Green Bean Casserole

This green bean casserole is easy to make from scratch, with fresh green beans and a creamy mushroom sauce. It’s one of our favorite Thanksgiving side dishes!

Green Bean Casserole, From Scratch

This green bean casserole will be on our holiday table this year, alongside the Sweet Potato Casserole and Mashed Potatoes. While this recipe requires a few more steps than the version made with canned soup, it is still easy to make and the extra effort is totally worth it. You just can’t beat the homemade taste of cooking from scratch!

My whole family loved this casserole. I will be making it for Thanksgiving!

Nancy

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Green Beans: Fresh green beans make the best green bean casserole. Before cooking the green beans, trim off the stem ends and cut them into 2-inch pieces.
• Butter: Butter adds richness, both in the creamy mushroom sauce and also in the topping.
• Mushrooms: I prefer the more complex flavor of cremini mushrooms, but you can use white button mushrooms if you prefer.
• Onion & Garlic: Chopped yellow onion and minced garlic add flavor.
• All-Purpose Flour: Flour is used to thicken the sauce.
• Chicken Broth & Whole Milk: I use a combination of chicken broth and milk to make the sauce. I find that combining the two makes a sauce that is creamy without being too heavy. For a richer sauce, replace the milk with heavy cream or half and half.
• Salt & Pepper: For seasoning.
• Breadcrumbs: You can use store bought breadcrumbs or make your own for the topping. The notes below the recipe include instructions for making homemade bread crumbs.
• Parmesan Cheese: Grated Parmesan cheese in the topping adds so much flavor to the dish.

How to Make Green Bean Casserole

This homemade green bean casserole is surprisingly simple to make! Here is an overview of the recipe steps. Find the full printable recipe below.

Boil green beans. Cook the green beans in a pot of boiling water until crisp-tender. Then drain and transfer the green beans to an ice bath for 5 minutes. This stops the cooking process and brightens their color. After 5 minutes, drain well and transfer the green beans to a lightly greased baking dish.

Make the sauce. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and onion and cook until softened. Add 3 more tablespoons of butter to the pan. Once melted, stir in the garlic and flour. Add the chicken broth, milk, salt and pepper. Stir until thickened. Remove from the heat.

Finish and bake. Pour the mushroom sauce over the green beans in the casserole dish. For the topping, stir together 1 tablespoon melted butter, breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle evenly over the casserole. Bake at 350° F for 35-40 minutes, until hot and bubbly.

Recipe Variations

• Frozen Green Beans: This recipe is best made with fresh green beans. If you prefer to use frozen green beans, do not cook them before using in this recipe. Allow frozen green beans to thaw to room temperature before using, then drain off any excess moisture. I do not recommend using canned green beans.
• Bacon: To make green bean casserole with bacon, cook 4 slices of bacon, chop, and stir into the green bean and sauce mixture.
• Topping: If you prefer your green bean casserole with French fried onions, you can use 1 cup of French fried onions instead of the breadcrumb topping mixture for the casserole topping. Add the onions to the top of the casserole during the last 5 minutes of the cook time.
• Cheese: You can substitute shredded cheddar cheese for the Parmesan cheese in the topping.
• Extra Creamy: Stir 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt or sour cream into the mushroom sauce mixture, after removing the pan from the heat.
• Vegetarian: Replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth.

More Thanksgiving Side Dishes

• Stuffing Recipe
• Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
• Butternut Squash Salad
• Corn Casserole
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts
• Wild Rice Salad
• Dinner Rolls
• Cranberry Sauce

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5 from 3 ratings

Green Bean Casserole

Servings: 8 servings

Prep Time: 25 minutes mins

Cook Time: 40 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

This delicious green bean casserole is made from scratch, with fresh green beans and a creamy mushroom sauce. It's one of our favorite Thanksgiving side dishes! See the notes below the recipe for make ahead instructions.

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Ingredients

• ▢ 2 pounds fresh green beans*, stem ends trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
• ▢ 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• ▢ 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
• ▢ 1 cup finely chopped yellow onion
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1 cup low sodium chicken broth, or vegetable broth
• ▢ ½ cup whole milk
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ ¾ cup breadcrumbs*, whole wheat or regular, homemade or store-bought
• ▢ ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly grease a 13×9-inch baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and boil for about 4 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Drain and transfer the cooked green beans to a large bowl of ice water. Let cool in the ice water for 5 minutes, then drain well in a colander. Once dried, transfer the green beans to the prepared baking dish.
• Meanwhile, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and onion and cook until soft, 4-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add 3 more tablespoons of the butter to the pan and stir until melted. Then add the minced garlic and flour and stir for 30 seconds.
• Add the chicken broth, milk, salt and pepper to the saucepan. Stir until thickened (this will take 2-3 minutes) and then remove from the heat. Pour over the green beans in the baking dish. so that the green beans are evenly coated.
• Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and then stir it into the breadcrumbs. Stir the Parmesan cheese into the breadcrumb mixture. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over the top of the casserole.
• Bake in the center of the oven for 35-40 minutes, until the filling is hot and bubbly. Check after 25 minutes and cover with foil if the topping is browning too quickly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

• Frozen Green Beans: This recipe is best made with fresh green beans. If you prefer to use frozen green beans, do not cook them before using in this recipe. Allow frozen green beans to thaw to room temperature before using, then drain off any excess moisture. I do not recommend using canned green beans.
• Topping: If desired you can top the casserole with 1 cup of French fried onions instead of the breadcrumb, butter and cheese mixture. Add fried onions to the top of the casserole during the last 5 minutes of bake time.
• To make homemade breadcrumbs: Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a food processor, process 4 slices whole-wheat bread until you have fine crumbs. Lay crumbs on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven until dry and very lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Stir after 10 minutes to help crumbs brown evenly. Unused breadcrumbs can be stored in the freezer.
• Make Ahead Instructions: Casserole can be assembled up to one day ahead and then covered and refrigerated before baking. Wait and add the breadcrumb topping right before baking. When ready to bake, let the casserole sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes to take the chill off. Then add 10-15 minutes to the bake time and bake until hot and bubbly.
• Storage: Store leftover green bean casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.

Serving: 1/8 recipe, Calories: 200kcal, Carbohydrates: 23g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 24mg, Sodium: 309mg, Potassium: 478mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1063IU, Vitamin C: 16mg, Calcium: 140mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is an estimate.

Cuisine: American

Course: Side Dish

Tried this recipe?Mention @kristines_kitchen on Instagram or tag #kristineskitchenblog.

I originally shared this recipe in November 2015. Post updated October 2021 and November 2024.