Green bean casserole is a classic holiday side dish to pair with that Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas ham. This green bean casserole is made entirely from scratch with a creamy mushroom sauce and crispy fried onions.
Are you looking for a green bean casserole recipe made without canned ingredients? This green bean casserole is made with fresh green beans, a homemade creamy mushroom sauce, and fried crispy onions on top.
It's filled with a mild, savory flavor that's comforting and hearty - sure to be a hit on the holiday dinner table! Plus it's easy to prepare a day or two ahead of time, saving you prep time on the big day.
Add green bean casserole to your next holiday meal, like Thanksgiving or Christmas. This recipe serves eight, and can easily be doubled for a crowd.
Ingredients and substitutions
Fried onions:
- Onion - Sweet onion, yellow onion, or Vidalia onion works in this recipe.
- Panko bread crumbs - Adds a nice crunchy texture, but can be substituted with traditional bread crumbs if needed.
- Flour - Coats the onions, along with the panko, to create a crispy crust. I've only tested this recipe using all-purpose flour.
- Buttermilk - Thickly coats the onions before adding the breading.
- Seasoning - Salt & pepper lightly season the breading to add flavor.
Casserole:
- Fresh green beans - Can be substituted with frozen (and thawed) green beans or canned green beans. Fresh or frozen green beans add the best flavor and texture overall. If using canned green beans, skip the cooking and ice bath step.
- Mushrooms - Button mushrooms or cremini mushrooms work well in this recipe.
- Chicken broth - Can be substituted with vegetable broth. I don't recommend using a low sodium broth, which adds less flavor to the cream sauce.
- Half & half - Can be substituted with whole milk, but your sauce will turn out slightly less rich and a little thin.
- Butter - Unsalted or salted butter works in this recipe.
- Garlic - Fresh minced garlic adds flavor to the sauce. I don't recommend using jarred garlic, which often has a harsh flavor. Two gloves of garlic can be substituted with ½ teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Seasoning - Salt, pepper, and thyme add a mild, savory flavor to the casserole. Thyme could be substituted with rosemary, sage, or Italian seasoning if desired.
Tips and tricks
Dish size - Use any 1.5 quart or 8x8 square baking dish for this recipe. If doubling, this recipe will fit a 3 quart or 9x13 casserole dish.
Mise en place - This is a French culinary term for having all of your ingredients measured and tools in place before beginning. This recipe contains several parts with many ingredients. To save stress and time while cooking, measure all of your ingredients and have them ready to go before starting. Read the entire recipe once through so you know what's coming next. Many times, the next step can be started while the previous step is cooking.
Breading the onions - Allow excess buttermilk to drip off the onions before dipping in the breadcrumb mixture. This ensures the onions aren't overloaded with coating, which can fall off during the frying process.
Drain your green beans - Be sure to drain your green beans well before adding to the cream sauce. Overly wet green beans can make the sauce watery and thin.
Use a whisk - When preparing the cream sauce, use a whisk to ensure lumps don't form while cooking.
Storage
Leftover green bean casserole will keep for about 4 days in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Assemble your green bean casserole without the onion topping. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 days in the refrigerator. Store your fried onions in a separate container. When ready to bake, preheat your oven and transfer the casserole to the counter top to bring to room temperature. Top your casserole with fried onions, then bake at 375 for 18-22 minutes.
I prefer fresh green beans when they're available at my local grocer. However, frozen green beans are flash frozen and maintain their fresh flavor, so they're just as good as fresh in my opinion. Canned green beans will work in this recipe, but have a softer texture and can contain more sodium than fresh or frozen varieties.
Yes - store bought fried onions are a great time saver if you don't have time to make your entire casserole from scratch.
Green bean casserole makes an excellent side dish for holiday meals. I recommend pairing it with ham or turkey, your favorite potato dish (like mashed potatoes or potatoes au gratin), and a side of cranberry sauce.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Green Bean Casserole From Scratch
Ingredients
Fried onions
- 1 small onion, thinly sliced
- 4 ounces buttermilk
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- canola oil
Casserole
- 1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut in half
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 ounces button mushrooms, diced into ½" pieces
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 8 ounces chicken broth
- 8 ounces half and half
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Fried onions
- In a bowl, pour buttermilk over sliced onions and toss to coat. Set aside. Combine flour, panko, salt, and pepper in a second bowl.
- Begin heating a saucepan with 1-2 inches of oil over medium-high heat on the stove top.
- A handful at a time, transfer onions from buttermilk into panko mixture (allow excess buttermilk to drip off onions first). Toss quickly to coat, then transfer into the hot oil. Fry for about 2-3 minutes, or until lightly browned and crispy. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Continue until all onions have been fried.
Casserole
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 1.5 quart dish or 8x8 baking pan and set aside.
- Meanwhile, bring a gallon of salted water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath (water and ice) in a large bowl and set aside. Add green beans to boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. Drain beans and immediately transfer to the ice bath to stop the cooking process. Once cooled, drain beans thoroughly and set aside.
- In a sauté pan over medium heat, add butter. Once melted, add diced mushrooms and cook 3-4 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add flour, stir to coat mushrooms, and cook for 1 minute. Add chicken broth and half and half, whisking to incorporate. Decrease heat to medium-low. Add dried thyme, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture thickly coats the back of a spoon, about 4-5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add green beans to mushroom sauce. Stir to coat, then pour into prepared dish. Sprinkle top of casserole with fried onions.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until mixture is hot and bubbly. Remove from oven and serve immediately.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- To make ahead: Prepare casserole as directed, but before adding onions or baking, cover and refrigerate overnight, storing onions separately. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees, add onions to the top of your casserole, and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until bubbly and warmed through.
- If doubling, serve in a 9x13 or 3 quart casserole dish.
- Leftovers will keep for up to 4 days in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator.
I realize it isn't anywhere near thanksgiving but I was craving a good GB casserole and this recipe did not disappoint! The gravy sauce was perfectly delicious even without mushrooms and I was really impressed by how easy it was to make the homemade crispy fried onions. I absolutely will be making this dish again! Thank you so much!
Thanks for the great review, glad you enjoyed it! And I agree a good green bean casserole isn't just for Thanksgiving 🙂
Can it just be next Thursday already? This post is going to have me dreaming of green bean casserole until then, 100%. Love it!
Yes me too - I can't wait to make it again 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!