Green Bean Casserole from Scratch
This Green Bean Casserole from Scratch can be made the day before the big turkey meal and is super easy to make! It is so flavorful and delicious that even grandma will approve!
Bring on the gravy!
I'm doing something that I haven't done in years past, and am making Thanksgiving recipes before Thanksgiving. You know, to help you prepare for your Thanksgiving meal. You're welcome. The blog-serving Thanksgiving recipes that I've been making, combined with 3 Thanksgiving dinners this year, I'm pretty sure I'm going to have stuffing and mashed potatoes coming out of my ears. To that I say: bring on the gravy.
All. From. Scratch.
Green bean casserole is up first! I know we all have the typical cream-of-mushroom-soup-and-French's-fried-onion version of green bean casserole in our recipe boxes that grandma used to make and I'm definitely not bashing it. There will always be a special spot in my heart for that dish. Today, however, we're going to freshen things up a bit and make the entire casserole from scratch. From the cream sauce to the fresh green beans and right down to the homemade fried onions. All. From. Scratch.
I was a teeny bit nervous serving this to Marc because green bean casserole happens to be one of his favorite Thanksgiving dishes. And I'm pretty sure when I said I was making green bean casserole, he was expecting said-Campbell's soup and French's fried onions version. As it turned out, he loved it. He didn't even miss the French's fried onions. Which brings me to the homemade fried onions. Oh. Em. Gee. They are good. They are reeeeeeally, really good.
I'll admit, they are a bit fussy, having to coat the onions in both a buttermilk and flour mixture. But I thought they were completely worth the effort. And if you don't believe me or just don't want to add that extra step, you can definitely use the pre-made fried onions. There's no judgement on Thanksgiving.
While this might take 10 more minutes than the not-from-scratch version, it can easily be made the day before the big turkey meal. So if you're in charge of the green bean casserole this year, switch it up and make this recipe from scratch. I'm confident even grandma will approve!
P.S. If you like green beans, check out my Brown Sugar Glazed Green Beans with Caramelized Onions, Cranberries, Walnuts and Goat Cheese recipe, too!
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Green Bean Casserole from Scratch Recipe
Green Bean Casserole from Scratch
Ingredients
for the fried onions:
- 1 large yellow onion sliced (not diced)
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon canola oil
for the green bean casserole:
- 16 oz fresh green beans ends trimmed and cut in half
- 3 tablespoon butter
- 1 onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoon flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
Instructions
To make the fried onions:
- Add onions to buttermilk in a large bowl, tossing until onions are drenched.
- In separate bowl, combine flour, garlic powder, and salt.
- In batches, toss the buttermilk-drenched onions in flour mixture, shaking to remove excess.
- Heat oil in skillet, and pan-fry the onions, stirring and flipping so both sides get browned. I did about 5 minutes for each batch, and I had 3 batches.
- Place fried onions on paper towel lined plate, to remove excess grease.
- Store in air-tight container once cooled.
To make the casserole:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Spray 2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Bring a pot of water to boil.
- Once boiling, add green beans and cook them for 5-6 minutes, until they are bright green.
- Drain green beans, rinse with cold water, and set aside.
- In large skillet, melt butter over medium heat.
- Add diced onion and cook for 5-6 minutes, until they are softened and translucent.
- Add garlic and cook one more minute.
- Add flour, and stir well to combine. Cook for another minute, stirring continuously.
- Slowly add milk, stirring continuously, then slowly add the broth.
- Bring mixture to a simmer, then lower heat and let simmer for 7-10 minutes, until it has thickened.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add green beans to sauce and stir to combine, then pour into prepared casserole dish.
- At this point, casserole can be covered and refrigerated.
- If refrigerating, top with fried onions right before baking, then bake 30 minutes.
- If not refrigerating, top with fried onions, bake 20-25 minutes.
- Enjoy!
This looks WAY better than the retro kind made with canned soup and canned onions. And major applause for doing Thanksgiving recipes before Thanksgiving. You'll be a pro by the time the actual holiday comes around too : )
This is so awesome. Green bean casserole is one of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes, and making it from scratch sounds (and looks) even more delicious!
Is it bad that the fried onions are my favorite part of green bean casserole?! This looks so amazing...
Green bean casserole is my favorite and I'm a sucker for a dish with ingredients I can actually pronounce so I LOVE this. It want to eat the whole thing right now.
I am OBSESSED with green bean casserole! This is happening ASAP in my house!