Green Bean Casserole (From Scratch)

Fresh from scratch green bean casserole like you've never had it with crisp green beans, a delicious homemade mushroom cream sauce and topped with fried onions. This classic Thanksgiving side dish never tasted so good. 

Green Bean Casserole, From Scratch!

I've never been a fan of the classic green bean casserole made with canned cream of mushroom soup. In my opinion it lacks much in the flavor and texture department and ends up being just another soft food on the Thanksgiving plate. 

But crispy fresh green beans I am a fan of and so I was set on recreating this Thanksgiving side with nothing but real ingredients and tons of flavor.

The result was a vegetable non of us could stop eating. It's now right up there with one of my favorite Thanksgiving Side Dishes right along side Sausage Stuffing, Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, and Cranberry Sauce.

The Best Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Today I'm joining my Tastes of the Season friends once again to share a round up of Thanksgiving Side Dishes for your families table. I'm bringing the green beans of course but there are five other delicious side dishes to try at the end of this post, so keep reading.

Ingredients in Green Bean Casserole

• Green Beans - fresh green beans, ends trimmed and cut in half.
• Mushrooms - I like to use cremini mushrooms because they are much more flavorful than white button mushrooms.
• Shallot - a softer onion flavor.
• Garlic - three cloves of fresh minced garlic.
• Butter - salted butter to add more flavor.
• Chicken stock - I personally think stock is so much more delicious than broth so I always use it.
• Heavy Cream - to thicken and add richness to the sauce.
• Salt and Pepper - Kosher salt and ground black pepper. Can you even cook without them?
• Fried Onions - homemade if you have time! I share the recipe for how I make mine in this post.

How to Make Fried Onions for Green Beans

It wouldn't be green bean casserole without the crispy fried onion topping! If you have never made your own fried onions, it's actually pretty simple and the flavor is SO much better than anything from a can.

Here's how to make Copy Cat French's French Fried Onions but WAY more delicious. You'll never go back.

1. Peel and half a yellow onion. 
2. Slice thin about ¼" or less.
3. Place sliced onions into a large bowl and cover with buttermilk.
4. Soak for about 20 minutes.
5. Prepare a plate by lining with a few paper towels.
6. Heat vegetable or canola oil over medium-high heat in a shallow cast iron skillet until hot. Test by dropping in an onion slice. If it bubbles, the oil is hot enough.
7. In a shallow bowl combine 2 cups of all purpose flour and season generously with salt and pepper.
8. Working in batches, remove a few onion slices at a time and dip in flour mixture, tossing to coat. Shake off the excess flour and drop carefully into hot oil.
9. Fry for about 1 minute, turning until onions are golden brown. 
10. Drain on paper towel lined plate.

How to Make Green Bean Casserole From Scratch

1. Start by prepping all of your ingredients and frying your onion strings. (read directions above or in recipe card.)
2. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
3. Boil a large pot of water and quickly blanch green beans just for one minute, strain and set aside.

4. In a large skillet melt butter and sautee the mushrooms, shallot and garlic. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Whisk in flour and then chicken stock, cooking until thickened.
6. Turn off the heat and add heavy cream.

7. Transfer green beans to a baking dish and cover with mushroom sauce. Toss to coat.
8. Cover with fried onions and bake for 15 minutes just to finish cooking green beans and thicken the sauce. 

I love this casserole because it takes very little time in the oven, only 15 minutes and can be prepped ahead of time! 

How to Make Green Bean Casserole Ahead:

If you are making this side dish for Thanksgiving, chances are you want to make as much of it ahead of time as possible. Here are a few ways you can prep some or all of the recipe ahead.

1. Blanch Green Beans the day before and refrigerate. After you blanch the beans, immediately transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process. After the beans are fully cooled you can transfer to a zip top storage bag or storage container and refrigerate.
2. Make the Mushroom Gravy ahead. This sauce can be cooked and stored in a mason jar in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble the green beans. You can reheat in a sauce pan before pouring over the beans and baking. If you do not have room on the stovetop to reheat, you can add additional baking time in the oven. Just make sure the sauce and beans are fully heated through and the green beans are tender.
3. Fry onions in advance. After the onions have cooled completely, you can store in a zip top bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. However, I find these are best made the day of! 

Tips for the Best Green Bean Casserole:

1. Always use fresh green beans and cook them tender-crisp! No one wants a mushy green bean...which is why we never used canned beans. You just can't beat the texture of fresh veggies.
2. Make your own mushroom gravy. Not only is is loads healthier than a sodium packed can of soup but it's a lot richer in flavor too! This sauce is so delicious and you can really taste the fresh earthy mushrooms and sweet shallot.
3. Fry your own onion strings. It's worth the extra effort to make this crispy topping. Trust me, you won't want to ruin this dish with a can of fried onions from the grocery store. I've done it, I regretted it.

Tastes of the Season: Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Perfect Baked Sweet Potatoes by Ella Claire & Co. | Spiced Orange Cranberry Sauce by Zevy Joy | Green Bean Casserole (from scratch) by Freutcake

Old Fashioned Candied Yams by Handmade Farmhouse | Rustic Rosemary Bread by French Country Cottage | Mashed Butternut Squash by Inspired by Charm

More Must Try Thanksgiving Side Dish Recipes:

• Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
• Baked Macaroni and Cheese
• Roasted Delicata Squash
• Wild Rice with Sausage
• Hashbrown Casserole