Curry Ground Turkey Cabbage Soup with fresh vegetables and an aromatic broth for a feel-good meal. This energizing detox soup recipe is a beautiful balance of protein, fiber, micronutrients and healthy fats for a healthy meal.
For those times you a.) feel under the weather, b.) wish you could press the reset button or c.) crave a big bowl of wholesome comfort food, this simple, belly-pleasing turkey cabbage soup is here to support your needs.
It features Thai-inspired flavors, lots of vegetable goodies, and an aromatic broth to tantalize the taste buds.
This hearty ground turkey and cabbage soup recipe packs a huge nutrient punch!
We’re getting lean protein from the ground turkey, plenty of fiber and micronutrients from all of the vegetables, and a little healthy fat to balance it all out.
High-fiber and high-protein meals like this are always so filling and satisfying. The perfect formula for those times you’re craving a clean meal.
All things considered, this easy soup recipe is paleo friendly and also whole30 compliant. Ideal for those who are doing a stint of clean eating, or just love a healthy dinner recipe.
Let’s chat about the basic ingredients for this healthy soup recipe.
Ingredients for Curry Ground Turkey Cabbage Soup:
Lean Ground Turkey Meat: The key ingredient here is ground turkey, adding a boost of lean protein to this healthy soup recipe.
Avocado Oil: Used to sauté the vegetables and brown the meat, we need a quality high-temperature cooking oil. I like using avocado oil due to its high smoke point and neutral flavor, but olive oil works too.
Onion, Fresh Garlic, Fresh Ginger, Bell Pepper, Carrots, Green Cabbage, Baby Spinach: The fresh vegetables in this delicious soup recipe! The head of cabbage, onion, garlic, and ginger are a must but you can change up the rest of the veggies based on what you like.
Chicken Broth: The majority of the liquid in the soup is chicken broth. You can also use chicken stock or vegetable broth if you prefer.
Full-Fat Canned Coconut Milk: In order to add a little creamy flavor, we pour in some full-fat canned coconut milk. Be sure to use coconut milk from the can for the best results because it adds fat content for flavor.
Pure Maple Syrup: A touch of pure maple syrup brings a little sweetness to the soup to round out the flavor.
Apple Cider Vinegar: Bringing a little tangy flavor, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, or lime juice is a great addition.
Curry Powder: Bringing a punch of Thai flavors to the soup, we add a quality curry powder. Curry powder is a blend of ground turmeric, ground ginger, ground cumin, coriander, and sometimes cayenne pepper. Use a brand you have used in the past and love, or make your own blend.
Sea Salt: Add sea salt and black pepper to your personal taste.
Recipe Adaptations:
- You can increase or decrease the amount based on how much curry flavor you’re going for. You can also replace the curry powder with Thai red curry paste or green curry paste.
- Mix up the vegetable selection. Broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, green beans, sweet potatoes, green peppers, and zucchini are great options.
- Any ground meat such as ground beef, ground chicken, ground turkey sausage, or chopped chicken breasts all work as replacements for ground turkey.
- Looking to up the ante on protein in your life? Add an extra pound of ground turkey (or meat of choice).
- Add 2 to 3 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce for umami flavor.
- For a kick of spice, add red pepper flakes, a chopped up jalapeno or serrano, or cayenne pepper to this hearty soup.
- Add a can of diced tomatoes and Italian seasoning instead of curry powder and omit the ginger for soup that tastes like traditional cabbage rolls.
- Add in 1/3 cup of brown rice or white rice if you’d like. If you do so, the soup will need to cook longer. Otherwise, you can add already cooked rice or cauliflower rice.
Now that we’ve covered the simple ingredients, let’s make one of my latest favorite soup recipes!
How to Make Curry Ground Turkey Cabbage Soup:
Heat the avocado oil in a large pot (such as a stock pot or a Dutch oven) over medium heat on the stove top.
Add the onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes.
Add in the ground turkey and use a spatula to break it into small chunks. Stir in the garlic and fresh ginger and continue cooking for 3 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients except for the cabbage and baby spinach, increase heat to medium-high heat and bring it to a full boil.
Add in the cabbage and cover the pot with a lid. It will seem like there’s too much cabbage at first. This is normal and it will cook down. Continue cooking at a controlled boil, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. If you have more time, feel free to allow the soup to cook longer so that the flavors develop more.
Add in the baby spinach, cover the pot and cook until the spinach has wilted, about 3 minutes.
Taste the soup for flavor and add more sea salt, vinegar, or curry powder to your personal taste.
Serve soup in big bowls and enjoy!
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
If you prefer cooking in the Instant Pot or the crock pot, feel free to make this recipe using your favorite kitchen tool.
And that’s it! Cozy comfort food at its finest! This nourishing soup recipe is like a warm embrace for your belly.
Whether you feel like rebooting your system or you find yourself craving lots of greens, this soup is here for you.
This ground turkey vegetable soup is a great way of enjoying quality protein and a bunch of veggies on a low calorie or low carb diet.
I love the idea of using it as a meal prep recipe for busy weeknight dinners or work lunches.
If you love healthy soup recipes like this, also try out these reader favorites!
More Healthy Soups:
- Immunity-Boosting Turmeric Chicken Soup
- Hearty Ground Turkey Soup with Vegetables
- Crock Pot Curry Lentil Soup
- Cabbage Roll Soup Recipe
- Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Albondigas Soup
Enjoy this energizing, soothing, healthy cabbage soup!
Curry Ground Turkey Cabbage Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- ½ red onion chopped
- 1 lb ground turkey meat
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 Tbsp fresh ginger peeled and grated
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 2 large carrots chopped
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup full-fat canned coconut milk*
- 1 to 2 Tbsp curry powder to taste
- 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 medium-sized head cabbage thinly sliced
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 1 tsp sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat the avocado oil in a large pot (such as a stock pot or a Dutch oven) over medium heat on the stove top.
- Add the onion and sauté, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add in the ground turkey and use a spatula to break it into small chunks. Stir in the garlic and fresh ginger and continue cooking for 3 minutes.
- Add the remaining ingredients except for the cabbage and baby spinach, increase heat to medium-high heat and bring it to a full boil. Add in the cabbage and cover the pot with a lid. It will seem like there’s too much cabbage at first. This is normal and it will cook down. Continue cooking at a controlled boil, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. If you have more time, feel free to allow the soup to cook longer so that the flavors develop more.
- Add in the baby spinach, cover the pot and cook until the spinach has wilted, about 3 minutes.
- Taste the soup for flavor and add more sea salt, vinegar, or curry powder to your personal taste.
- Serve soup in big bowls and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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I liked this! I added the juice of a lime and a bunch of chopped cilantro though because I just have to have that flavor in my curry.
I needed to use up some ground chicken I had on hand, otherwise I would have added chunked potatoes, sweet potatoes, or chickpeas next time and omitted the ground meat for a meatless option.
Thanks so much for sharing that, Faith! This is super helpful to others who want to try the recipe 🙂
This turned out great!! I omitted the red pepper and added some chunks of butternut squash to it. I also made a curry paste from scratch. I’ll make this again!
Ooh, I love the idea of adding butternut squash! How brilliant 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing your experience, Laurie! xo
In the section about the cooking oil, it was twice stated that high temperature cooking is desired but at the end said that olive oil works.
Which way is it?
“Avocado Oil: Used to sauté the vegetables and brown the meat, we need a quality high-temperature cooking oil. I like using avocado oil due to its high smoke point and neutral flavor, but olive oil works too.”
Hi Stephen! It’s best to use a cooking oil with a high smoke point when cooking at high temperatures. I mention olive oil works too because some people only have olive oil on hand and it’s all they cook with. So although I don’t recommend cooking with olive oil it does work for preparing this recipe even if it isn’t necessarily advisable. The issue with olive oil is that it tends to burn while sauteing vegetables, which in turn causes it to become toxic. Hope this helps!
Do I have to use coconut milk? Can I sub another milk
The closest replacement to full-fat canned coconut milk is half & half or heavy cream, so I would recommend using one of those 🙂
Looks great! Does this freeze well? Would love to make in advance and have on-hand. Thanks!
Hi there! Yes, the recipe freezes very well 🙂 It lasts in the freezer for up to 4 months. Let me know if you have any other questions, and I hope you enjoy the soup!