The Broken Scale · Good food. Plenty of personality.
Lamb, Leek and Cabbage Soup with White Beans
Lamb cabbage soup with leeks and white beans in a light thyme broth. A gently simmered stovetop meal finished with parsley and optional cheese.
- Prep
- 20 minutes
- Cook
- 2 hours 10 minutes
- Total
- 2 hours 30 minutes
- Serves
- 6 servings
Soup · Stovetop
A brothy bowl for a slow afternoon
Leeks and cabbage soften around tender lamb in this warming soup. White beans give the broth a little body, with parsley to finish.
Adapted from Sylvia Fountaine at Feasting at Home.
The full recipe
Lamb, Leek and Cabbage Soup with White Beans
Tender lamb and white beans in a brothy soup with leeks, cabbage and thyme.
Ingredients
1-2 tbsp Olive oil- 2 Leeks white and light green parts, sliced and thoroughly rinsed
- 1 cup Carrot diced
- 1 cup Celery diced
- 4 cloves Garlic roughly chopped
- 1 med Green cabbage head halved, cored, cut into roughly 1" cubes
- 1 ½ lbs Boneless lamb shoulder trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 6 cups Chicken broth low sodium, plus water as needed
- 1 ½ tsp Salt or less, to taste
- ½ tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 1 ½ tbsp Apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp Thyme dried (or Herbs de Provence, or Italian seasoning)
- ½ tsp Caraway seeds optional
- ¼ tsp Cayenne optional
- 2 Bay leaves
- 15 oz Canned white beans one can, drained and rinsed
- Parsley chopped, for serving
- Grated pecorino (or other hard salty cheese - manchego, Parmesan) for serving, optional
Instructions
- Rinse sliced leeks thoroughly to remove grit and drain. Heat oil in a large heavy stockpot over medium heat. Soften leeks, carrot and celery for 5–7 minutes; add garlic for 30 seconds.
- Add lamb, broth, pepper, vinegar, thyme, optional caraway and cayenne, and bay leaves. Start with less than the listed salt if the broth is salty. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer gently for 1 hour.
- Add cabbage and enough water to just cover it when gently pressed down. Cover and simmer for another 45–60 minutes, or longer until lamb pulls apart easily with a fork.
- Discard bay leaves. Stir in drained canned beans and simmer until hot throughout. Adjust seasoning and serve with parsley and optional grated cheese.
Notes
Adapted from Sylvia Fountaine at Feasting at Home, using her stovetop method. Use canned cooked beans, not dry beans. Allow extra simmering time if the lamb needs it.
Refrigerate in shallow containers within 2 hours, use within 3 days and reheat to 165°F (74°C).
