Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup

Tender, salty, corned beef, bite-size chunks of potatoes, and shredded green cabbage are combined in a savory broth to make this corned beef soup. This meal never fails to make everyone in my family happy.

Corned Beef Soup

On the chance that you are lucky enough to have some leftover corned beef waiting in the fridge, this recipe will make the most of it. If you don’t happen to have corned beef in the house already, this corned beef and cabbage soup recipe is worth a trip to the store.

Savory and flavorful, I could happily breathe in the smell of this simmering soup all day long. However, lucky for all of us, a brief simmer is all it really needs to wilt the cabbage, making it tender and not turning it to mush.

The short simmer makes this a great recipe to pull together on a busy night. Start the onion cooking and then prep the other ingredients as you go, adding to the pot as you go along. The whole meal will come together in less than 30 minutes from start to finish.

Once the onion has become mostly translucent add the chopped celery and continue cooking until tender. Next is the Worcestershire, pepper, and potatoes. Notice you don’t add salt here.

Corned Beef and Potato Soup

Corned beef is very flavorful on its own, however, you can easily oversalt this soup. Whenever I cook with corned beef I always wait until the very end and do a taste test before I add salt. I promise you won’t regret waiting!

Any kind of potato will work in the soup. I know the recipe says to peel them, but confession: I don’t always peel them.

If you use a yellow potato, just give them a good scrub so there is not any dirt and you are fine. Cut them into 1/2″ pieces or so for quick cooking and nice small bites when you eat it.

Corned Beef Cabbage Soup

You’ll need these ingredients to make this recipe:

• olive oil
• onion 
• celery
• potatoes
• beef stock or 6 cups water, plus 2 tablespoons beef base
• Worcestershire sauce
• pepper 
• green cabbage 
• corned beef 
• kosher salt 

Remember, I said this is a prep and add as you go. Which is one of the reasons I love this recipe. While the potatoes cook chop the cabbage and add it to the pot when the potatoes are fork-tender.

While the cabbage simmers, rough chop the corned beef and add it cooking for just a minute or two.

Lastly, taste the soup and add salt only if needed. Corned beef is typically plenty salty so don’t be surprised if you don’t need any at all.

I make extra corned beef every year now, just so I can play with the leftovers for an additional day or two. We’ve already had Corned Beef, Cabbage and Red Potato Hash and I have the last two slices stashed away now for my lunch tomorrow, along with the last of the Colcannon. I’m looking forward to it!

Cabbage and Corned Beef

Some ingredients just work together better than others. Corned beef and cabbage are one of those perfect dinnertime pairs.

For as long as I can remember, my family has enjoyed a traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner on St. Patrick’s day. However, a while back, this recipe for baked corned beef in the oven caught my eye and I saved the recipe to try.

This soup takes all of the Reuben flavors you love and combines them in a steaming hot bowl of soup, perfect for these chilly nights.

Corned Beef Soup

Tender, salty, corned beef, bite-size chunks of potatoes, and shredded green cabbage are combined in a savory broth to make this soup.

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Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 30 mins

Servings: 6 servings

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Ingredients 

• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 small onion chopped small, about ½ cup
• ▢ 4-5 celery ribs sliced thin, about 1½ cups
• ▢ 2 large potatoes peeled and chopped into ½" pieces, about 4 cups
• ▢ 6 cups beef broth or 6 cups water, plus 2 tablespoons beef base
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ▢ ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
• ▢ 1 small head green cabbage quartered and sliced thin, about 6 cups
• ▢ 2 cups cooked corned beef roughly chopped into ½" pieces
• ▢ kosher salt only as needed

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and begin sautéing it while you slice the celery. Add the celery and cook together until almost tender, about 3 minutes.
• Add the potatoes to the pot along with the broth, Worcestershire, and pepper. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 10-15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
• While the soup is simmering, slice the cabbage. When the potatoes are tender, add the cabbage and the corned beef. Stir for about a minute to wilt the cabbage.
• Taste the soup and add salt ONLY if needed. Remove from the heat and serve warm.

Notes

This is a great recipe to pull together on a busy night. Start the onion cooking and then prep the other ingredients as it begins to cook. The whole meal comes together in less than 30 minutes start to finish.

Nutrition

Calories: 212kcal · Carbohydrates: 25g · Protein: 11g · Fat: 9g · Saturated Fat: 2g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g · Monounsaturated Fat: 4g · Cholesterol: 25mg · Sodium: 1402mg · Potassium: 769mg · Fiber: 6g · Sugar: 8g · Vitamin A: 170IU · Vitamin C: 81mg · Calcium: 90mg · Iron: 2mg

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{originally published 3/20/14 – recipe notes updated 2/10/23}