This easy Sausage & Cabbage Soup is the ultimate comfort food. A beautifully luscious soup with smoky sausage, fresh vegetables and of course sweet tender cabbage simmered in a flavorful creamy broth.
When the weather gets cooler, in my house it’s officially soup season. There is just something about a delicious warm bowl of soup that warms your belly from the inside out and this creamy cabbage soup recipe is no exception. If a hug were food, it would be this soup.
Cabbage and Sausage
Cabbage and sausage just seem to go hand in hand. If you’ve read my blog before, you likely know that I love all things cabbage from Cabbage Roll Soup to Sausage and Cabbage cooked on the grill! Cabbage is inexpensive, a little bit goes a long way and once cooked, it’s tender with a delicious sweet flavor.
This is just one of my many favorite cabbage recipesfavorite cabbage recipes. If you don’t cook with cabbage often, you can find lots of great info in The Ultimate Guide to Cabbage!
Irresistibly Creamy
This easy soup starts with sausage, I use kielbasa but you can also use a garlic sausage or pretty much any smoked (fully cooked) sausage that you’d like. I make this cabbage soup with potatoes to give it a nice creamy texture (and to keep my belly full all day long). Fresh carrots and cabbage add both fresh and sweet flavors to this soup and of course cream makes it buttery irresistible.
While this is a creamy soup, keep in mind it is not a thick soup like a chowder. The creamy portion of this soup comes from making a roux. While roux may sound like a fancy or difficult cooking term, it’s really easy. A roux is the base for most white sauces (and even Sausage Gravy) and starts by cooking butter and flour (to get rid of that raw flour flavor) and then adding in milk or cream and cooking until thick and bubbly. The roux is then added to the soup in this recipe giving it a delicious buttery cream flavor.
More Cabbage Soups
- Crock Pot Cabbage Roll Soup – Easy favorite version of cabbage rolls!
- Cabbage and Noodles – Classic Haluski recipe!
- Cabbage and Sausage Foil Packets – Perfect for grilling or baking.
- Cabbage Roll Soup Recipe (video) – All time reader favorite.
- Easy Cabbage Rolls – Best ever homemade cabbage roll recipe.
- Slow Cooker Cabbage Soup – Healthy veggie filled soup!
How to Thicken Your Sausage and Cabbage Soup
If you’d like your soup to be thicker, you can certainly increase the butter/flour mixture to about 3/4 cup each while leaving the milk the same. I also give my potatoes just a slight little mash with a potato masher to help thicken the broth somewhat.
We add a little bit of fresh dill to this soup at the very end for a pop of freshness. If you don’t have fresh dill you can substitute dry dill and add it along with roux to allow it to rehydrate.
Can you Freeze Creamy Cabbage Soup?
Unfortunately, most soup recipes that contain dairy don’t freeze well (non-dairy is usually ok). The soup can separate and the texture can become grainy. I would suggest freezing a portion before adding the dairy in this recipe.
Creamy Sausage & Cabbage Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound smoked sausage sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ⅔ cup diced onion
- 4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- ¾ pound potatoes peeled and diced, about 2 to 3 medium
- 2 carrots sliced
- 3 to 4 cups chopped green cabbage
- 1 rib sliced celery
- salt and pepper to taste
- ⅓ cup butter
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
Instructions
- Cook sausage, onion and butter until onion is tender. Add celery, carrot, potato, cabbage, broth and salt & pepper to taste.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
- Meanwhile, melt butter in a small saucepan. Stir in flour and cook over medium heat about 2 min. Add milk and cream and stir until smooth. Continue whisking until thick and bubbly.
- Once vegetables are tender, add cream mixture into the soup. Allow to simmer 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in dill and parsley.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Soup
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More Creamy Soups to Try
- Baked Potato Soup – Creamy and delicious, this soup recipe tastes just like a loaded baked potato.
- Creamy Seafood Chowder – A cream soup fully loaded with tender chunks of seafood!
- Roasted Cauliflower Soup – A vegetable soup with layers of flavor.
- Potato Leek Soup – A classic restaurant soup made easy at home!
- Ham and Corn Chowder – The best ever corn chowder recipe!
- Creamy Carrot Soup Recipe – Kids love this naturally sweet carrot soup recipe!
This was one of the very best soups I’ve ever eaten. My husband said he could eat it every day for lunch. I was adding just a bit more salt to it before packing it up for tomorrow and dropped the salt box into the pot. I am so dismayed. I made more white sauce for it, added more milk and dill, and a splash of vinegar. Nothing helped. But I will be making it again. Great recipe!
Oh no! I am so sorry that happened!
I can’t remember if I have commented on this recipe already, so here I go (again?). This has got to be the best cabbage soup recipe ever. I have used it since 2019 and it’s always a hit. Sometimes I add crumbled bacon, but otherwise I follow it as written. The Soup Nazi just wishes he had this recipe!
Thank you Holly!
Can’t believe how good this was. I had to use dry herbs since I didn’t have any fresh ones. That was the only difference I made in your recipe. It makes a nice big pot for cooler days. Thank you!
The only reason it is not 5 stars, is because the cream sauce was difficult to make.
This soup is AWESOME!!! I put all in instapot except the butter/flour/milk/cream. When first part was done I made the creamy part of the soup and stirred it into the insta pot mixture. Added a little dried parsley and dill (I did not have fresh on hand). Simply AMAZING! Thank you for posting this recipe!
Sounds delicious, Kathy! So glad you enjoyed it.
Amazing. Easy to make, oh so flavorful. I’ve left it without the rue for fewer calories. The butter flour and cream base ~ wow. I add sausage to hubby serving, which he considers a meal with the meat. Garlic ciabatta on the side~score!
I made a mistake and bought half and half .. is there a way I can substitute the half-and-half? in replace of milk and heavy cream
I have only tried the recipe as written, but if you substitute the half and half for the milk and heavy cream it should work just fine! If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out Trisha!
I used one cup half and half and one cup whole milk. Key is to continuously whisk the rue until bubbly and thickens~turned out great!
We love this recipe in our family. I omit the sausage. Instead of fresh herbs I just uses 1-2 tbsp of Italian seasoning. I also add an additional 2 cups of broth to cover the vegetables while boiling. Some weeks I make this twice so the kids can bring leftovers to school for lunch. It really is so good.
Made this scrumptious soup yesterday. OOhhhh so good! I doubled it knowing I would be sharing it with family. Followed the recipe with one slight addition of 2Tbs bacon fat while frying the onions, stellar!! Tastes even better next day. Make this soup, you won’t be disappointed.
So good I will save this in my recipes
Hi again. My apologies. I see further down there is additional butter. Too early in the morning for me I think LOL!
Hi Holly. I’m doubling this recipe. You had mentioned that if we wanted it thicker to add 3/4 cup each of flour and butter rather than the 2 Tablespoons of butter and the 1/3 cup of flour. Is that correct? I just wanted to be sure before I make it and ruin it.
I love all of your recipes I’ve made. They’re so wonderful that I always double them to share with friends and needy seniors in my area when I can. They all love them as well!
Thank you,
Misty White
misty white, I doubled this recipe…..2/3 cup butter, 2/3 cup flour. Worked perfectly.
This is one of my all time favorite soups. Even though it says it doesn’t free well with dairy, I freeze one cup servings and haven’t had a problem with it separating. I make a batch and freeze the leftovers for a quick lunch. I give this a 10 out of 10.
I’ve made this many many times, very yummy and probably my favorite soup. My whole family loves it, even the kiddos who normally hate all things with vegetables. Soft yummy cabbage is the best part! I’ve cooked lots of your recipes for years now, but I have to say this is probably my favorite :)
Thank you Jamie, so glad you love it!
Just make this soup..It was Sooo good. My husband and I both loved it.