Cabbage Soup with Sausage is loaded with great flavors and it’s filled with far more vegetables and meat than broth. Today, I’m giving you the first new soup recipe for the fall and I couldn’t be more excited about it–Italian White Bean, Cabbage, and Sausage Soup.
Updated to add: I’ve made this soup countless times over the past few years and it’s a favorite freezer meal now too.
When I first made this, we were living in the desert and that meant cranking the a/c to really enjoy a bowl of soup. Now? Living in Ohio as the weather begins cooling off? Soup is a beautiful way to warm up at dinner time!
Cabbage Soup with Sausage
Best of all, this soup comes together in under 30 minutes. I am so very ready for cooler weather and this soup represents my wishful thinking for more of the rain that we were lucky enough to see here in the Arizona desert last week.
This was a dinner that I pulled together without any advance planning at all. (The ingredients were about all we had in the house after a couple of weeks of travel!)
All it takes is browning some sausage, adding broth, beans, cabbage and simmering it all together. Onions, tomatoes, and lots of Italian herbs and spices add the finishing touches.
Italian White Bean and Sausage Soup is ideal for a weeknight meal and also makes enough that you’re likely to have leftovers for lunch the next day!
I love adding sausage to my soups. It adds a terrific flavor and holds up very nicely both for leftovers and for soups stashed in the freezer.
This soup is so hearty that it’s almost more of a stew. This is plenty filling enough for a full meal on its own, especially served with a side of crusty Italian Bread or soup crackers.
When you’re feeding a crowd, cabbage and sausage soups are an economical choice, too. Cabbage is one of the least expensive vegetables per pound and sausage can be found at a bargain, too.
Cabbage and Sausage Soup
You can use either regular breakfast sausage or a spicier variety of sausage to make this soup recipe. I’ve used both depending on what I have on hand and it turned out well both ways. If you’re a spice lover, using hot sausage adds a kick you’re sure to love!
The Italian white beans add a lovely element of texture and flavor to the sausage soup with cabbage. White beans, navy beans and Cannellini beans all work beautifully in the soup. I enjoy that they don’t get mushy but the creaminess contrasts well with the bits of sausage and cabbage.
The first time I made this soup it turned out so well that my husband commented twice about how much he liked it. So, I decided to photograph my dinner before sitting down to eat it.
It’s super easy to whip up a double batch of this recipe in order to keep plenty on hand in the freezer. When he was working outside the home, Sean used to take this soup for his lunch at work on a regular basis.
More Favorite Soups for Fall
If your weather is cooling off and you’re ready for even more soup recipes, here are some of our best soups that go from start to finish in less than 30 minutes: Three Bean Minestrone Soup, Creamy Mexican Chicken and Corn Soup, Reuben Soup, Chicken, White Bean, and Kale Soup, White Bean, Spinach, and Beef Soup, and Pasta Pizza Soup are all big favorites with my family.
This classic French Onion Soup and this Mexican Noodle Soup are calling my name as well, so they’re on my must-try list for fall as well.
There is just something about tomatoes and Italian spices simmering that never fails to make me smile. Luckily for me, everyone in my family shares this love of Italian flavors in Italian Chicken and Vegetable Soup.
Kitchen Tip: I use this pot or this (fantastic deal ->) dutch oven when I make this recipe!
Sausage Cabbage Soup
- Cook and crumble the sausage in a large pot, over medium high heat.
- When the sausage has almost finished browning, add the onions.
- Cook for a few more minutes, until the sausage has browned and the onions are tender.
- Add the cabbage, beans, tomatoes, broth, and spices.
- Stir to combine and bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes to soften the cabbage.
Sausage Soup Recipes
I almost always have sausage on hand in my fridge for quick and easy meals throughout the week. Pair it with cabbage or another veggie and you have a delicious filling meal that pleases both kids and adults.
If you like sausage soups, check out our Hearty Italian Vegetable Beef Soup, this Cabbage, Potato, and Sausage Soup, and Sean’s favorite Corned Beef and Cabbage Stew.
Along with soups, I love sausage and cabbage in these Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls and Cabbage Ribbons with Sausage and Thyme Marinara Sauce. This fall I also plan to make at least a few batches of Italian Corn Soup with Sausage to stock in the freezer for easy lunches and dinners.
Tender chunks of roast chicken, creamy white beans and fresh kale combine with a sprinkling of herbs and a bit of chicken broth to make a surprisingly hearty meal.
When the weather is chilly, it’s hard to beat the comfort of a steaming bowl of soup. And this sausage soup is delicious enough that I’ve even found myself making it when it’s not exactly fall weather outside. (We do live in Arizona, so that’s often.)
Add this one to your meal plan for the week; you won’t be sorry!
Italian White Bean, Cabbage, and Sausage Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound hot or regular breakfast sausage
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 small cabbage sliced into bite size pieces, about 4 cups worth
- 14 ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 15 ounces canned great northern beans drained
- 48 ounces chicken broth store-bought or homemade
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon basil
- ¼ teaspoon thyme
Instructions
- Cook and crumble the sausage in a large pot, over medium high heat. When the sausage has almost finished browning, add the onions. Cook for a few more minutes, until the sausage has browned and the onions are tender.
- Add the cabbage, beans, tomatoes, broth, and spices. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer for about 5 minutes to soften the cabbage. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
{originally posted 8/6/14 – recipe notes and photos updated 9/6/22}
Mary Longo says
I only had mild sausage, so I added a tablespoon of crushed red pepper. It worked great. The flavors of this soup improves the longer it cooks. Great recipe!
Mary Younkin says
That’s awesome, Mary! I’m so glad you like the soup.
Rhonda says
This is a great recipe ……….. all should try it
Delicious!!!
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad that you love it, Rhonda!
Jackie says
Made this soup today…oh my goodness. I used store brand hot breakfast sausage, Everything I needed to make this soup was on sale today at my favorite grocery store. So EASY and so GOOD!
Mary Younkin says
I’m so happy that you are enjoying the soup, Jackie!
Dale M Gallucci says
I made it and shared with 2 friends and they loved it
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad to hear that, Dale!
Peggy Earle says
I just made this, added a bit of ground red pepper as I only had non spicy sausage. It was delicious! no salt added, just the way it is.
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad that you like the soup, Peggy!
Cathy Hagler says
Hi Mary, I saw your reciepe of Italian Northern Bean, Sausage and Cabbage Soup and it looks delicious. When I was in the hospital two years ago I laid there thinking about making a soup with northern beans, roast beef and cabbage and all the seasonings. But, for some reason I never got it made. Well, I’m back in the hospital looking at Pinterest and saw your soup. I most definitely will be making this soup when I get home. Thank you so much for this recipe, and I am still going to make the one I thought about 2 yrs ago. Thanks again and stay safe.
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad the soup appeals to you, Cathy. Praying you’ll feel better and be home soon!
Miles Mcintyre says
I had 2 bowls of this soup, and I loved it! For a school assignment, I needed to find the nutritional facts. A lot of other websites don’t show them, so I have to search all over the internet to find them. This website made the nutritional facts so easy to find. I thank all who made this recipe, and collected the nutritional facts!
Thanks again.
Miles Mcintyre
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad that you’re enjoying the soup, Miles!
Kim says
Very good turned out delicious!
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad that you like it, Kim.
Mary says
Have you tried using Italian turkey sausage? Thinking of calories and fat?
Mary Younkin says
This is tasty with any sausage you like, Mary.
Miranda says
This was surprisingly good. I had to make a few substitutes because my pantry was a little sparse (red cabbage instead of green, a little tomato paste and fresh diced tomatoes instead of canned, garbanzo beans instead of great northern) and it was still AMAZING. Very tasty and comforting. YUM!
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad that you like the soup, Miranda. That’s great that the substitutions worked well.
Shawna says
I added to the recipe by frying a half pound of bacon before frying the onions and adding that with sliced Chicken and Apple sausages instead of breakfast sausage and that added another dimension of flavor. We LOVED this soup. We’re not really soup eaters but the left overs were gone SO fast!! Next time I’ll make a double batch and freeze some for individual bowls of soup this fall. Thanks, Mary, for the great recipe. 🙂
Mary Younkin says
I’m so happy to hear that you’re enjoying the soup, Shawna. I bet it was delicious with those variations too!
Saundra J Dern says
I have been making this recipe for a few years but have neglected to comment and rate. This is my seven year old Grandson’s favorite soup. He would probably eat it every day if allowed. I use mild Italian sausage, petite diced tomatoes and I grate the cabbage. I have used Cranberry Beans when I have them which we really enjoy. Although my Grandson could care less how I prepare the cabbage I found most people like it shredded and many do not realize it is made with cabbage. I have served this soup to several events I have catered and I always receive compliments on the soup. The first time I used it when catering was the day my dear husband dropped the soup container and I had to come up with a soup quickly. I had all the ingredients on hand so made this. I was a bit afraid as it is not what was ordered and many people swear they hate cabbage. Fooled them as they were surprised when told what was in the soup. Everyone loved it with a few asking for seconds if I had it. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Mary Younkin says
What an awesome review, Saundra. I’m so glad that you like the soup!
Sarah says
This soup was amazing! I had trouble finding a decent head of cabbage at the grocery store, so I just used a bag of shredded green cabbage, red cabbage, and carrots which worked out perfectly. The carrots added a nice texture & some extra color to the dish. I also added some pepper and used a can of fire roasted diced tomatoes with garlic instead of the regular kind. It was perfection!
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad that you like the soup, Sarah.
Lisa C says
Delicious! I was actually surprised at how flavorful this was for such an easy recipe. I did substitute a bag of cole slaw cabbage mix for the diced cabbage, so it also had carrots and red cabbage. Also we were camping in our RV so I didn’t have a lot of spices. I used Italian seasoning in place of all spices. Also I used hot Italian sausage instead of breakfast sausage. My husband loved it too!
Mary Younkin says
I’m thrilled that the recipe was a hit with you, Lisa!
Cherbear says
Super easy and great taste combo. I used hot Italian sausage .
Mary Younkin says
I’m glad you like the soup!
Linda Albright says
Really good and easy and quick. I used my son’s own venison sausage which is really good and used jalapeno and habanero diced tomatoes cause we like it hot and spicy. Delicious.
Mary Younkin says
That sounds awesome, Linda!
Kathleen says
Could this be made in a Slow Cooker?
Mary Younkin says
I’ve never tried that, Kathleen.
Cris says
Looks great! I’ve been making a version of this for a few years. I use spicy Italian sausage and add mushrooms and sliced red potatoes to the ingredients above. The mushrooms just have to go in last to keep them from cooking down and tasting like canned. I’ll try your way for something different. Thanks!
Nicole says
I made the soup with 1/2 lb hot Italian sausage & 1/2 lb ground turkey browned together to make it even healthier. Honestly, i couldn’t tell there was turkey in it. It was amazing. My favorite soup right now.
Mary Younkin says
I’m so glad to hear that you are enjoying the recipe, Nicole!
Carolyn Richmond says
This soup is delicious. My grandson absolutely loves it.
Mary Younkin says
I’m so very happy you like it!