into two pots of yummy soup! Either use all of half of the meat into one lot and use vegan kielbasa or no sausage in the other half.
You may need to add the seasonings and some oil and use the veggie broth, in the vegetarian portion of the soup. That’s not a huge amount of added work to keep both of you deliciously happy with a great bowl of soup!!
Add a salad and some fresh hot bread and set me a place setting and I’ll join you in a share of vegan cabbage, sausage and potatoes soup!! We did the entire pot vegetarian and simply added the spices found in the sausage and a bit more oil in our soup so it would stick to our ribs all afternoon. We choice the soup as a lunch meal since that is our headfirst meal of the day!
Made this today for a Meal Train dinner – in the crock pot. Didn’t have leaks so used dried onion. Took the crock pot to my work today so I can take directly to my friends – smells delish for sure!
I thought I didn’t really like soup until I tried this recipe. I’ve made this twice now, following the recipe except swapping potato types (I’m always trying to use up russets) and a small sweet onion for the leeks. This time I also popped in a few bouillon cubes and extra spices because I had no stock. It still came out fantastic, and I love that it makes enough for me to enjoy easy, comforting meals for days!
What is the carbohydrates amount if known?
Absolutely a new fave! So yummy. I stayed very close to original recipe only I didn’t have leeks I used green onions. I added some sweet basil. Used al fresco’s Chicken N sweet apple sausage total bomb! Will definitely make this a regular dish. Thanks for sharing!
I made it and it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!
My wife and I love the flavor. Made it per the recipe, plus added a few dashes of green Tobacco. My wife’s comment – this ones a keeper.
Tabasco I think is what you meant?
My family loved this recipe! It was delicious and easy to make. I will definitely be making it again. ❤️
I’m eating a bowl of this as I write this. Wonderful recipe! Easy to follow, quick to make, and it’s delicious! The only modification I did make was to add a small chopped onion. Next time I’m going to be sure to have some dark rye on hand – I think a buttered slice of that would be the perfect accompaniment.
I’m a huge fan of soup and have made a pot at least weekly, year round, for years. I have another recipe for cabbage and potato soup, but this was different with the addition of sausage and absence of tomatoes, so I gave it a try. It was not a keeper and I’m not sure why.
Might you be willing to share your favorite soup recipe using cabbage and potatoes?
I just made this soup tonight for dinner..with cornbread. OMGOODNESS it was delicious
Thank you for your recipe ❤❤
I like to get cabbage soup kielbasa recipe
Soooooo good!
Quick and easy! Very hearty & yummy. Def a keeper. I used an onion over the leek. The next time I’ll try it w the leek. ?
So much flavor! Vegetables, kielbasa and herbs/spices compliment eachother extremely well and bring out the best flavors! This meal is surprisingly filling. I also made jasmine rice and poured the soup over it. I love this recipe and will be making it again!
This was really, really good, and far superior to another cabbage and sausage recipe that’s made with noodles. This was super easy to make, and the only thing I changed was the sausage–I used skinless turkey sausage. Very tasty!
Do you recommend chicken or beef broth
This dish was amazing
Loved this recipe, hoping to find more weight watchers soup recipes.
I have been making this recipe… almost the same… for over 30 years. We called it Salvation Army Soup as I made it in a large canning pot! It fed many youth of our church’s youth group, and you’d think this wouldn’t be liked by “kids”… HA! They loved it!! Us old folks loved it too!
This is the most delicious soup I’ve ever made, which says a lot, because I’ve made hundreds of different types. This soup has the perfect blend of vegetables and spices. Usually I favor cream soups, but this recipe beats them all, hands down, with its hearty, savory flavors. The only thing I do differently is adding more carrots and celery than the recipe calls for.
I thought it was delicious, I ate too much the first night. I also thought the smoke flavor from the kielbasa took over the soup, not that its a bad thing.
I can’t get enough of this fabulous soup. It was easy to make and healthy. I like soup that don’t contain tomato.
Can this be made in crock pot & if yes how long for?
Directions for making in crock pot please. Thank you !
Best soup ever!!!!
Surprisingly delicious. I was skeptical at first but I really like how the sausage flavor enhances the overall taste of the broth. Very fulfilling! I’ll be making this again. I used chicken sausage and omitted Marjoram because I didn’t have any on hand. It still turned out great! I will only use one leek next time. I felt like the recipe calls for too much.
This is a keeper! Great flavor!! It took a bit more liquid to cover everything in the stockpot. I added extra water and chicken bullion to keep the flavor on the soup. Next time I add using corned beef instead of summer sausage for St. Party’s Day! I made copycat Ceddar Bay Biscuits to compliment the soup.
I loved this soup! Easy to make and so tasty. After making it for my family I also made it for my church’s Lenten soup supper and got many compliments.
Just came across this, and am definitely going to make it! I think that my first attempt will be on St. Paddy’s Day, and I’ll swap out the Kielbasa with Corned Beef. Yum!
Thank you for sharing. This has become one of our family’s favor meals. My kids will even eat it. We followed the recipe and made no substitutions. It’s perfect.
I made this sausage, cabbage, and potato soup. I love to make this type of soup. I will make this again. The best part, it really wasn’t way to much for 1 person. I made it in my Dutch oven, and it was less than half full. So perfect for 2 people, if making for a large family you would want to double the recipe.
Making it for St. patricks with cornned beef instead of the sausage
I would like to know the nutrition facts for a diabetic calculation. It looks delicious
I’m making for party. About how many servings did it make
So delicious!
This is my FAVORITE soup I’ve made all year (and I’ve made a lot of them!). Thanks for a super easy and great recipe!
Easy and delicious recipe.
This is amazing! And so easy to prepare.
Made this in the instant pot last night and loved it! I definitely recommend a good smoky sausage.
I just made this soup and my Polish husband and I (not Polish!) both thought it was wonderfully good!! It will become a “go to”, I’m sure!
Very easy! Very good and healthy. My whole family loves this. This is my 3rd Time cooking it!!
I made this tonight…….fantastic! It took only 15 minutes to throw together, I used my homemade chicken broth with thyme instead of Italian seasoning and smoked chicken apple sausage, also no leeks as I didn’t have any but it was still wonderful! I will definitely make this again.
Making this for the fifth time in two months. I just double the meat. My favorite comfort food. I love this. So happy I ran across the recipe. It’s perfect.
My husband and I really enjoyed this soup, I even made it a second time! I cheated and used a pre shredded bag of cabbage to save some time, still was good!
A quarter cup or so of cider vinegar helps give a little extra flavor and background.
Wow, just wonderful! I followed the recipe as written. I loved all the vegetables and will definitely make this soup again.
I’ve made this recipe more then once and my family loves it.
Loved it! I used fresh kielbasa and cooked it separately until it browned nicely. I would use he fresh again when I make this soup. It is a keeper❤️❤️
A new addition to the lineup for me. I used Kielbasa and eliminated the olive oil. Came out absolutely fantastic even for the fussy eater at the table.
I made this for me and my daughter. We both loved it.
Recipe is perfect. I didn’t need to make any adjustments. Perfect on a cold day.
Might I suggest, since my hubby and I are vegetarian like your hubby, that this would be a wonderful soup with just a tiny tweaking! That is to say, either going a good quality began sausage (or make it yourself,since it’s not difficult and is mostly seasonings to give the kielbasa flavoring), OR MAKE THE ENTIRE RECIPE BUT WITHHOLDING THE SAUSAGE UNTIL YOU DIVIDE IT into two pots of yummy soup! Either use all of half of the meat into one lot and use vegan kielbasa or no sausage in the other half.
You may need to add the seasonings and some oil and use the veggie broth, in the vegetarian portion of the soup. That’s not a huge amount of added work to keep both of you deliciously happy with a great bowl of soup!!
Add a salad and some fresh hot bread and set me a place setting and I’ll join you in a share of vegan cabbage, sausage and potatoes soup!! We did the entire pot vegetarian and simply added the spices found in the sausage and a bit more oil in our soup so it would stick to our ribs all afternoon. We choice the soup as a lunch meal since that is our headfirst meal of the day!
Made this today for a Meal Train dinner – in the crock pot. Didn’t have leaks so used dried onion. Took the crock pot to my work today so I can take directly to my friends – smells delish for sure!
I thought I didn’t really like soup until I tried this recipe. I’ve made this twice now, following the recipe except swapping potato types (I’m always trying to use up russets) and a small sweet onion for the leeks. This time I also popped in a few bouillon cubes and extra spices because I had no stock. It still came out fantastic, and I love that it makes enough for me to enjoy easy, comforting meals for days!