Recipe for green bean casserole with french fried onions

Raise your hand if you love green bean casserole! 

These crunchy green beans are blanketed in a creamy parmesan mushroom sauce and showered with crispy french fried onions. Give me a bowl! 

On to our next classic in the How Sweet Eats Thanksgiving series… this one is a major fave. We’re going a little untraditional in the next few days, so this is the true last classic until next week. But I promise it’s worth it. 

Now I know that I’ve shared how traditional my family is when it comes to Thanksgiving. And green bean casserole isn’t something we have served until more recently. Some people absolutely cringe at the dish, while others can’t get enough. A few don’t like mushrooms, a few are freaked out by the serious casserole-ish feel to the dish. 

But I can’t pass it by! 

If you’ve been following along forever, then you may remember my lightened up green bean casserole. It is SO good. I’ve even made that during non-Thanksgiving times! It’s been a staple for almost a decade and I know that many of you make it each year too.

I wanted to make the indulgent, decadent version for you too. Mostly because someone like my mom would never make my lightened up version. Ha! 

In this green bean casserole, we make our own cream of mushroom sauce and use fresh green beans that retain a lot of their crisp. I love that, because the only thing I don’t really care for in regular green bean casserole (read: the one that uses canned or frozen green beans) is that the green beans can get mushy. 

No mushy beans here!

These green beans stay crisp. The parmesan mushroom cream is absolutely delicious. It’s not too heavy and the beans are not drowning it in. It’s just the right amount!

Then of course… we have the onions. How can we forget about the onions?

I’ll be the first to tell you that I occasionally use the crispy fried onions in a can this time of year. They are actually pretty good and require a lot less work. Since I am showing you how to make this from scratch, I wanted it to be the real deal. If you’d like, you can make these buttermilk french fried onions below that are absolutely addictive. You won’t be able to stop snacking on them while making this casserole. 

My best tips for if you have leftover green bean casserole…

Reheat it and use it as leftovers. Or freeze it! 

There aren’t a ton of options here, but I do have to say that leftovers of this are fantastic and taste just as good, minus the onions losing a little crisp.

Yum.

Green Bean Casserole

Green Bean Casserole with French Fried Onions

Yield: 6 to 8 people

Prep Time: 1 hr

Cook Time: 20 mins

Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins

This green bean casserole from scratch is super delicious and topped with french fried onions! It's comforting and wildly flavorful.

buttermilk french fried onions

• 2 sweet onions, thinly sliced
• 2 cups buttermilk
• salt and pepper
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• vegetable or canola oil for frying

green bean casserole

• 2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped in half
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• kosher salt and pepper
• 16 ounces cremini mushrooms chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• ½ cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese, plus more for topping

buttermilk french fried onions

• I find that it’s easiest to make the fried onions first, this way they are ready to go for the topping. If you don’t want to make these from scratch, you can use store bought!

• Place the sliced onions in a large bowl and cover them with the buttermilk. Let them soak while the oil heats.

• Heat the oil in a large stockpot or saucepan. You want it to be about 375 degrees F. Place the flour on a plate with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Stir well.

• Once the oil is up to temperature, take a few onion slices from the buttermilk and dredge them in the flour, coating them completely. Add them to the oil and fry until golden brown, tossing a few times, about 2 to 3 minutes total. Remove the onions and place them on a paper towel to drain excess grease.

green bean casserole

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add in the green beans. Blanch for 5 minutes, then remove the green beans and place them in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.

• Heat the olive oil and butter large skillet over medium-low heat. Add in the diced onion with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

• Stir in the mushrooms. Cook until they soften too, about another 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

• Stir in the flour to create a roux. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until it smells fragrant and a bit nutty. Slowly stream in the stock, stirring the entire time. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the mixture is thickened and simmering.

• Stir in the cream until combined. Stir in the grated nutmeg and the parmesan cheese. Turn off the heat. Add the green beans to the cream mixture and toss to coat. Pour the mixture in a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle on extra parmesan cheese. Top with the french fried onions.

• Bake the green beans for 20 to 25 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and warm. Serve immediately!

• To serve 4: Cut this recipe in half exactly. I suggest keeping the same amount of fried onions because they are delicious!

• To serve 10 to 12: Double this recipe exactly. The same amount of onions works too - but you can also make more if you’d like.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

I.am.in.love.