Green Bean Casserole from Scratch (2024)

Table of Contents

Key ingredients for green bean casserole How to make green bean casserole How long to cook green bean casserole Can you make green bean casserole ahead of time? What’s the best way to reheat green bean casserole? Can you freeze green bean casserole? Green Bean Casserole from Scratch You Will Need Directions Adam and Joanne's Tips You May Also Like... Easy Crispy Fried Shallots Fresh Green Bean Salad Our Best Roast Turkey Seriously Good Mushroom Stuffing Homemade Mashed Potatoes Our Best Turkey Gravy FAQs References

Creamy, cheesy green bean casserole from scratch! We make classic green bean casserole even better with fresh green beans, an easy mushroom cream sauce, and homemade crispy shallots.

Our homemade green bean casserole recipe will knock the socks off anything made with a can. We use fresh green beans for the best texture and flavor. I love the creamy, cheesy sauce made with mushrooms, milk, and cheese, making it much more delicious than canned soup. Then, to top it all off, we make a crispy fried shallot topping. It’s easy, and they keep for a week, probably more!

We serve this classic casserole as a Thanksgiving side dish, but love it throughout the holiday season. See our tips below for making in advance. For more Thanksgiving recipes, look at our best roast turkey recipe, these creamy mashed potatoes, and our easy herb stuffing.

Key ingredients for green bean casserole

For the best green bean casserole, I love using fresh green beans. Canned green beans become too mushy for me, and while frozen green beans will work in a pinch, frozen beans have less crunch. If you don’t have access to fresh beans, use thawed frozen green beans.

Instead of canned mushroom soup, we make our own creamy sauce with butter, milk, lots of mushrooms, and Gruyère cheese. The base of the sauce is similar to the cheese sauce used for macaroni and cheese. It’s simple to make and tastes so much better than canned!

If you have a hard time finding Gruyère or find that it’s too expensive, swap the Gruyère for another melty cheese like white cheddar cheese. White cheddar is also a great option If you want a vegetarian green bean casserole.

For the crispy topping — a must if you ask me — try our recipe for crispy shallots , or use your favorite store-bought crispy onions like French’s. If you’ve never made crispy shallots before, prepare yourself; you’ll find it hard to stop eating them! They are so delicious. We also add crispy shallots to this easy green bean salad and love it!

How to make green bean casserole

Blanch fresh green beans for 5 minutes, then rinse under cold water to cool — makes them bright green and crisp.
Make mushroom cream sauce, then stir in cheese.
Toss blanched green beans with the creamy sauce, pour into a casserole dish, and bake for 25 minutes.
Top with homemade crispy shallots (recipe here) or store-bought crispy onions. Serve!

Our green bean casserole sauce has so much flavor thanks to a pound of mushrooms, garlic, and shallots. We cut the mushrooms small by hand, but you can blitz them in a food processor if you want to reduce the prep time.

Milk and cheese make our sauce extra creamy. We love Gruyère, but a mild to medium sharp white cheddar also works nicely.

Look at those brightly colored and tender green beans! They are so green because we blanched them first. It’s simple to do and improves color and texture in the baked casserole. It also only takes 5 minutes, so we highly recommend it.

How long to cook green bean casserole

Green bean casserole takes 20 to 25 minutes to bake in a 350° F oven. If your oven is a little hotter or cooler because of another dish also in the oven, you should be fine. You are looking for the sauce to be bubbling around the edges and the green beans to be tender and a little wrinkled.

Can you make green bean casserole ahead of time?

Yes, you can make green bean casserole ahead of time, and if you plan to make homemade crispy shallots, they last in an airtight container for up to a week.

Prep and Assemble:Follow our recipe for green bean casserole up to the point where you’ve assembled it in your casserole dish — this means blanching the green beans and tossing them in the creamy mushroom sauce.
Refrigerate:Cover the casserole dish tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
Store:Store the covered casserole dish in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to bake, add 2 to 5 extra minutes to the bake time to account for being cold from the fridge.

What’s the best way to reheat green bean casserole?

To reheat the whole dish of leftover green bean casserole, slide it into a 350° F oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. For a smaller portion, use the microwave — 1 to 2 minutes should do the trick. The crispy shallots will lose their crunch when storing and reheating the casserole. If you have leftovers, scatter a few fresh crispy shallots (or store-bought crispy onions) over the reheated casserole before serving.

Can you freeze green bean casserole?

Unfortunately, we don’t think green bean casserole freezes very well. This recipe is best when made fresh. We have provided tips above for making it a day or two in advance.

(0)

Leave a review

Green Bean Casserole from Scratch

Save

PREP 15mins
COOK 35mins
TOTAL 50mins

Our homemade green bean casserole is made from scratch, starting with fresh green beans tossed in a creamy sauce. The sauce is super flavorful, thanks to mushrooms and melty cheese. Then, to take this casserole over the top, we add lots of homemade crispy shallots right before serving.

Serves 8

You Will Need

Green Bean Casserole

1 ½ pounds (680g) green beans, snipped and cut in half

1 pound (450g) crimini mushrooms, finely chopped

6 tablespoons (85g) butter

3 cloves garlic, minced, about 1 tablespoon minced

Directions

Prepare Green Beans

1Preheat oven to 350 °F (176 °C).

2Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add green beans and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water to cool. Set aside.

Make Mushroom Sauce

1Melt butter in the pot used to cook the green beans over medium heat. Add mushrooms, garlic, and shallots. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat if the vegetables begin to brown too quickly.

2Add white wine and cook, uncovered, until almost completely reduced.

3Stir in flour and cook until no longer lumpy.

4Gradually whisk in milk and bring to a simmer.

5Stir in cheese until melted and the sauce is smooth. Season with salt to taste, starting with 1/4 teaspoon.

Bake Casserole

1Add cooked green beans to the sauce and toss until well coated. Transfer the mixture to a casserole dish.

2Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling around the green beans.

3Let the casserole rest for 5 to 10 minutes after baking. Top with crispy shallots just before serving (adding them too soon can cause the shallots to steam and turn soggy).

Adam and Joanne's Tips

Wine for cooking: Choose a dry white wine you enjoy. We typically look for a dry, crisp white wine such as Pinot Grigio, Albarino, Sauvignon Blanc, and unoaked Chardonnay.
Wine substitute: Use vegetable or chicken broth.
Gruyère cheese: We love the flavor and melt factor of Gruyère, but sometimes find that it’s very expensive. It’s also not vegetarian-friendly due to animal rennet, so to save on cost or to make this casserole vegetarian-friendly, substitute the Gruyère for your favorite white cheddar.
Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.

Nutrition Per Serving Serving Size 1 of 8 servings / Calories 280 / Total Fat 19g / Saturated Fat 11.3g / Cholesterol 57.5mg / Sodium 376.7mg / Carbohydrate 13.4g / Dietary Fiber 3g / Total Sugars 7.3g / Protein 13.8g

AUTHOR: Adam and Joanne Gallagher

FAQs

How do you make green bean casserole not soggy? ›

If you sense it's a little watery, "add a thickener like roux or starch to absorb the additional liquid or cook a little longer," she says. That'll give it that rich, dense consistency you're looking for.

Learn More Now ›

Why isn't my green bean casserole thickening? ›

If you're putting your recipe together and the sauce doesn't seem quite thick enough, you have some options. "The easiest route is to get a separate bowl and mix a couple tablespoons of cornstarch with some water," Malarkey says. "Other routes would be adding more cream of mushroom soup."

Why is my green bean casserole so watery? ›

Green bean casserole should have a nice thick sauce that coats the green beans—it should not resemble soup. One common cause of a watery casserole is not adding enough thickener, such as flour or cornstarch, to your sauce.

Keep Reading ›

Which is better frozen or canned green beans for green bean casserole? ›

Frozen green beans are cut, blanched, and flash-frozen to preserve their peak-season flavor. That's what makes frozen green beans are the best green beans to use for green bean casserole. Simply thaw and drain the green beans before adding to the casserole.

Show Me More ›

Why are my green beans not crispy? ›

Make sure you spread out the green beans. They can overlap some, but you want as much surface area exposed to the heat as possible for crispness. Along the same lines, you can technically double this recipe, but remember that the more you make at once, the less crispy the green beans will be.

Find Out More ›

How do you make a casserole not soggy? ›

One option is to par-cook watery vegetables such as onions, mushrooms, and squash before tossing them into your baking dish. Cook them just long enough to release excess moisture, drain, and continue assembling your casserole as you normally would. Another option is to sweat vegetables.

Get More Info Here ›

Can you overcook green bean casserole? ›

As canned beans are pre-cooked, it can make it easier to overcook them in your casserole which may impact the flavor, and they're more likely to lose their fresh coloring and turn a less appealing shade of gray-green.

How do you thicken a casserole without cornstarch? ›

All-purpose flour: You can thicken sauces with all-purpose wheat flour. For every tablespoon of cornstarch, use three tablespoons of flour. Combine raw flour with cold water in a small bowl to form a paste, then add it into the sauce as it's simmering.

See Details ›

What makes a casserole thicker? ›

The three main thickening agents for gravies are flour, cornflour and arrowroot. The first two are normally used in savoury dishes while arrowroot tends to be used in sweet dishes – that said, arrowroot will work in a savoury dish as it has no flavour.

Know More ›

How do you make bean liquid thicker? ›

If your beans are still too watery after prolonged cooking and mashing, consider adding a thickener like cornstarch, all-purpose flour, or arrowroot. To do this, first, make a slurry of equal parts thickener and water, then slowly add it to your refried beans. They should thicken considerably.

Learn More ›

How do you keep green beans from getting soggy? ›

Store beans in a veggie crisper or an air-tight plastic container. You can keep them in the plastic bag they came in from the store, but condensation may develop and speed up spoilage. To prevent this, place a paper towel in the bag or container to absorb extra moisture, and replace it as it gets damp.

Discover More ›

How do you fix runny baked beans? ›

One way is to boil the beans until they are soft, then remove them from heat and cover with at least an inch of cold water. The beans will soak up some of the remaining hot water while they cool and release starches which thicken them. Once cooled, you can drain off any excess liquid or eat as-is if desired.

Show Me More ›

How do you keep green bean casserole from being soupy? ›

But if you ever end up with a watery green bean casserole, create a cornstarch slurry and mix it in until the sauce thickens up.

Keep Reading ›

How many cans of green beans equal 4 cups? ›

✿ 4 cups of green beans is about 1½ pounds fresh or 16 ounces frozen or 2 cans (15 ounces each) drained.

Discover More Details ›

What seasoning to use on green beans? ›

Add green beans, onion salt, garlic salt, garlic powder, and black pepper to skillet. Cook and stir until desired tenderness is reached, 5 to 10 minutes. Serve hot and enjoy!

Tell Me More ›

How do you keep green beans crisp when cooking? ›

The trick to this crunchy and vibrant green bean salad is a method called “blanching and refreshing”. This simply means cooking your beans in boiling water and then plunging them into cold water to stop the cooking process and keep their wonderful colour and bite.

Discover More Details ›

How do you keep casserole topping from getting soggy? ›

1 Answer. Assuming that you want to serve the casserole hot and the streusel crispy, keep the casserole and the streusel separate until almost serving time. This means you will have to bake the streusel on a cookie sheet until crisp and ready, then let them cool uncovered and transport them in a separate container.

Learn More Now ›

Why are my green beans mushy? ›

If you toss frozen green beans straight into a pan, all the ice around them will thaw and create a pool of water in the bottom of the pan, which then has to cook off before the green beans start to saute. This results in overcooked, soft, soggy, and rubbery green beans.