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This Green Bean Casserole is made with fresh green beans and a homemade creamy sauce. No cream-of soups or canned onions in this dish!
Fresh Green Bean Casserole
Green Bean Casserole is one of those Thanksgiving sides that you may feel obligated to make, but nobody really loves, and why should they? Most green bean casserole recipes are made with canned beans, cream of mushroom soup, and those canned crispy onions. But this green bean casserole recipe is made with FRESH green beans and a creamy mushroom sauce that doesn’t taste at all like the canned stuff. Trust me, it’ll be a holiday side dish your guests rave about!
Table of Contents
Ingredients in Green Bean Casserole
No canned stuff here! From homemade French fried onions to the freshest beans, you’ll love how tasty this simple green bean casserole recipe is! Here’s all you need:
For the fried onions
- Onion – one large yellow onion should be perfect for this recipe. Slice it nice and thin. You could also use a shallot which has a bit more of a sharp bite to it. Fried shallots are delicious!
- Buttermilk – you’ll soak the onion slices in buttermilk for ultra crispiness. If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own by adding a tablespoon of either lemon juice or vinegar to a cup of milk.
- All-purpose flour – dredge the milk-soaked onion slices in flour mixed with the following spices:
- Cayenne pepper -this super spicy pepper has a slightly sweet flavor that is so delicious with the onion.
- Paprika – also a sweeter spice, the red color is so pretty!
- Black pepper – about a teaspoon or so to taste.
- Oil – use vegetable oil or even olive oil for frying.
Green beans and sauce
- Fresh green beans – about a pound for this recipe. Make sure to rinse and trim the ends off. You can halve them if you want.
- Bacon – about ten slices, or more if you have a husband like mine who snatches the bacon faster than I can cook it!
- Flour – this will be used to thicken the sauce.
- Chicken broth – there are low sodium and gluten-free options at the grocery store that are delicious!
- Half and half – don’t skimp on this. The creamy texture is what really makes the sauce good.
- Pepper – to taste.
- Cheddar cheese – this is optional, but my kids love it!
Tips and Tricks for this Recipe
- If your holiday seems overwhelming and you need to cut some corners, you can. For instance, you can use onion straws from the grocery store if you don’t have time to make your own. You can also find pre-cooked and pre-chopped bacon (NOT bacon bits) in the meat area of the store.
- For extra flair and flavor, add sautéed mushrooms to the sauce. My husband doesn’t like mushrooms, so I usually leave them out. But this is a versatile dish so you can really make it to your liking.
- If you are worried about presentation and want your dish to look like the picture above, just combine the beans and sauce, put them on an oven-safe ceramic platter, then top with the bacon and onion straws.
- However, if you want to keep things simple, just do it all in a glass baking dish. I assure you that is what I will be doing on Thanksgiving! I made the gravy slightly thinner for the version depicted in the photo and didn’t add cheese so you could really see the vibrant color of the green beans. Normally I wouldn’t do that, but for picture’s sake, I wanted it to look pretty.
Frequently Asked Questions
This is where your flour mixture comes in handy. Combine flour or cornstarch with a little bit of cold water in a cup, then add to the sauce as it simmers in the saucepan. It should thicken right up!
Yes! Fresh green beans are best but if they are not available you can use frozen green beans. Make sure to thaw and drain the green beans before using them.
Try not to overcook the green beans when blanching them or baking the casserole for too long in the oven.
Breadcrumbs mixed with melted butter or crushed crackers with melted butter are both great options for substituting fried onions.
Yes! You can leave out the mushrooms if your family and friends are not fans. The mushroom sauce does add flavor and is delicious with or without them.
We love to have the gluten-free option for everyone to be included. You can use gluten-free flour for the roux. If you are using crispy onions or breadcrumbs make sure they are certified gluten-free.
Sure! We love veggies and customizing this casserole for more vegetables is applauded. Add peas, carrots, or even diced red bell peppers. These veggies will add color, texture, and flavor to the dish.
More Classic Thanksgiving Recipes
If you’re looking for a few more ways to dress up your dressing, or serve after the main meal, check out our Best Recipes for Thanksgiving Dinner.
“I was just thinking the other day that the only way to improve upon green bean casserole would be to add bacon. This is perfect! I can’t get enough! I’ll be making this again for Thanksgiving!”
-Betsy
How to Make Fresh Green Bean Casserole
Fresh Green Bean Casserole
Equipment
- 9×13 inch pan
Ingredients
For the onion straws:
- 1 onion sliced thin
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- oil for frying
For the beans and sauce:
- 1 pound fresh green beans rinsed and trimmed (you can halve them if you want)
- 10 slices bacon
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup half-and-half
- pepper to taste
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded (optional)
Instructions
For the onion straws:
- Separate onions and place them in a large Ziploc bag. Pour buttermilk over the onions, squeeze the air out of the bag, and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- In a pie pan or shallow dish, combine flour, salt, cayenne, paprika, and pepper.
- Heat oil in a skillet or deep pan to 375 degrees. Using tongs, dredge the onion rings a few at a time and place them in hot oil for 2-3 minutes, or until onions become nice and golden brown. Remove from oil and place on paper towels. Set aside.
For the beans and sauce:
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil (as if you were boiling pasta). Add beans and boil for about 5-6 minutes or until beans become crisp and tender (boiling time depends on how crisp or soft you like your beans, check them before removing). Drain and place in ice water to prevent further cooking. Drain and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet to medium-high heat and cook bacon completely. Remove from skillet and drain on paper towels. Set aside.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and drain all but about 2 tablespoons of the bacon grease from the skillet (or you can drain it all and just use 2 tablespoons of butter). Sprinkle flour over the remaining bacon grease (or butter) and stir, forming a roux. Whisk in chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
- Whisk in half-and-half a little at a time until the sauce thickens. You want it to be a gravy-like consistency.
- Add a little milk if needed to thin the sauce. Heat for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce barely starts to simmer. Add pepper to taste.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a casserole or oven-safe dish, combine beans, sauce, cheese (optional), and half of the bacon.
- Sprinkle onion straws and remaining bacon over the top and bake for about 20 minutes. Serve immediately.
Our family loves this recipe.
I was just thinking the other day that the only way to improve upon green bean casserole would be to add bacon. This is perfect! I can’t get enough! I’ll be making this again for Thanksgiving!
Yummy! This is my favorite Thanksgiving side dish. Can’t wait to make it this year. The bacon onion straws sound amazing.
Like you I’ve never loved canned green beans in this type of casserole. I do LOVE how you’ve made it with fresh beans. And those onion straws are delish!
Mmm!! The bacon & onion straws add so much flavor to these green beans! This is perfect!
Green bean casserole is my FAV. I can’t wait to try your recipe!
This was an awesome side dish with dinner last night! Looking forward to serving this again with Thanksgiving dinner!
Such a classic with a twist! We love this easy recipe so much.
Great recipe for a Sunday dinner! Love the bacon with this!!
I am anxious to try this recipe this Thanksgiving! And to say from the canned ingredients.
Can any of this be done ahead of time???
Yes, you can prepare the sauce ahead of time. You canprepare the onion straws ahead and store them in an airtight container until ready to use. The fresh beans can be snipped and halved ahead of time as well. Hope this helps! Thank you for asking!