by Tammy Taylor
While visiting with a friend recently she commented that she had been eating lots of cabbage soup lately. Cabbage soup? YUM.
This friend mentioned that cabbage soup was a healthy soup option on her Weight Watchers program. Although I’m not really looking to lose weight I’ve been wanting to try this soup for a while now. Especially during the cold winter months I like to enjoy hot soups & stews for lunch. I’ve started an endless soup regimen where I can enjoy ready-made hot lunches for about a week. I still have lots of dehydrated cabbage in the pantry so I figured I’d incorporate cabbage stew as my soup of choice for the coming week.
Now I used what I had in my pantry which included some dehydrated veggies as well as home-canned tomato sauce from a garden tomato overage. But of course you could use fresh or store-bought items in their place. Today I’ll be sharing what I did. Heck, I’ll even include links to the posts sharing how I dehydrated, made or canned some of these items in case you’re interested in streamlining your own cabbage-stew-making in the future! My adaptable recipe will be included at the bottom of the page.
Rehydrating my Dehydrated Vegetables
I first wanted to rehydrate my veggies as well as cook the raw ingredients. So I brought out a quart of my homemade broth. (it doesn’t matter to me what kind of broth is used but I used chicken broth this time) I brought out my dehydrated cabbage as well as the bell pepper and celery I dehydrated the other day, some red onion, pickled garlic (you remember, from when I shared my Homestead Hack of obtaining small jars for our Christmas baskets!) as well as fresh carrots and some of the herbs that I’ve dried.
I poured the broth into a large soup pot, adding all my dehydrated veggies as well as my chopped fresh veggies. I brought it all to a boil and covered the pot, simmering gently for about 15-20 minutes. Then I pulled the lid off the pot and sampled my cabbage and it was perfect. It still had a slight crunch but was no longer tough.
Finally I poured in my tomato sauce and seasonings and let it all heat through. DONE!
Making A Weekly Endless Soup Pot
Throughout the week I’d just add a can of mixed veggies or beans to allow this soup pot to continue to provide my lunches for the week
Oh, and I monitored the scales throughout the week and although I wasn’t trying to lose any weight the scales did inch downward a few pounds. And c’mon, what woman doesn’t love that?? LOL
I shared with our Facebook Followers that a couple of days later after a particularly busy day RancherMan suggested we just enjoy the cabbage stew for supper that night so I wouldn’t have to cook. Oh yeah baby, I’m all about that!!
So to make the soup more hearty I bumped up the soup pot with chopped sausage & extra veggies such as potatoes, green beans and corn. I served it hot with soft rolls. The stew certainly hit the spot – hot & delicious and now even a hearty enough meal for RancherMan!
So, if you’re looking for a bone-warming meal I’ll share the recipe as I was making it. But in true Texas Homesteader style, it’s always adaptable for your own tastes. Want to make it spicier? Add some sliced jalapenos and maybe a sprinkling of sharp cheddar when you serve it. Rather it be Italian flavored? Omit the Mexican seasonings and add oregano and basil instead!
Hearty Dehydrated-Cabbage Stew
- 3 cups dehydrated cabbage
- 1 qt (4 cups) tomato sauce
- 1 qt (4 cups) broth
- 1 tablespoon dehydrated celery
- 1 teaspoon dehydrated bell pepper
- 1.5 cups chopped red onion (about 4 small)
- 1 cup fresh carrots, cut into chunks
- Salt & pepper to taste
Seasoning options:
Mexican flavored – season with cumin, & chili powder
Italian flavored – season with basil & oregano
First Rehydrate veggies as well as cook the raw ingredients by pouring broth into large soup pot, adding vegetables & bringing to a boil. Then cover the soup pot & simmer gently for about 15-20 minutes.
Remove lid & test vegetables to see if they are done. If so, pour in tomato sauce and season to taste. Allow the soup to heat through and serve.
My favorite serving option: Season with chili powder & cumin, ladle into bowls and top with sharp cheddar and sliced jalapenos
~TxH~
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Oh this sounds good!! Thanks for sharing on the What’s for Dinner link up!
Especially on a cold winter’s day, Helen. YUM. ~TMH~
Just looking at that soup is making me hungry! Thanks for sharing on the #WasteLessWednesday Blog Hop!
It’s delicious and healthy Katy. Plus it’s great comfort food when the cold wind is blowing. ~TMH~
I am totally in love with this recipe! As a long-time vegan I am always looking for hearty recipes for the winter, and this one I am definitely trying this weekend (and sharing of course) 🙂
Thank you so much!
(found via #HomeMattersLinkyParty
Awesome Michelle, hope you love it as much as we do. ~TMH~
Just stopping by from the Simple Homestead Blog Hop. My hubby has been asking for cabbage stew for the longest time…no more excuses, I finally have a recipe!! Thanks so much!
We’re supposed to get another little cold snap this weekend Tracy, there’ll be some cabbage soup on the menu for sure. ~TMH~
Sounds yummy. I love adding cabbage to soup. It adds good flavor and makes it a lot more filling.
Thanks for sharing on the Homestead Blog Hop.
I’ve become a big fan of adding cabbage to my soup Bonnie. ~TMH~
I made Cabbage Stew except I used fresh cabbage, celery, carrots. Then I used frozen green peppers and tomatoes instead of tomato sauce since I had them added a few spices and we will use this for lunch for the next few days. Thanks
PERFECT Cynthia! I’m a huge fan of ‘use what cha got’ and your soup sounds DELICIOUS! ~TMH~
I made hamburger soup the other day and just because I happened to have a fresh cabbage in the fridge I added a hunk of it to pot. Except for the ground beef my soup looks a lot like your cabbage soup. Very yummy and warming on days on weekends like this when it is -23 (in south eastern Ontario this weekend).
Oh yes Lisa, this soup can have meat or not. (If RancherMan’s gonna enjoy it, there must be MEAT! LOL) It can have various additional veggies, or not. I love that it’s so customizable and still be delicious! ~TMH~
We have lots of dehydrated veggies but never know what to make with them so this recipe is awesome!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Soups are my favorite way to use my dehydrated veggies. My weekly ‘Endless Soup” always has several different dehydrated veggies in it. Sometimes the soup is spicy mexican flavored, sometimes it’s italian flavored, sometimes it’s just homestyle stew seasoned but it’s always delicious! ~TMH~
Looks Wonderful. Now if only I could smell it :}
Seems like I have been making more soups this year than I had in years past. We just finished off my Chicken and Rice soup
Course I will have to use fresh instead of the dehydrated veggies but plan on adding this recipe to the rest of my soup recipes.
Thanks
As soon as my dehydrated cabbage is gone I’ll certainly be using fresh as well Colleen. Fresh is always my preference, but when I find a great deal at the store or have too much I often dehydrate produce to be used later. I will say that I was pleasantly surprised at how delicious this soup was. (and also pleasantly surprised that it actually DID make the scales inch downward for me too… LOL) ~TMH~
From the looks of the picture, looks like you also added whole kernel corn and green beans of which I thought about doing
Yessum, the pic was taken after I “bumped it up” for RancherMan’s more hearty soup needs. But when making my endless soup I typically add a can of veggies every few days and depending upon what variety of soup I’m enjoying I’ll add either corn, green beans, mixed veggies, or even ranch-styled beans. Adding those cans of veggies is how that soup pot keeps me in soup lunches for a week, and it increases my veggie intake too. ~TMH~