A Real Green Bean Casserole Made with Fresh Ingredients

This is the green bean casserole that’s going to make you forget the canned soup version ever existed. We’re talking fresh green beans, a creamy homemade mushroom sauce, and the most addictive crispy herb topping with leeks, shallots, and garlic. It’s the kind of holiday side dish that people will actually ask you to bring again.

How I Make It

Start by quickly blanching the green beans so they stay crisp-tender. While those cool off, work on the mushrooms. Microwaving them for a few minutes helps get rid of the extra moisture so your sauce doesn’t get watery later.

Get a skillet going with some butter and sauté the mushrooms until they’re nice and browned. Once they look good, throw in minced shallots and garlic. Let everything cook together for a couple minutes.

Sprinkle in some flour and stir to make a roux. Slowly pour in broth and cream, and let it all simmer until it’s thick and glossy. Add a splash of white wine vinegar at the end for balance and adjust the seasoning.

The topping is where the magic really happens. Heat oil in a small sauce pan and fry thinly sliced leeks and shallots until they’re crispy. Add garlic near the end so it doesn’t burn. Toss in the rosemary and sage just before pulling everything out of the oil. Season it all with a little salt. You could also keep it simple here and just make some simple, classic, and perfect fried onions.

How to make a crispy fried onion topping

To make a crispy onion topping, thinly slice a yellow onion and toss the pieces in a mixture of flour, salt, and pepper. Heat a bit of oil in a skillet over medium heat, then fry the onions in small batches until golden brown and crisp, about 3–4 minutes per batch. Transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and sprinkle with a little extra salt while they’re hot.

To assemble, layer the green beans in a 9×13 baking dish, pour the mushroom sauce over the top, mix, and finish with that crunchy topping. Bake until everything is bubbling and golden.

Tips

• Make the topping ahead of time, but not too far ahead of time, so it stays crispy. Same day is best.
• You can assemble the casserole ahead of time and top it later
• Feel free to sub in simple onions instead of the fancy shallots, leeks, garlic, and herbs for the crunchy topping. Sometimes we don’t need to spend extra time or money at the grocery store.
• Use half-and-half instead of cream to lighten things up a bit
• For frying, you will need one of these spider skimmers (affiliate link) to remove the onions from the hot oil. This is a well loved tool in my kitchen for many things!

Make Ahead

If you want to prep this ahead of time here is what I would recommend. Assemble green beans with sauce up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate. Keep topping separate. Bake casserole covered 20 to 25 minutes at 350°F, then uncover, add topping, and bake 5 to 8 more minutes.

The Best Real Green Bean Casserole Made with Fresh Ingredients

5 from 1 vote

Upgrade your holiday dinner with this homemade green bean casserole made with fresh green beans, real mushrooms, and a crispy herb topping. No canned soup, just amazing flavor.

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Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Servings: 8 -10

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients

  

Casserole:

• 2 lb green beans trimmed and blanched
• 16 oz mushrooms sliced
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 cup broth
• 1 cup cream
• 2 small shallots minced
• 1.5 tsp salt plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

Crispy Herb Topping or Onion Topping (see note):

• 1 cup vegetable oil I used grapeseed ooil
• 5 cloves garlic thinly sliced
• 3 shallots thinly sliced
• 2 leeks white and light green parts, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp rosemary chopped
• 2 tbsp sage chopped
• Salt to taste

Notes

• You can keep things simple by using just onion for the crispy topping instead of the shallots, leeks, and herbs. To make the crispy onion topping, thinly slice a yellow onion and toss the pieces in a mixture of flour, salt, and pepper. Heat a bit of oil in a skillet over medium heat, then fry the onions in small batches until golden brown and crisp, about 3–4 minutes per batch. Transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and sprinkle with a little extra salt while they’re hot. 
• Some suggest soaking your onions in cold water or buttermilk for 30 minutes first and draining the excess. This can cut down on that sharp onion flavor. 

Method

 

1. Microwave mushrooms for 2 to 3 minutes, then drain.
2. Sauté mushrooms in butter with 1 tsp salt and pepper until browned.
3. Add shallots and garlic, cook 2 minutes.
4. Sprinkle flour in and cook 1 minute.
5. Slowly pour in broth and cream. Simmer until thick.
6. Stir in white wine vinegar, adjust seasoning.

For The Topping (see note):

1. Heat oil. Fry leeks and shallots until crispy. Use a spider skimmer to remove and place on a plate lined with a paper towel. I did this in two batches so the onion were not crowded.
2. Next add the garlic and herbs into the hot oil. Fry for a minute or so until garlic is golden
3. Use a spider skimmer to place these on the same plate lined with a paper towel. Season with salt.
4. Combine green beans with sauce in 9×13 dish, top with crispy herbs, and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.

Video

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