INSTANT POT TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

This Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew recipe makes a nourishing and healthy vegan dish with minimal effort. Velvety soft cabbage with a savoury, and sweet tomato sauce, ready in 35 minutes. Serve as a main meal or side dish.

If you’re a follower of this site, you’ll see that I’m a huge fan of CABBAGE. From stews to salads – I can’t get enough of this versatile vegetable! And why not? Besides being super healthy, it’s also extremely economical and easy to prepare so it’s a win-win all around.

Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew Recipe is not a Greek dish. It’s a meal that I grew up with and has Polish roots. I often ate it with pork or chicken schnitzel and always with mashed potatoes. This recipe makes a lot of tomato gravy that is ideal for smothering over any side such as mashed potatoes, rice, or egg noodles. You can serve it with grilled or cooked meat, or traditional Polish kielbasa. However, it is fulfilling enough to enjoy on its own. Don’t forget to grab a piece of crusty bread to scoop up the leftover saucy goodness!

Tomato Cabbage Stew will be your new favourite comfort meal that’s perfect for Meatless Mondays, lent, vegans and vegetarians, or anyone looking to add more plant-based recipes to their diet.

WHY YOU WILL LOVE THIS INSTANT POT TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

• Delicious! All the ingredients cook perfectly together. The texture of the cabbage is soft and buttery. The flavours of the tomato sauce are savoury, sweet, and slightly peppery.
• Fast! From start to finish, it’s ready in 35 minutes, with minimal hands-on time.
• Super healthy! Cabbage is a low-caloric and nutrient-dense vegetable that is filled with so many good things for you! Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage are high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fibre. They help you feel full and satisfied longer which is great for weight loss. The addition of extra virgin olive oil elevates the heart-healthy and antioxidant compounds.
• Budget-friendly! The cost of living is rising in pretty much all parts of the globe. With this, people are looking for economical ways to eat healthy on a budget. Cabbage is the perfect vegetable! It is relatively cheap, has a long shelf-life, and is easy to find at almost all supermarkets.
• Plant-based! A diet rich in plant-based food is associated with an incredible amount of health benefits. It is also great for the environment as plant-based food has a smaller environmental footprint than meat-based agriculture.
• Top Allergen-Free! As with many recipes here on Athena Pot, our Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew recipe is another one that strives to meet “top allergen-free” criteria. Carefully check the ingredients on the soup seasoning, as some can contain milk or wheat, but as an alternative, you can substitute this with sea salt.

INGREDIENTS FOR TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium-large red onion, diced (approx 1½ cups)
• 1 medium-sized green cabbage, chopped (approx 14-16 cups)
• 1½ cup no-salt slightly concentrated tomato juice (see notes for alternatives)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1½ tablespoons soup seasoning (I use Vegeta in this recipe)
• 1/2-3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

HOW TO MAKE INSTANT POT TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

1. Set the Instant Pot to Saute. Add the extra virgin olive oil to the liner when the setting says Hot.
2. Add the onion and stir fry it for about 2 minutes so it softens, making sure it doesn’t burn.
3. Add half of the cabbage and allow it to cook for one minute, mixing every few seconds, so it shrinks down. Add the rest of the cabbage and mix.
4. Add the tomato and seasoning on top of the cabbage and do not mix. Turn off the Saute setting. Close the lid of the Instant Pot and turn the release valve to the closed position. Set the manual pressure cook timer to 5 minutes.
5. When the cooking is complete, carefully turn the pressure release valve to allow for a Quick Pressure Release.
6. Carefully remove the lid and stir to combine the ingredients.
7. Serve Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew in a dish while warm. It can be a main meal on its own or serve as a side with mashed potatoes, rice, egg noodles, or with your favourite meat dish. Smile and enjoy!

NOTES ON THE TOMATO-BASED INGREDIENT

In Greece, a popular ingredient in many recipes is “Slightly Concentrated Tomato Juice”. This product is slightly thicker than regular tomato juice and has no additional flavouring such as salt or natural seasoning. In the North American market, I’ve had difficulty finding this exact product.

There are three alternatives I would recommend to use for this recipe:

• 1½ cups passata
• 1½ cups no-salt-added tomato juice
• 1 can crushed tomatoes

You’ll note that no water is added to this recipe. Water isn’t necessary because as the cabbage cooks, it releases a lot of water from its leaves, which creates a lot of juice.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

Our Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew recipe is hearty enough to be served as a main meal on its own. Serve it with a side of crusty bread to soak up the sauce and it’s a truly satisfying meal.

Because this recipe creates a lot of tomato sauce, it’s nice to use as a gravy with sides. I like to serve this with mashed potatoes and pour the sauce on top of the potatoes. This is also nice with rice or egg noodles. If you wish to add meat, it pairs well with Polish kielbasa, pork or chicken schnitzel, or any meat of preference.

ALLERGY INFORMATION FOR INSTANT POT TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

Our Tomato Cabbage Stew Recipe is:

• Dairy-free
• Egg-free
• Nut-free
• Peanut-free
• Wheat-free
• Soy-free
• Sesame-free
• Fish-free
• Crustacean-free
• Celery-free
• Mustard-free

Always check food labels to ensure the ingredients comply with dietary needs. Some soup seasoning mix contains dairy and wheat. Sea salt can be used as a substitute.

HOW TO STORE INSTANT POT TOMATO CABBAGE STEW RECIPE

Store leftover Instant Pot Tomato Cabbage Stew recipe in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It will thicken when stored overnight. You may prefer to add a touch of water to thin it out when reheating.

This dish, like many soups and stews, is even more delicious when served the next day!

I do not recommend freezing this dish as the texture will not be pleasant when reheating.

INTERESTED IN MORE CABBAGE RECIPES? TRY THESE POPULAR TRADITIONAL GREEK CABBAGE RECIPES:

• INSTANT POT GREEK CABBAGE RICE RECIPE (LAHANORIZO)
• GREEK CABBAGE AND CARROT SALAD RECIPE (LAHANOSALATA)
• GREEK POLITIKI CABBAGE SALAD RECIPE (POLITIKI SALATA)

AND TRY THESE DELICIOUS INSTANT POT GREEK VEGAN RECIPES NEXT!

If you loved this recipe – please let us know what you think in the comments… and please share!!