Sweet & Sour Beef-Cabbage Soup

This wholesome sweet-and-sour soup combines beef, caraway seeds, sweet paprika, and cabbage–ingredients that star in a number of German dishes. It is particularly nice served with crusty rye bread. For an even heartier soup, add diced cooked potatoes along with the cabbage.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 pound lean (90% or leaner) ground beef
• 1 ½ teaspoons caraway seeds
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 ½ cups 2 1/2 cups frozen bell pepper and onion mix, thawed, chopped
• 1 1 medium Golden Delicious or other sweet-tart cooking apple, unpeeled, diced
• 6 cups reduced-sodium beef broth
• 1 (15 ounce) can 1 15-ounce can crushed or diced tomatoes
• 1 ½ tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon 1 tablespoon paprika, preferably Hungarian sweet
• 3 cups 3 cups coarsely chopped Savoy, or green cabbage
• 2 tablespoons 1-2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

• Step 1

  Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add beef, caraway seeds and thyme and cook, stirring and breaking up the beef with a spoon, until it is mostly browned, about 4 minutes. Stir in pepper-onion mix and apple; cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes more.

• Step 2

  Stir in broth, tomatoes, honey and paprika and adjust the heat so the mixture boils gently. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes to blend the flavors. Stir in cabbage and cook just until barely tender, 3 to 4 minutes more. Season with vinegar to taste, salt and pepper.