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This Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is everyone’s favorite holiday side dish! Made with NO condensed cream of mushroom soup, this classic casserole is packed with fresh green beans, crispy bacon, French fried onions and melted cheese.
There are just some must have foods that are part of the family tradition and this easy holiday side dish recipe for Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is one of them.
Classic green bean casserole is as much an American holiday REQUIREMENT as serving up turkey and ham at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
You know the drill when it comes to holiday recipes. What’s for Easter? Baked ham … Christmas? … well, more baked ham but also maybe Homemade Pierogies.
Thanksgiving has to be… pfffft … MORE baked ham but now we throw in some easy holiday said dishes like Scalloped Potatoes Slow Cooker Cranberry, Apple Pecan Wild Rice Pilaf and Garlic Parmesan Mashed Parsnips and we have a party waiting to happen.
Looking for more classic Thanksgiving side dishes? You should also check out my Homemade Creamy Baked Macaroni and Cheese, Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Casserole and Slow Cooker Sausage Stuffing.
WHY THIS GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE IS THE BEST
Now, I don’t know about you but growing up in my family, classic green bean casserole consisted of canned green beans and a can of condensed mushroom soup all baked up and topped off with those crispy little French fried onions.
That being said, would it be so bad to tweak our favorite veggie side dish and make a couple of much needed improvements? Hear me out …
- No condensed soup – Control the ingredients used and serve up an even creamier green bean casserole than you remember
- Fresh green beans – nothing in a can will ever compare to fresh produce
- Melted cheese on top of your holiday casserole – because holiday calories don’t count!
- Can an easy holiday side dish be pretty? – Heck yeah it can! Nothing is sexier than crispy bacon.
- People feel pretty strongly about mushrooms – this green bean casserole recipe leaves them out so even the pickiest eaters are happy.
To serve up Green Bean Casserole with Bacon, you will need:
- Fresh green beans – no canned, watered down beans in this recipe!
- Bacon – crispy and perfect
- Butter – this is the starter to your roux and that is what let’s you leave out that can of condensed soup
- Chicken stock – adds a great flavor to your green bean casserole base
- All purpose flour – this is the thickener to your roux
- Seasonings – because FLAVOR
- Fresh garlic – garlic powder has it’s role in life but nothing compares to fresh garlic
- Half n half – this is what will make your casserole side dish creamy
- Cheese – because it’s the holidays and you have yoga pants to wear later on
- Fried onion crisps – impossible to serve a green bean casserole without these!
HOW TO MAKE GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE WITH BACON?
To make Green Bean Casserole with Bacon, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cover a baking tray with parchment paper or add a metal cooling rack to it and lay your bacon out side by side to cook.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until crisp. Remove bacon from the oven and when cool enough to handle, chop into bite sized pieces and set aside. While your bacon is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
Add the beans and blanch for 4 minutes. Remove from the water and set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add the butter. Once melted, add the garlic and saute for 1 minute, stirring often so that the garlic does not burn.
Add the flour and whisk together, cooking for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock and half and half, whisking to combine then add in your spices.
Continue whisking until it comes to a low boil and and then stir in the Parmesan cheese.
Remove from the heat and add in 1/3 of the fried onions, bacon pieces and green beans. Stir to combine and transfer to a buttered baking dish.
Top green beans with Monterey jack cheese and the remaining fried onion crisps. Bake for 10-15 minutes, remove from the oven and serve while hot.
GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE WITH NO SOUP?
Let’s take a minute to talk about condensed soup. I am a fan. I admit, when it comes to needing a creamy glue to bring a beloved casserole together in a blink of an eye, condensed soup is the way to go.
However, it’s also often times full of a ton of sodium and I think for holiday side dishes, wouldn’t it be fun to surprise everyone with your swanky cooking savvy and non-condensed soup way of life?
The answer to that is Yes, yes it would. All joking aside, this Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is super easy to make and you will love serving up a green bean casserole with no condensed soup. Remember … swanky!
DO YOU NEED TO USE FRESH GREEN BEANS?
Green bean casserole can certainly be made with canned green beans if you are unable to find fresh green beans of if you simply prefer the canned or frozen green beans.
Simply substitute three 14 ounce cans of green beans for the fresh green beans called for in the recipe and skip the step where you blanch them. Drain the water from the cans and use your green beans as directed.
PRO TIPS FOR PERFECT GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE
- If you don’t wish to add the bacon, feel free not to. This green bean casserole recipe is delicious with or without the addition of bacon.
- This recipe calls for 6 slices of crispy cooked bacon. If you are running short on time or just want to free up your oven or stove top, consider using one of the pouches of pre-cooked bacon pieces usually found in the salad dressing aisle of your grocery store. They are super convenient and taste great without the mess and extra work of cooking up bacon.
- Monterey Jack cheese is super mild so if you are looking for a bit more punch, get creative with your cheese choices. Swiss, cheddar, Havarti are all amazing substitutions.
- This Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is a great make ahead dish.. simply assemble the Green Bean Casserole and let cool completely. Cover dish tightly and refrigerate. The next day, bake for an extra 5-10 minutes and enjoy!
I have to point ask you though, why are we only eating green bean casserole at the holidays? That casserole dish of green deliciousness is legit for any day of the year so stop saving it for just the holidays!! Be wild, get crazy .. serve that easy Thanksgiving side dish up on a random Wednesday night with some chicken and a batch of buttermilk biscuits. Your family will love you for it.
MORE SIDE DISHES YOU WILL LOVE
This Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is super delicious and a great new twist on your classic holiday side dish. Looking for more amazing side dishes to try? Check out a few of my favorites below..
- Roasted Radishes
- Loaded Cauliflower Casserole
- Cheesy Bacon Broccoli Casserole
- Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Pecan Wild Rice Pilaf
Enjoy!
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Green Bean Casserole with Bacon
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans trimmed and halved
- 6 pieces bacon cooked crispy, chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 1/2 cup half and half
- 8 ounces monterey jack cheese shredded
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 6 ounces fried onion crisps
Instructions
- To make Green Bean Casserole with Bacon, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cover a baking tray with parchment paper or add a metal cooling rack to it and lay your bacon out side by side to cook. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until crisp. Remove bacon from the oven and when cool enough to handle, chop into bite sized pieces and set aside.
- While your bacon is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the beans and blanche for 4 minutes. Remove from the water and set aside. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add the butter. Once melted, add the garlic and saute for 1 minute, stirring often so that the garlic does not burn. Add the flour and whisk together, cooking for 1 minute. Add the chicken stock and half and half, whisking to combine then add in your spices. Continue whisking until it comes to a low boil and and then stir in the parmesan cheese. Remove from the heat and add in 1/3 of the fried onions, bacon pieces and green beans. Stir to combine and transfer to a buttered baking dish.
- Top green beans with monterey jack cheese and the remaining fried onion crisps. Bake for 10-15 minutes, remove from the oven and serve while hot.
Notes
PRO TIPS FOR PERFECT GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE
- If you don't wish to add the bacon, feel free not to. This green bean casserole recipe is delicious with or without the addition of bacon.
- This recipe calls for 6 slices of crispy cooked bacon. If you are running short on time or just want to free up your oven or stove top, consider using one of the pouches of pre-cooked bacon pieces usually found in the salad dressing aisle of your grocery store. They are super convenient and taste great without the mess and extra work of cooking up bacon.
- Monterrey Jack cheese is super mild so if you are looking for a bit more punch, get creative with your cheese choices. Swiss, cheddar, Havarti are all amazing substitutions.
- This Green Bean Casserole with Bacon is a great make ahead dish.. simply assemble the Green Bean Casserole and let cool completely. Cover dish tightly and refrigerate. The next day, bake for an extra 5-10 minutes and enjoy!
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Update Notes: This post was originally published in March of 2019 but was republished with an updated recipe, new photos, step by step instructions and tips in October of 2019.
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