My biggest problem with a normal green bean casserole? It doesn’t have enough green beans in it. You know how it is really kind of soupy? I really love the flavor of a traditional green bean casserole. The yummy crunchy onions on top are my favorite part. But why should the onions be someone’s favorite part of a green bean casserole?
After much thought of how to make this standard recipe better, I came to a very obvious conclusion. This dish needs more beans, less “mush”, more cheese…and my BFF Bacon. When in doubt, get the bacon out. (Note to self…make a t-shirt.) Yep. This Bacon Green Bean Casserole is better than your mom’s.
If there is such as thing as a bad-ass Green Bean Casserole, this is it.
I literally sit around and think about recipes night and day. Old ones, new ones, it doesn’t matter. I read cook books for fun. One of my favorite things to do is to take a classic recipe and change it up.
My first advice on revamping the traditional green bean casserole is don’t use the french cut or little shredded green beans. What are those called? Not even sure, I don’t even look at them.
Ingredients Need to Make Green Bean Casserole:
- Canned green beans – the normal cut style
- Bacon – cooked and crispy
- Cream of mushroom soup
- Sharp cheddar cheese
- French fried onions
- Worcestershire sauce and / or soy sauce
- Black pepper
To get more beans into your casserole, you need to up the bean ratio. More beans, less cream of mushroom soup.
Bean math.
This actually is such a super easy recipe. You will be making it at every holiday, Sunday dinner or even as a weeknight side dish.
How to Make Green Bean Casserole:
- First, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 12 baking dish with non stick spray and set aside.
- Next, in a large bowl, combine the beans, bacon, soup, half of the cheddar cheese, Worcestershire sauce and pepper. Stir well.
- Then transfer to the baking dish. Top with the remaining cheese and onions.
- Bake uncovered for 30 minutes until the top is golden and bubbly.
Load the beans up with a little canned soup, a cheese, and….you guessed it…BACON!
Well, actually, I guess I told you in the blog post title.
TIP: Get that bacon crispy so it really has a bite to it when you add it to the green bean casserole. If you under cook it, it will be kinda chewy.
Top with even more cheese and those delicious little crunchy French onions and pop into the oven!
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Bake until golden brown and bubbly. Smells so good…the onions, cheese and bacon combine with the familiar flavors of green bean casserole for an amazing taste.
Every forkful is loaded with wholesome green beans. (And all the yummy stuff.)
Need another great recipe? Try these Chili Cranberry Meatballs and Easy Cheesy Mashed Potato Casserole.
Bacon Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 48 oz can cut green beans drained
- 6 pieces of bacon cooked crispy and crumbled
- 1 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese divided
- 1 cup french onions
- 1 TB Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 x 12 baking dish with non stick spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the beans, bacon, soup, half of the cheddar cheese, Worcestershire sauce and pepper. Stir well.
- Transfer to the baking dish. Top with the remaining cheese and onions.
- Bake uncovered for 30 minutes until the top is golden and bubbly.
I don’t like buying canned stuff, so how many bags of fresh green beans would u use?
Great question! You will need about 6 cups of beans. Not sure what size bag of beans your grocery store carries, but based on what our stores carry probably two bags. You would want to trim and cut the beans, and either steam or precook them a little for this recipe to soften them up first. Let me know how it turns out!
Made this for the first time for Christmas – absolutely loved it. Even my picky not veggies husband had seconds and thirds. Will definitely be keeping this on our menu!
Awesome! Thank you so much for trying our recipe. Something about bacon and cheese just makes everything better. I think I’m adding this Green Bean Casserole to our traditional Easter meal, too.
How many people does this dish serve wanting to make for Thanksgiving
Thanks for asking. The recipe is in an 8×12 dish, and has 6 cups of beans…plus all the other items…I would say about 8 to 10 good sized servings. (You could possibly stretch it to 12 but considering how everyone likes to load up their plates on the big day…lol)
Can you make this a day ahead and reheat the day of serving?
Absolutely. I would not add the French fried onions until you get ready to reheat in and serve. I mean, you can, the flavor would still be there, but they get soggy when refrigerated and re-heated.
Can this be cooked in a crockpot? If so, how long would you suggest? Thanks!
I have never tried it in a crockpot, but I’m sure it could be done. It is so quick to bake in the oven, so I never found the need for the crockpot. If I were to try it, I would prepare it all in the pot, cook on low for a couple of hours until everything was heated through, and add the topping right before serving.
I tried this and the flavor was good but it was to dry.
It certainly doesn’t have as much “soup / sauce” as a standard green bean casserole as we use more beans. You can cut back on the amount of beans if you’d like or add another can of soup. (If you add more soup, I would suggest adding a bit more cheese and a pinch of salt to your preference.)
This site is the most difficult to view I have seen in a long while! There are constant adverts, flashing signs, and other distractions that make it very difficult to simply read a recipe. Recipe looks great, and I will try it, but I will not be back for more recipes. Sorry.
Thank you for the feedback. I logged on to that page and you are right, there was a lot going on (I had too many seasonal pop-ups going with the video and the advertising.) I am always looking for ways to make our website more user friendly and I appreciate you taking the time to let me know. We will work on immediate improvements.
Great recipe! Well thought out and easy to follow.
Thanks so much! It is one of my go-to recipes. Easy to adapt to your own taste, too.