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Fresh green bean casserole is made with fresh green beans, a creamy sauce, and crunchy breadcrumbs. The flavor is amazing thanks to a homemade mushroom cream sauce rather than using a cream of mushroom soup, it is a delicious side dish that makes a wonderful addition to the Thanksgiving table.
This classic casserole is the perfect side dish to serve alongside my Roasted Cajun Turkey, Honey Butter Cornbread, and Mac and Cheese for a complete Thanksgiving dinner.
Green bean casserole is a classic American casserole and an iconic side dish to enjoy for Thanksgiving. The combination of tender green beans baked in a rich, creamy sauce with breadcrumbs on top is so decadent and delicious. The crispy onions add some extra savoriness to the topping.
With a homemade mushroom sauce with bacon, mushrooms, milk, seasonings, and more, this green bean casserole tastes better than the original with a complexly flavored sauce. It can also feed a crowd with 8 servings and could easily be made ahead before being re-warmed in the oven.
Why Everyone Loves This Recipe:
There is nothing like a green bean casserole with fresh beans! There are so many things to love about this hearty casserole including the fact that it is made with fresh ingredients and is easy to make ahead of when you plan to serve it.
- Uses Fresh Green Beans: While frozen or canned green beans are great in a pinch, fresh green beans take this casserole over the top. Fresh green beans often have more sweetness to them and maintain a better texture during the baking process while canned or frozen green beans may have a softer texture in the finished dish.
- Packed with Flavor: This green bean casserole is a unique take on an American classic as it includes bacon for a smoky taste and more savoriness. Some of the fat also infuses into the cream sauce, making it extra rich and flavorful.
- Homemade Sauce: The wonderful thing about the homemade mushroom cream sauce in this recipe is that you will know exactly what goes into it rather than using canned mushroom soup that is often high in sodium. Using fresh ingredients like fresh mushrooms, milk, bacon, onions, garlic, and fresh herbs also gives the sauce an overall better flavor than the usual canned soup.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You can find at the ingredients for this recipe at your local grocery store.
NOTE: The full list of ingredients with measurements is provided in the recipe card below.
- Green Beans – Green beans are the star of this hearty casserole and using fresh is best if you have them. However, feel free to substitute with thawed frozen beans if it is difficult to find good quality fresh green beans.
- Bacon – Bacon adds a wonderful smoky addition to this green bean dish, but you can omit it to suit plant-based diets if needed.
- All-purpose Flour – This is essential for thickening the creamy sauce.
- Whole Milk – Whole milk is wonderful as it will add more richness and creaminess to the sauce. However, you could substitute with 2% milk or 10% cream if desired and the recipe will still be successful.
- Chicken Broth – Consider replacing the chicken broth with vegetable stock to suit vegetarians and vegans if needed.
- Mushrooms – Any type of mushroom will do, such as white mushrooms, cremini, shiitake, and oyster. This serves as the base of the homemade cream of mushroom soup.
- Fresh Rosemary – Rosemary has a wonderful pine scent and flavor that is wonderful in cream sauces. However, if you don’t love the taste, you could replace it with thyme or sage.
- Parsley – Parsley imparts beautiful flecks of green in the sauce.
- Thyme – Dried thyme is a good substitute if you don’t have fresh.
- Parmesan Cheese – The nutty salty taste of parmesan cheese makes this green bean casserole extra special.
- Fried Onions – These are an integral component of green bean casserole. Consider frying your own or using store-bought crispy onions to garnish your casserole.
- Panko Breadcrumbs – Panko is a type of Japanese breadcrumb that results in a crisper, airier texture than other types of breadcrumbs.
Chef’s Kiss
If you would like to turn your fresh green bean casserole into a main meal rather than a side dish, you could add cooked turkey or chicken for added protein.
How to Make Green Bean Casserole
- Boil the Green Beans: Boil the beans in a large pot of water for 5 to 6 minutes. Transfer them to an ice bath to allow them to cool.
- Make the Cream Sauce: Sauté the bacon in a large skillet until it is fully cooked. Remove the bacon from the skillet, leaving the fat in the pan.
- Thicken the sauce: Add the garlic and onion, and allow it to cook until soft and fragrant. Whisk in the flour to make a creamy roux.
- Finish the sauce: Stir in the milk and chicken broth, and simmer until the sauce is thickened. Stir in the mushrooms and half of the bacon; allow the mixture to simmer over low heat until the mushrooms are soft.
- Add the seasonings: Stir in the rosemary, parsley, thyme, granulated onion, granulated, garlic, salt, and pepper. Remove it from the heat and set it aside.
- To assemble and bake: Stir the green beans into the sauce mixture and pour the green bean mixture into a rectangular baking dish. Bake it in a 350° F oven for 25 minutes.
- Prepare the topping: In a large skillet over medium heat, toast the breadcrumbs in butter until they are golden, while stirring them continuously.
- Add the toppings: Remove the casserole from the oven and top it with the cheese, remaining bacon, breadcrumbs, and fried onions. Bake it for another 10 minutes before serving.
Chef’s Kiss
If you would like the topping to have more color, you could bake it under the broiler for a few minutes, while keeping a close eye on it to ensure it doesn’t burn. Cook until the top is golden brown.
Expert Tips
- Don’t Overcook the Green Beans: Blanching the beans just until they are bright green and fork tender will ensure that they don’t overcook in the final stages of being baked in the oven. The best green bean casseroles are ones where the beans aren’t overly soft or soggy.
- Use a Large Enough Casserole Dish: A rectangular medium-sized casserole dish is the perfect size for this recipe and will ensure that the sauce doesn’t bubble over the edges. However, if you have another casserole dish you would like to use, just make sure it has a similar volume to the medium-sized casserole dish.
- Don’t Burn the Breadcrumbs: To ensure that the breadcrumbs don’t burn, continuously stir them so that they evenly toast. You may also need to adjust the heat level if you find that your skillet is getting too hot.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Boiling the green beans makes them tender and helps the baking process go faster. If you don’t boil the green beans they will not be tender.
Fresh is best! This is why I developed this recipe with fresh green beans. It doesn’t take much more effort to use fresh green beans and the taste difference is worth it.
You need to blanch green beans for at least 2 to 5 minutes. I like to cook them a little longer until tender to make the baking process go quicker but you don’t want to over cook them or the beans will be too soggy.
Absolutely! If you can’t find quality fresh green beans, you could use frozen green beans instead. Simply allow them to thaw before using them in this recipe and skip the blanching step.
Leftovers and Storage Instructions
Cover and refrigerator leftovers (or transfer to an airtight container) for up to 3 days.
To freeze, store in a freezer safe dish. Wrap in plastic wrap, then tightly wrap with tin foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in an oven at 350°F until warmed through.
Make Ahead Instructions
You can prepare this casserole the night before serving. Prepare the entire dish but do not add the fried onions until the day you plan to bake. If you add them before placing the casserole in the fridge, they will become soggy.
One the dish is prepped, wrap the entire dish in plastic wrap, making sure that it is tight so it doesn’t dry out. Add 5 to 10 minutes to the baking time since you are baking straight from the fridge.
Other Holiday Recipes
Try my ultimate green bean casserole with any of your favorite holiday recipes and then let me know what you think!
Fresh Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 pounds green beans trimmed
- 1 pound bacon chopped
- 2 tablespoons diced onions
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms (1 small package)
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary chopped fine
- 1 tablespoon parsley chopped fine
- 1 teaspoon thyme chopped fine
- 1 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 6 ounces fried onions (see Note)
For the toasted breadcrumbs
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large pot of boiling water, cook the green beans for 5 to 6 minutes. Immediately transfer them to a large bowl of ice and cold water to cool. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, sauté the chopped bacon until fully cooked. Remove from the pan, keeping the remaining bacon fat in the pan. (If there isn't much fat in the pan, you can add a few teaspoons of olive oil.)
- Add the onions and garlic. Stir until soft and fragrant. Then, whisk in the flour to made a creamy roux.
- Pour in the milk and broth, and simmer until you have a thick texture. Toss in the mushrooms and half of your cooked bacon and cook on low heat until the mushrooms are soft.
- Stir in the rosemary, parsley, thyme, granulated onion, granulated garlic, salt and pepper until combined. Remove from heat.
- Stir the blanched green beans into the cream sauce until well coated all over. Pour into a deep rectangular baking dish, and cook for 25 minutes.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, add the breadcrumbs and butter. Stir until the breadcrumbs are toasted and golden.
- Remove the casserole from the oven and top with a layer of cheese, remaining bacon, breadcrumbs, then crispy onions! Bake for another 10 minutes! Serve hot
Notes
- You can use more or less fried onions, depending on how much crunch you like with your green bean casserole.
- To ensure that the breadcrumbs don’t burn, continuously stir them so that they evenly toast. You may also need to adjust the heat level if you find that your skillet is getting too hot.
The fresh green beans made it taste lighter and more vibrant. I enjoyed making it.
I tried this green bean casserole for sunday dinner, and it turned out amazing! my family loved how creamy and flavorful it was.