This fresh green bean casserole keeps everything you love about the classic: the creamy sauce, tender beans, and crispy onions, but swaps out the processed soup for from-scratch ingredients and big Thanksgiving (or any day) flavor. It’s still totally simple, super cozy, and something everyone wants multiple servings of. Bonus: I’m including some prep-ahead instructions if you’d like to knock this out of the way ahead of time!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Fresh green beans – I always use French green beans. My Costco always has a perfectly sized 2lb bag. French green beans are
- Olive oil – used for sautéing the mushrooms
- Mushrooms – I like baby brown mushrooms, but any will work
- Onion or onion powder
- Garlic
- Butter – important ingredient for the roux
- Flour – (see notes below for a gluten free cornstarch sub)
- Beef Broth – my favorite for flavor, but you can sub another type if you like
- Cream– or half and half. I always use cream because I make this recipe on holidays and I always have large containers of cream to use up! Heavy cream or regular works great, and makes a rich and creamy sauce. You can also use half-and-half instead. The sauce might be just slightly thinner, but just as delicious.
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Worcestershire sauce
- Shoestring fried onions
How to Make Homemade Green Bean Casserole
- First you’ll start by sautéing mushrooms with a little onion and garlic for a great flavor base.
- Then to your hot pan, you’ll add butter and flour to create a roux to thicken the sauce.
- Add some broth and seasonings and simmer to thicken the sauce.
- Then I add cream to make it velvety and creamy.
- Toss in some blanched green beans and toss it all together.
- At this point it can be topped with crispy onions and baked OR covered and popped in the fridge overnight to bake the next day.
How to Make Green Bean Casserole in Advance
Make-Ahead Instructions (Up to 24 Hours!)
You can easily make this dish ahead of time to save time the day of serving. To prep ahead, you’ll make the recipe almost to completion, but you won’t top it with onions and bake. Instead you’ll cover and pop it in the fridge for up to 24 hours. The next day, it can go into the oven- easy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Beef is my preference because of the flavor it adds to the overall dish, but you could sub chicken or vegetable broth if you’d like.
In place of flour, use 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with a few tablespoons of cold beef broth to make a slurry. Whisk the slurry into the simmering broth mixture after the mushrooms and garlic have cooked. Let it bubble for 1-2 minutes until thickened, then stir in the cream as usual. (Don’t forget you’ll need to omit or substitute something for the fried onions as well).
I prefer fresh green beans in this recipe, but you could totally use canned. You would need 4 cans of beans. Make sure to drain them well and pat dry.
Yes. Use 2lbs frozen green beans in place of 2lbs fresh. Frozen beans are already blanched, so you can skip the step in the recipe where we boil them in water. For best results, thaw green beans in fridge first, then drain off extra moisture. Lay thawed beans out on a clean towel and blot dry with paper towels before adding to the sauce as directed in the recipe.
Yes! This recipes works great to prep ahead. It’s included in the note section of the recipe card. Essentially, you’ll prep the whole recipe and then refrigerate for up to 24 hours and bake the following day. (Waiting to add the fried onions until then).
Yes. They aren’t very noticeable in the final dish, but if you’d like to leave them out, omit the mushrooms, olive oil, and fresh onion from the recipe. Start your recipe by adding the butter to the pan, and then add the flour for your roux. Add onion powder to your sauce.
From-Scratch Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 pounds fresh green beans trimmed and cut into 2-3" pieces
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 ounces mushrooms sliced or finely chopped if you prefer
- 2 tablespoons grated onion or 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3 cloves garlic pressed or finely minced
- 4 tablespoons butter divided
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1¾ cups beef broth or a 14.5oz can
- 1 cup whipping cream or half-and-half
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 6 oz French Fried Onions one standard container, or as much as you like!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375℉ (If you're making this recipe a day in advance, no need to preheat the oven).
- Bring a large stock pot of water to a boil and add trimmed, cut green beans. Simmer until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. While beans are cooking, fill a large bowl with ice water. Use a large slotted spoon to transfer cooked beans to ice water bath to cool. Once cool, drain beans and set aside.
- Heat your pot back up to medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add sliced mushrooms and grated onion (or onion powder). Cook, stirring often, until tender and golden brown, about 5-6 minutes.
- Add garlic and stir to cook for about 30 seconds.
- Add the 4 tablespoons butter to pan and let it melt. Sprinkle your 4 tablespoons flour evenly over the top of the mushroom mixture and stir often, for about 1 minute to form a smooth roux.
- Reduce heat to medium low. Slowly stir in beef broth, stirring and whisking to avoid flour lumps. Stir until mixture is smooth and add salt and pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Simmer for 3-5 minutes until sauce begins to thicken slightly.
- Stir in the cream and simmer on low for another minute or two until thick, creamy, and gently bubbling. At this point, taste your sauce and add more salt and pepper if you like!Make sure beans are very dry (or they will thin your sauce). Pat down with paper towels if needed. Add beans to pan and gently fold mixture all together until well coated.
- Transfer to a 9×13" (or similar) baking dish. Sprinkle with the crispy onions and bake for about 20 minutes, until bubbling all over and onions are crisped and golden brown. (See notes below for Make-Ahead instructions)
Notes
- Prepare the recipe through step 8 but do not add the fried onions yet.
- Transfer mixture to your baking dish and let cool for about 10 minutes. Cover well and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Remove casserole from fridge and let it rest at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Bake uncovered for 10 minutes and then give the bean mixture a quick and gentle stir to distribute heat.
- Add the crispy onions evenly over the top.
- Continue baking for 20-30 minutes or until the center is hot and bubbling. (That’s your sign it’s ready!) If at any point the onions are getting too browned, just tent with a piece of foil.
