ULTIMATE Green Bean Casserole
This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.
Behold, the original ULTIMATE Green Bean Casserole recipe! Featured in magazines across the web and consistently rated THE best green bean casserole recipe EVER, this will convert even the most determined green bean haters! Tender green beans, bacon, cheese, cream, mushrooms and more, this deluxe green bean casserole is made from scratch and is guaranteed to become your go-to from now on!
What is Green Bean Casserole?
Green Bean Casserole is the quintessential American side dish for family gatherings, holidays, church socials, potlucks…the recipe clipping that virtually every American woman has had lying somewhere at some point throughout the past gazillion decades. Only this one is different. This one’s the best. Ever. And it’s made from scratch. If up until now you’ve just been kind of “meh” towards green bean casserole, prepare to experience a major paradigm shift in attitude. This isn’t your Aunt Betsy’s green bean casserole recipe.
The BEST Green Bean Casserole Recipe
This ultimate, from scratch green bean casserole has since become one our most popular recipes every Thanksgiving and Christmas. Dozens of websites have praised it and online magazines have linked to it. But most importantly of all, year after year our readers have fallen in love with it. Just read the hundreds of rave reviews below. Without exaggeration this green bean casserole has literally become world famous. Yes, it’s THAT good!
Ingredients
I developed this recipe years ago when I had about two pounds of fresh green beans and some fresh mushrooms that I needed to use up. As I browsed through my fridge I also noticed some thawed bacon, a block of white cheddar, and some cream. The wheels started turning as the blueprint for the ultimate green bean casserole recipe unfolded in my mind. And the rest is history.
Why You’ll LOVE This Green Bean Casserole Recipe
Even passionate green bean and green bean casserole haters have consistently been converted through this recipe. My brother included. My brother has hated green beans ever since he was old enough to say the word. And he has never once relented. But…he ate this. He ate THIS! He ate it…and he liked it! And as far as I’m concerned that seals the deal. Verdict drawn. Yes. The ULTIMATE Green Bean Casserole.
This recipe take a little longer than the 2 minutes and 38 seconds required to open a can of condensed mushroom soup, mix it with water, toss it with green beans, dump the mixture into a casserole dish, sprinkle with French fried onions, and put it in the oven to bake (ie, the classic recipe first introduced by Campbell’s in 1955). Ā But this Ultimate Green Bean Casserole is still quick to make and to say that there is no comparison between the two is the understatement of the century. Ā This isn’t called “ultimate” for no reason and we’re confident you’re going to love it as much as we do and thousands of my readers have since I first published it in 2013!
Ultimate Green Bean Casserole Recipe
This recipe begins by frying up bacon along with onions, mushrooms, and garlic. Next we make a roux with butter and flour which will not only serve as a thickener for the cream sauce but will add wonderful depth of flavor. Next we pour in the cream followed by that glorious white cheddar and watch it melt into a rich, luxuriously delicious sauce. Fresh green beans are then folded in the sauce, the mixture is poured into a casserole dish and topped with crispy, crunchy, utterly irresistible French fried onions. It’s baked until bubbly and oozing and then served at the table where it will completely disappear, every last drop of it, within minutes.
Let’s get started!
Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy.
Add the onions and cook for 4-5 minutes until soft and translucent.
Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. Transfer the bacon/mushroom mixture to a bowl and set aside.
Melt the butter in the same skillet, add the flour, and whisk until combined.
Continue whisking for another minute until the mixture has slightly deepened in color. This will add flavor and cook off the “flour” flavor.
Whisk in the half-and-half and chicken stock and continue to whisk, letting the mixture simmer, until it has slightly thickened. Whisk in the white cheddar cheese until combined. Add the bacon/mushroom mixture and stir to combine. Add the salt and pepper.
Let the sauce simmer for a couple of minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the blanched green beans and stir to thoroughly combine. Pour the bean mixture into a 9×13 inch casserole dish. Sprinkle all of the French fried onions evenly over the casserole.
NOTE: Since everything but the French fried onions that go on top is made from scratch, choose some quality ones and avoid using those nasty hydrogenated-oil-packed French fried onions (of course you also have the option of making them yourself!). Lars’ Crispy Onions imported from Holland, for example, is made without hydrogenated oils and if you have an ALDI nearby they also carry ones imported from Holland without the hydrogenated oil.
Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F.
Let the casserole sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
Enjoy!
Gluten Free Green Bean Casserole
You can substitute gluten free flour for thickening the sauce. Alternatively you can dissolve 1 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch in the chicken stock and then proceed with melting the butter, then adding the half and half and chicken stock/cornstarch, and whisking continually as it simmers until it’s thickened. For the onions you can use gluten free French fried onions.
Can You Freeze This?
We do not recommend it. Creamy sauces have a tendency to break and separate when they’re frozen and thawed and the last thing you want is a watery mess at your dinner table.
Can It Be Made Ahead of Time?
Yes! Prep everything and place it in the casserole dish, except for the French fried onions, cover and refrigerate for up to a day before you’re ready to serve it. When you’re ready to bake it, take it out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. Then sprinkle on the French fried onions and proceed with baking.
This also makes it convenient to bring the assembled casserole (minus the French fried onions) to another location where you’ll be having dinner and then simply add the onions and bake the casserole once you arrive.
For more delicious side dishes be sure to try our:
- BEST Au Gratin Potatoes
- Ultimate Corn Pudding
- Zucchini Au Gratin
- Creamed Spinach
- Yorkshire Pudding
- Roasted Spiralized Beets
- Mashed Potatoes and Parsnips with Horseradish
- Brunede Kartofler (Danish Caramelized Potatoes)
- Baked Endives with Ham and Bechamel
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries, Bacon and Balsamic Reduction
Save This Recipe
Enter your email address and we’ll send it straight to your inbox!
ULTIMATE Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 slices thick-cut bacon , diced
- 1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 12 ounces fresh button or cremini mushrooms , chopped
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup shredded white cheddar cheese
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound fresh green beans , trimmed, halved, and blanched (boil 5 minutes, place beans in ice water for a couple of minutes, drain)
- 1 can quality French fried onions
- or gluten free French fried onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Add the onions and cook until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 4-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. Transfer the mixture to a bowl.
- Melt the butter in the same skillet and whisk in the flour. Once combined, continue whisking for another 2 minutes until the mixture has slightly deepened in color. Add the half-and-half and chicken broth while constantly whisking to prevent lumps. Once slightly thickened, add the cheese and whisk until melted and combined.
- Next add the mushroom/bacon mixture along with the salt and pepper. Let the sauce simmer for a couple of minutes, then add the green beans. Stir to combine.
- Pour the bean mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish and sprinkle the French fried onions all over the top. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes until bubbling and the onions are golden and crispy. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet Dec 7, 2013
Hi, Iām Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
Since making this GBC last Christmas, my family requested it for Thanksgiving and Christmas again this year. They now expect it every holiday season. My picky husband and picky teen daughter usually have at least 3 helpings of this GBC. Since we typically have ham readily available for our holiday meal, I’ve subbed ham slices for bacon. Thank you for sharing this awesome GBC recipe.
That’s wonderful, I’m so glad your family enjoys this, thank you!
This recipe for green bean casserole looks awesome. That being said, I use chopped Spanish chorizo in my green bean casserole. Don’t use the Mexican chorizo which is like fresh sausage and is very greasy. Spanish chorizo on the other hand is dried and smoked and ready to eat right out of the package. I also try to keep it low carbohydrate, use light cream and fresh mushrooms instead of canned cream of mushroom soup which tends to have added thickeners and is high in carbohydrates and sodium. As for the onions, caramelized onions are better than those dried onion rings used in ordinary green bean casserole. If you like, shredded or grated Parmesan cheese on the top.
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was so well received that I got asked to make it for Christmas.
Wonderful, Jennifer, thank you so much for the feedback!
Making this to go with Christmas dinner! Yummy š the BEST!!!
Thanks so much, Julia, Merry Christmas!
Kim, your green bean casserole is a crowd pleaser. Iāve finally found my favorite recipe!
Fantastic, Gabi, thank you! :)
Can you use canned green beans? Or frozen?
Hi Patty, you can use either. Here’s what one of our readers recently recommended if using frozen: “If fresh green beans sell out, get about 25% more of the weight in frozen beans, and steam them in the bag half of what is instructed, then throw into the ice bath.”
This is a game changer! I just made this for our family Thanksgiving and EVERYONE loved it. My father n law does not eat green bean casserole, but agreed to try mine…he had seconds! I did not add mushrooms (only because I’m the only one in my family who will eat them) and I did not blanch the beans, just boiled 1/2-3/4 done. Otherwise I followed as written. I will NEVER make green bean casserole any other way, ever again. Thank you so much!
That SO awesome, Kim, I’m happy that your dad and everyone loved it, thanks so much!
I have searched high and low for a green bean casserole that meets and exceeds my wildest casserole dreams and this is it. Most of the recipes I use are sourced from Bon Appetit, Ina Garten and the New York Times, however, I have tried many versions of their GBC over the years and they just didn’t do the trick–this recipe does. I followed the recipe exactly as written, using extremely high quality ingredients, with one exception: I omitted the mushrooms, as I strongly dislike them. Instead, neurotically, I added additional 12 ounces of bacon and onions (yes, I used a scale) to account for the absence of the mushrooms. I also sauteed the onions slowly for a little longer than suggested to caramelize them add an additional depth of flavor. The end result was out-of-this world. If you are looking for a GBC, look no further, because this is absolutely it.
That’s absolutely fantastic, Travis, thanks so much!!
I’m calling it Awesome Sauce, in my recipe book. I made the exactly as posted (except light cream instead of half and half) it was excellent! Then I realizei , with a little extra liquid it would make a great cream of mushroom soup, then i also thought it would be good with Brussels Sprouts sauteed with the onions! …and how would some jalapenos go??? This is gonna be fun!!!
Great ideas, Stephen, those would all be delicious! Thanks so much for the feedback!