Instant Pot Cabbage Soup

Instant Pot Cabbage Soup is packed with veggies, seasonings, and fantastic flavor. This hearty vegetarian soup is a full course meal all on it's own or a great appetizer for big dinners. I add two special optional ingredients to give this cabbage a soup a big boost in deliciousness: paprika roux and pomegranate syrup!

Instant Pot Cabbage Soup is a hearty and healthy flavor packed vegan soup. It's full of fresh and wholesome ingredients- cabbage, peppers, celery, carrots, and more!

This is a dump and start Instant Pot recipe that can be served as a full meal or appetizer.

Instant Pot cabbage soup was inspired by my all time favorite Middle Eastern style Instant Pot stuffed cabbage rolls- and is made with the same flavor-boosting secret: pomegranate molasses!

This recipe works in a 6-quart, 8 quart, and 10 quart Instant Pot. For a 3 quart Instant Pot, you will likely need to reduce the ingredients. You can easily make a bigger or smaller batch with keeping the ingredients proportionate.

I have an 8 quart Duo Crisp, which is an awesome pressure cooker for making Instant Pot air fryer combo dinners. I love it!

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Ingredient Substitutions
• Instructions
• Variations
• How To Store
• Tips
• Recipe
• Recipe Reviews

And if you love making soups in your Instant Pot, make sure to check out these tasty recipes, too.

Ingredients

In addition to the above ingredients, you need:

• vegetable broth
• thyme
• parsley
• salt + pepper
• sweet paprika + olive oil
• pomegranate molasses (optional)

While technically optional, I highly recommend using pomegranate molasses if you can find it. You can even make your own homemade version using lemon juice and sugar! It can be easily found online too, as it is here.

It lasts forever and truly brings something special to your recipes. My family uses it in our traditional Syrian recipes, like Instant Pot stuffed peppers, lamb meatballs and saffron rice with veggies and Instant Pot lamb stew.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Tomatoes - canned diced tomatoes will work here, just don't forget to include the juices.
• Vegetable broth - use chicken broth or beef broth if you're not concerned about sticking to a vegan or vegetarian diet.
• Bell peppers - use any color bell peppers, but green peppers will give the soup a less sweet flavor.
• Sweet onion - yellow onion can be used instead.
• Paprika roux - for a thicker broth, use flour in place of the olive oil. When you add it to the soup, set the pressure cooker to saute for 5 minutes to bring the soup to a low simmer for it to thicken a bit.
• Pomegranate molasses - while there is no direct substitution for pomegranate molasses, it's fine to leave it out. Using it will give your soup an incredible flavor boost, so if you can find it, it's worth it. But I've made cabbage soup with and without it, and they are both delicious!

Instructions

Layer the ingredients in the inner pot of your pressure cooker in this order: vegetable broth, sweet onion, garlic, cabbage, celery, carrots, bell pepper. Push down to submerge in the broth as much as possible, but do not mix.

Sprinkle with the thyme, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Add the pomegranate molasses if you're using it and crushed tomatoes on the top. Do not mix.

Hint: It's very important not to mix to prevent the heavier and thicker ingredients from falling to the bottom of the pot and possibly triggering the burn notice.

Close the lid and seal the vent. Set to pressure cook on high for 10 minutes. When done, let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes and then finish with a quick release.

When the pressure has been released, heat olive oil in the microwave until it's hot. Add the paprika to the oil and mix until a thick paste forms. This creates a paprika roux that will elevate the flavor of the broth. Stir it into the soup.

Then add the lemon juice and give the soup one last good mix. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if desired.

Variations

Make Instant Pot cabbage soup using any of these variations to suit your palate or diet.

• Spicy - add red pepper flakes, a little chili powder or even jalapenos.
• Heartier - add kidney beans, pinto beans, diced potatoes or even chickpeas.
• Non vegan - add ground beef, lamb, sausage, or chicken. Kielbasa is another delicious option.

How To Store

Cabbage soup keeps well in the fridge for about 5 days. Reheat in the microwave when ready to eat.

Tips

This is such an easy dump and start Instant Pot meal. Don't overthink it! Just put your ingredients into the pot and start up your pressure cooker.

While I won't make it complicated, I will say to keep these few things in mind:

• A natural release for 10 minutes prevents piping hot frothy broth from spewing out of the valve. If you don't want to wait, you can do a complete quick release but put a towel over the valve in order to prevent a messy kitchen and potential burns.
• Chop and dice the vegetables into bite sized pieces, or smaller if you're making this for kids.
• Adding the lemon juice at the end gives you control over how citrusy you want the broth. Feel free to add more if you'd like.

Recipe