Golumpki Soup: Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup, Polish Style

By The Sunday Pot Kitchen Updated September 28, 2026

Prep20 min Cook1 hr 5 min Total⏱ 1 hr 25 min Yield🍽 8 servings Calories🔥 320 kcal

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• 20 minutes of prep and about 65 minutes in one Dutch oven
• 1½ lb (680 g) of ground beef and pork and a 2 lb (900 g) cabbage make 8 servings
• Brown the meat hard for 8 to 10 minutes: that browning gives the soup most of its savory depth
• Simmer the rice in the soup for the last 18 to 20 minutes, or cook it apart if you want leftovers
• Finish with a splash of cider vinegar, sour cream and fresh dill

A bowl of golumpki soup with cabbage, ground meat, rice and carrots in a tomato broth, topped with sour cream and fresh dill, a cream enameled Dutch oven and sliced rye bread behind it

Instructions

Brown the meat Heat the oil in a 6- to 7-quart (5.7 to 6.6 liter) Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef and pork and press them into a flat layer. Cook without stirring for 3 to 4 minutes, until browned underneath. Break the meat up and cook for 5 minutes more, until no pink remains. Spoon off all but about 1 tablespoon of the fat.
Soften the vegetables Lower the heat to medium. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring now and then, for 5 to 6 minutes, until the onion is soft. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, paprika, marjoram and pepper, and cook for 1 minute.
Wilt the cabbage Add half the cabbage and stir until it starts to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add the rest and cook, turning it with tongs, for 3 to 4 minutes more, until it has shrunk by about a third.
Simmer the soup Pour in the crushed tomatoes and broth. Add the bay leaves and 1½ teaspoons of salt. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the soup simmers gently. Set the lid ajar and cook for 20 minutes, until the cabbage is tender.
Cook the rice in the soup Stir in the rice. Simmer uncovered for 18 to 20 minutes, until the rice is tender. Stir now and then, so the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pot.
Season the soup Take out the bay leaves and stir in the vinegar. Taste the soup, then add more salt, or the sugar if the tomatoes taste sharp.
Serve with sour cream and dill Ladle the soup into deep bowls. Top each bowl with a spoonful of sour cream and a pinch of dill, and serve it with rye bread.

Golumpki soup is unstuffed cabbage roll soup: the flavors of Polish gołąbki in one pot, with no leaves to roll. Ground beef and pork, green cabbage, rice and tomato simmer together for about 40 minutes. It takes about 1½ hours from the first chop to the table, and a spoonful of sour cream and dill finishes each bowl.

What golumpki soup is

Gołąbki are Polish cabbage rolls. The name means “little pigeons,” as Culture.pl explains. Cooks fill white cabbage leaves with minced meat and rice, then serve the rolls with a tomato or mushroom sauce. Golumpki is the spelling many Polish-American families use, close to how the word sounds.

The soup is a newer home cook’s shortcut. It keeps every flavor of the rolls but skips the slow work of blanching leaves and rolling them. Everything goes into one pot and simmers. You get the same sweet cabbage, savory meat and tangy tomato, in a spoon.

Gołąbki remain a Polish classic. Poland’s national tourism site notes that Polish cuisine placed 11th in the 2024/25 TasteAtlas Awards, and that gołąbki round out its top ten dishes.

The soup is also a dish of the moment. Pinterest Predicts 2026 named cabbage its food trend of the year, under the name “Cabbage Crush.” Its report lists searches for golumpki soup up 95%.

Choosing the cabbage and the meat

Pick a small head of green cabbage, about 2 lb (900 g). It should feel heavy for its size, with tight, crisp leaves. Cut out the core and chop the leaves into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces. You get about 10 cups, which cook down to roughly a third.

Savoy cabbage works too, and it cooks a little faster. Skip red cabbage here: it turns the broth a murky purple-brown.

For the meat, this recipe uses the classic gołąbki pair of beef and pork. Use 1 lb (450 g) of 85% lean ground beef and ½ lb (225 g) of ground pork. The pork adds richness and keeps the meat tender. All beef works fine. Ground turkey works too, though it tastes milder and browns less.

How to make golumpki soup in one pot

Brown the meat well, because browning builds most of the soup’s savory flavor. Spread it in a flat layer in a hot Dutch oven and leave it alone for 3 to 4 minutes. Then break it up and cook it for 5 minutes more, until no pink remains. The USDA safe minimum for ground beef and pork is 160°F (71°C), and the long simmer takes the meat well past it. Spoon off all but about 1 tablespoon of the fat.

Next, soften the onion and carrots for 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, paprika and marjoram, and cook them for 1 minute. The short fry wakes up the spices and takes the raw edge off the tomato paste.

Add the cabbage in 2 batches, since it will not all fit at first. Turn it with tongs until it wilts and shrinks, about 5 minutes. Then pour in the tomatoes and broth, and simmer for 20 minutes, until the cabbage is tender.

Rice in the pot, or on the side

The rice goes in for the last 18 to 20 minutes. Just ½ cup (100 g) of long-grain white rice is enough for 8 bowls. It thickens the broth a little, the way the filling thickens the sauce around baked cabbage rolls.

Rice keeps drinking broth as the soup sits. By the next day, the pot looks more like a stew than a soup. If you plan to keep leftovers, cook the rice apart and spoon it into each bowl. Or add ½ to 1 cup (120 to 240 ml) of broth or water when you reheat.

Seasoning: sweet, sour and dill

Cabbage rolls in tomato sauce taste gently sweet and tangy. The tomatoes bring most of that. A tablespoon of cider vinegar at the end sharpens the flavor. If your tomatoes taste sharp or sour, add the teaspoon of sugar too.

Marjoram is a favorite herb in Polish cooking, and it gives the soup a warm, slightly piney scent. Paprika adds color and a mild sweetness.

Salt the soup with care. Broth and canned tomatoes both carry salt, so taste before you add more at the end. Then finish each bowl with sour cream and fresh dill. The cool, tangy cream and bright herb lift the whole pot.

Serving and storing golumpki soup

Serve the soup in deep bowls, with rye bread and butter on the side. A big bowl makes a full meal. A small cup can also open a Sunday dinner, the way French onion soup does. If you like meat simmered slowly in tomato, try Italian Sunday gravy too. For another one-pot dinner from a new corner of the world, make chicken biryani.

Like the rolls, the soup tastes even better the next day. Culture.pl says gołąbki taste best on the second or even third day. Follow the USDA advice on leftovers:

Refrigerate the soup within 2 hours of cooking.
Divide a big pot into shallow containers, so it cools fast.
Eat it within 3 to 4 days, or freeze it for 3 to 4 months.
Reheat soups by bringing them to a rolling boil.

For the freezer, the soup keeps its texture best without the rice. Freeze it in 2-cup (480 ml) portions, with ½ inch (1 cm) of space at the top of each container.

Substitutes for missing ingredients

Ground pork: more ground beef, or ground turkey.
Green cabbage: savoy cabbage. Napa cabbage works too, but add it with the rice, since it cooks fast.
Long-grain white rice: 1½ cups of cooked rice, stirred in for the last 5 minutes. Or ½ cup (85 g) of toasted buckwheat groats (kasha), simmered for 15 minutes. Culture.pl notes that kasza also fills gołąbki.
Dried marjoram: ½ teaspoon dried thyme or oregano.
Crushed tomatoes: 1 can (28 oz, 794 g) of diced tomatoes, blended until smooth, or tomato purée.
Beef broth: chicken or vegetable broth.
Sour cream: plain Greek yogurt.
Fresh dill: 1 teaspoon of dried dill, stirred in with the vinegar, or fresh parsley on top.

Frequently asked questions

What does golumpki mean?

Golumpki is an American spelling of gołąbki, the Polish word for “little pigeons” and the name of cabbage rolls filled with meat and rice. Golumpki soup puts those same ingredients in one pot.

Is golumpki soup the same as cabbage roll soup?

Yes. Golumpki soup, cabbage roll soup and unstuffed cabbage soup all name the same idea: the filling and sauce of cabbage rolls, simmered together as a soup. Recipes differ in their meat, spices and rice.

Can I make golumpki soup without rice?

Yes. Leave the rice out for a thinner, lighter soup, and simmer it for 10 minutes less. For a low-carb version, stir in 2 cups of riced cauliflower for the last 5 minutes.

Why did my soup get so thick overnight?

The rice keeps soaking up broth as the soup sits. Add ½ to 1 cup (120 to 240 ml) of broth or water when you reheat it. Next time, cook the rice apart if you plan to keep leftovers.

Can I freeze golumpki soup?

Yes. Cool it fast, then freeze it in airtight containers for 3 to 4 months. The rice softens in the freezer, so freeze the soup without it if you can. Reheat it in a pot until it comes to a rolling boil.

How long does golumpki soup keep in the fridge?

It keeps for 3 to 4 days, as USDA advises for leftovers. Refrigerate it within 2 hours of cooking, in shallow containers so it cools quickly.

What do you serve with golumpki soup?

Rye bread and butter are the classic partners. Sour cream and fresh dill go on top of each bowl. A crisp green salad or a plate of dill pickles also suits it.