Slow Cooker Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound ground beef (or swap in turkey if that’s what you prefer)

1 medium yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups chopped green cabbage (about half of a medium head, give or take—no need to be precise)

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, juice and all

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

4 cups beef broth (I’ve used chicken broth before in a pinch, and it works too!)

1/2 cup uncooked white rice (or brown—just add a splash more broth if you do)

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon salt (or to taste—don’t be shy about adjusting)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon sugar (absolutely makes a difference, so don’t skip unless you must)

Optional: a bay leaf, pinch of thyme, or a dash of red pepper flakes if you want a little zing

DIRECTIONS:

Brown the beef and onions
In a nonstick skillet or cast iron pan (use what you’ve got), cook the ground beef and diced onion over medium heat until the beef is all browned up and the onions are soft. This takes about 7 or 8 minutes in my kitchen. Drain off any extra grease—it’ll make your soup less heavy.

Add garlic
Stir in your minced garlic and let it cook for about 30 seconds, just until it smells fragrant but isn’t burned (trust me, you’ll smell the difference)

Transfer to the slow cooker
Scoop all that beefy, oniony goodness into your slow cooker bowl. Pile on the cabbage, tomatoes with their juices, tomato sauce, broth, uncooked rice, Worcestershire, and all your seasonings (plus those optional herbs and spices if you like).

Stir, cover, and let it do its thing
Give everything a gentle mix, pop the lid on, and:

On Low: cook 6–8 hours

On High: cook 3–4 hours

You’ll know it’s done when the rice is soft and the cabbage is just falling-apart tender. Give it a little taste and adjust your salt and pepper if needed, because every broth is a little different

Remove bay leaf (if you added one) and you’re ready to ladle into bowls.