7 Day Cabbage Soup Diet Plan: The Classic Recipe That Actually Works

Ingredients

• 1 medium head of green cabbage, roughly chopped (about 6 cups)
• 1 large can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, no salt added
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 1 large white onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 packet dry onion soup mix (optional—but it adds a lot of flavor)
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• Salt to taste
• Fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

1. 1

   Prep Your Vegetables

   Chop the cabbage into rough 1-2 inch pieces—don't stress about being precise here. Dice your onion, carrots, celery, and bell peppers. Mince the garlic. Getting everything cut before you start cooking makes this so much faster, and it's honestly the most time-consuming part of the whole recipe.

2. 2

   Sauté the Base Aromatics

   Heat a large soup pot (at least 6 quarts) over medium heat. Add a light drizzle of olive oil or just a splash of your broth to keep it oil-free. Add the onion, celery, and bell peppers and cook for about 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic in the last minute—burnt garlic will ruin the whole pot, so watch it.

3. 3

   Build the Broth

   Pour in the vegetable broth, water, and canned tomatoes (juice and all). Add the smoked paprika, oregano, black pepper, and dry onion soup mix if you're using it. Stir everything together and bring it up to a gentle boil.

4. 4

   Add Cabbage and Carrots

   Once the broth is boiling, add your chopped cabbage and diced carrots. The pot will look completely overfull—that's normal. Cabbage wilts down dramatically. Give it a good stir, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover.

   

5. 5

   Simmer Until Tender

   Let the soup simmer for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. You're looking for the cabbage to be tender but not mushy. Taste it around the 20-minute mark and adjust your seasoning. This is where most people under-salt it and wonder why the soup tastes flat.

6. 6

   Finish and Store

   Remove from heat, taste one final time for seasoning, and ladle into bowls. Top with fresh parsley. The soup keeps for up to 5 days in the fridge—and honestly tastes better on day 2 once the flavors have had time to meld. For the 7-day plan, I recommend making a full batch on Sunday and again mid-week.

Substitution Ideas

Storage Tips

This soup stores really well—that's honestly one of the best things about it. Let it cool completely before transferring to airtight containers. It'll keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. For the full 7-day plan, make your first batch on Sunday and your second batch on Wednesday or Thursday. It also freezes beautifully for up to 3 months; freeze in individual 1.5-cup portions so you can pull out exactly what you need. Reheat on the stovetop over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or microwave in 90-second intervals, stirring between each. Don't freeze and reheat more than once—the cabbage texture gets unpleasant after a second freeze cycle.