Instant Pot Cabbage and Vegetable Soup

Quick and delicious, this nutritious vegetable soup is ready in no time! Made simple and easy in a pressure cooker. Featuring cabbage, tomatoes, vegetables, and fragrant herbs and spices. Perfect for whole food plant-based, vegan, low-carb, gluten-free, and Mediterranean lifestyles.

Are you interested in increasing your veggie consumption? If you’re reviewing this recipe, chances are your answer is yes. Or perhaps you googled cabbage soup. Either way, I’m glad you’re here.

You may think that after eating plant-based for over five years, I have developed fairly healthy eating habits. But this may be an inaccurate assumption. I do my best to eat wholesome and healthy foods and succeed most of the time. But sometimes, I just want chips and guac. Sometimes I just want some cereal or pancakes with loads of maple syrup. Yes, I have a crazy sweet tooth. And sometimes, traveling or eating out/with friends or family make it even more challenging.

One thing I have learned through the years is that when I don’t eat the way I should, it wreaks absolute havoc on my body and impacts the way I feel in a very real and mostly unpleasant way. Over time, I’ve learned that I feel best when I eat lots of vegetables.

And yet, for all the reasons I stated earlier, I sometimes struggle to consume enough vegetables, This is especially true for the cruciferous variety. I’ve shared before that I have read How Not to Die by Dr. Michael Gregor. And I tried to follow many of his guidelines to ensure my body is fueled properly so I can live a longer and healthier life.

I even downloaded his app so that I could more easily and consistently incorporate his “Daily Dozen“. But honestly, it made me realize that I simply don’t consume enough cabbage on a regular basis. Much less on a daily basis. That just wasn’t happening. Lucky for you and me, Dr. Gregor created the free app that helps us keep track of what we’re eating each day. It also ensures we get enough water and exercise. I encourage you to check it out if you’re interested.

Anyway, after a few months of missing the mark almost daily, it occurred to me that I could create a healthy cabbage soup that is both easy and delicious. A recipe that I can make on the weekend and eat throughout the week or whenever I’m lacking my cruciferous vegetable intake. Sounds easy enough, right? That’s because it is.

This Instant Pot Cabbage Vegetable Soup meets all of the wickets on my checklist:

• Easy
• Healthy
• Contains Cabbage
• Delicious
• Whole Food Plant Based
• Oil-free

Bonus! Not only does this Instant Pot Cabbage Vegetable Soup meet all of these goals, but it is also naturally gluten-free. Woot woot!

This soup starts with a fairly standard soup base, including onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. It also contains fresh zucchini – a lovely addition.

To ensure I maximized the cruciferous vegetable ratio, this soup contains five cups of chopped or shredded cabbage. To make things easy, you can use a fourteen-ounce bag of classic coleslaw, which equates to about five cups. Sometimes it’s the simple stuff. You can easily slice or chop the cabbage with your knife. A shredding blade on a salad shooter or food processor also makes quick work of the cabbage.

Substitutions are welcomed and encouraged!! If you only have purple cabbage, so be it. The more color a food contains, the better. If you don’t have any zucchini, feel free to omit or substitute whatever vegetable(s) you have, including summer squash, broccoli, and/or cauliflower. 

For the soup base, this soup contains a combination of diced tomatoes and Umami Vegetable Broth. I like making my own broth for several reasons. For one thing, it’s very easy to make. But it also costs next to nothing since you’re using kitchen scraps. Plus, you get to control how much sodium your broth contains. I actually don’t add any sodium to my broth.

If you don’t have any vegetable broth and don’t have time to make any, you can use a couple tablespoons of bouillon powder mixed for every cup of water.  If you follow a vegan, plant-based diet, or gluten-free diet, do check the ingredients to ensure it doesn’t conflict with your diet.

For flavor, this soup uses bay leaves, Italian seasoning blend, poultry seasoning blend, paprika, crushed red pepper, nutritional yeast, and fresh lemon juice. The herbs complement these nutritious vegetables very well. The red pepper gives this soupa little zip or pop. And the lemon juice brightens the flavor profile and brings everything together rather nicely.

Of course, as with any recipe, use your discretion. This is especially true with the salt and pepper. Once the soup is just about ready, you’ve got to taste it. If it needs more garlic, herbs, lemon juice, or salt and pepper, you have the power!! Add it in if you think it needs it.

The one thing I have learned over the years is that everyone’s flavor palate is vastly different from all the rest. Five different people can taste the exact same dish and everyone will inevitably think something different – it needs salt, it’s too salty, it’s bland, it needs some spice, there’s too much spice, there are too many vegetables, the broth is too thin….. And so on. We all certainly have our preferences, and this is where you have the power to add what you like to make this soup your own.

Now let’s talk about the method. This Instant Pot Cabbage Vegetable Soup uses an Instant Pot or pressure cooker. Other than sautéing at the beginning, it’s pretty much hands off. That means it’s super easy and doesn’t need babysitting. On other words, you have more time to do other things while this is cooking.

If you don’t have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker, no problem. Simply follow the notes in the Recipe Card below to make it on your stovetop.

This Instant Pot Cabbage Vegetable Soup is delicious the next day, allowing the ingredients and flavors to mingle. I like making it on the weekend for the work week. Then I pack up a portion to take with me to work each day. That way, I can easily check the cruciferous vegetables portion off my Daily Dozen checklist. Whew! What a huge win!

This soup also stores rather well in the refrigerator for up to one week. Just be sure to store it in an air-tight container. To make things easier, I portion out five bowls with lids for the work week. Then I can just grab and go in the morning. Easy day.

I hope you enjoy this Instant Pot Cabbage Vegetable Soup much as I do.  

I would love to see your results! Please leave a comment and rate it down below, tag a picture @pebblesandtoast and #pebblesandtoast on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook!   Enjoy!!

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Instant Pot Ingredients

• 5 cups cabbage, chopped or shredded*
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped**
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 2 Tbsp fresh garlic, minced (5-6 cloves)
• 1 quart Umami Vegetable Broth, divided***
• 14 oz can diced tomatoes (or 2 cups)
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp poultry seasoning
• ½ tsp paprika (or smoked paprika)
• dash of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Using the sauté function on your Instant Pot, sauté the cabbage, onion, celery, carrots, and until almost tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in the minced garlic and sauté 1 more minute.
2. Press “Cancel” and add in the zucchini, diced tomatoes, bay leaves, Italian and poultry seasoning, red pepper flakes (if using), and 2 cups of broth. Stir to combine.
3. Attach the lid and make sure the relief valve is turned to sealing.
4. Select High Pressure for 4 minutes, then allow pressure to release naturally, about 15-25 minutes.

1. Once the pressure has released, remove the lid, and stir in the remaining vegetable broth.
2. Remove the bay leaves and adjust seasonings, herbs, and salt, as desired, and enjoy!
3. Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

Notes

* For convenience, use 14 ounce bag of classic coleslaw, which contains about 5 cups.

** Use whatever vegetable(s) you have, including summer squash and/or cauliflower. 

*** If you don’t have vegetable broth, use 2 Tbsp bouillon powder and water.  If you follow a vegan, plant-based diet, or gluten-free diet, check the ingredients.

– If you don’t have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker, you can make this easily on the stovetop. That’s how I used to make it. Just sauté your vegetables until tender, about 5-8 minutes. Then add your remaining ingredients (except lemon juice) and simmer on low heat until the cabbage and carrots are tender, about 30-45 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in fresh lemon juice.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

– This soup is delicious the next day, allowing the ingredients and flavors to mingle. Great to make on the weekend for the work week.