Mama Edie’s Hamburger Soup

As I talk to more people about food, I have discovered that cuisine, like clothing, tends to go in fads. Pork chops and Rice-A-Roni, Chicken A La King, and Salisbury Steak are dishes synonymous with the 80’s and my childhood. Of course, some of these fads vary by region, but many followed popular cooking crazes that swept the masses. Our kids will tell their kids about the kale salads, turkey burgers and slow cooker meals their moms had in their meal prep rotation.

If you were a child of the 80’s in the Midwest, it’s likely that you grew up eating some form of cabbage soup.  It was fairly healthy, inexpensive to make and made a BIG pot of food for a lot of people.  Honestly, at the time, I dreaded the soup because it lasted so long.  But now as an adult, it’s something I find myself craving every now and then.

My Mom is one of those cooks who just knows what goes into a dish that she has made many times.  She does have recipes and cookbooks, but the things she has made for years just come from instinct.  I do not yet have this gift, so I asked for the recipe.

As you can see, there is a lot of wiggle room, a lot of space for by guess and by golly.  Of course, I wanted to make it taste like my memory, so I set out to make this soup for my family and document what I actually put in it.  I need to note that I wasn’t setting out to “fix” my Mom’s recipe, just firming up the details so I can duplicate it again and again.

This recipe, like many others I have shared, uses things you likely already have on hand, and comes together easily. 

Start out with a big ‘ol pot.  I used my Dutch oven because I like how it browns the meat nice and evenly and heats my soup slow and steady on the stove top.

Brown your meat, I like to use ground chuck, along with the chopped onion and minced garlic.  My Mom doesn’t cook with much garlic, though she is coming around to it. But I like garlic, so I added it to the recipe. I prefer fresh garlic to the jarred refrigerator variety, but that is completely a personal choice.

Chop up your veggies to bite-size.  The original recipe called for 1 cup chopped cabbage. I used 2 cups because I chopped it into small pieces and it continues to cook down some. You can always add more veggies, or veggies of a different variety, if you wish.  Just note that if you add more vegetables, you will likely want to add more liquid to balance out the soup.

The original recipe calls for one quart of tomatoes.  I asked my Mom if this meant tomato purée, crushed tomatoes or diced tomatoes.  She said “whatever you have.”  So I used 3 cans of petited dices tomatoes and their juices.  You will notice this is more than a quart, but again, this recipe is all about the wiggle room.

Another element I remember from my youth is that Mom would sometimes use V8 in the soup base.  As a kid, I thought that was completely weird and wrong, but as an adult, it makes good sense.  V8 is blended veggies, so they make a great addition to soup.  I used 6 cups of water and 2 cups of Low Sodium V8 vegetable juice.

I happen to love barley and prefer that in this soup, but you could use rice as well. I love the little bit of chew the barley gives to the soup.

So, you mix it all together and simmer on medium low until the barley is cooked and the veggies are soft, but not mushy – about 30 minutes.

Serve the soup hot, with some crusty French bread on the side, or fluffy biscuits. It will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days or you can freeze your leftovers. If it is too thick when reheating, add more V8 until your desired consistency.

If you have any nostalgic recipes, I’d love to hear them. Classics are classics for a reason!