This Green Bean Casserole is topped with cheese, almonds and fried onions for the ultimate holiday side! Prep is minimal with canned beans and cream of mushroom soup – a classic everybody loves! This casserole can be prepared ahead up to 2 days, so you can relax a little on Thanksgiving or Christmas Day.
Is it really a holiday dinner without a green bean casserole? I don’t think so, and mine is the best. 😉
I have tried fussing around with many a fancy green bean casserole recipe, but I eventually came back to an absolutely classic recipe – with two or three tweaks and things added.
It’s really simple to whip up with just a few minutes of prep, and you can even make it ahead up to 2 days. So easy!
Ingredients you’ll need
This is just an overview of the ingredients needed – scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for exact quantities and instructions.
Ingredient notes
- Green beans: Make sure to use two 14.5-oz cans and leave one of them undrained! If you want to use fresh or frozen beans, you’ll need about 1½ pounds fresh or 16 ounces frozen. You must cook and slice the fresh or frozen beans first, and you must increase the milk the recipe calls for to 2/3 cup to make up for the liquid in the undrained can of beans.
- Condensed cream soup: If you don’t like mushrooms, feel free to use a different hearty flavor. Chicken, onion or bacon all work well.
- Milk: I like using evaporated milk for the extra richness, but feel free to use regular milk if you’re baking the casserole straight away. If you’re making the casserole ahead, I strongly recommend using evaporated milk.
- Almonds: Feel free to leave these out if you’re not crazy about nuts.
- Cheese: I pretty much always use a cheddar blend, but you can also use Parmesan or Colby Jack.
- Worcestershire sauce: Soy sauce works well in place of the Worcestershire.
Step by step photos
I like stirring up this casserole in a separate bowl before transferring it to the casserole dish – makes it a little less messy! But you can stir it up right in the dish if you prefer.
First, combine the condensed cream soup, evaporated milk and Worcestershire sauce.
Then fold in the green beans…
… and finally fold in HALF of the fried onions.
Then transfer the whole thing to a greased casserole dish. You may cover and refrigerate the casserole for up to 2 days at this point.
You can also bake the casserole right away. Bake it until bubbly, then top with cheese/almonds/remaining fried onions and finish baking until the topping is golden.
The hardest part is letting the casserole sit on the counter for 10 minutes after baking. It’s just so nice and bubbly and you’ll want to dig straight in! But the sauce thickens as it sits, so you’ll want to be patient 😉
Recipe tips
- Careful when folding in the green beans, don’t mush them up or your casserole will be ruined.
- You can double the recipe and bake it in a 9×13 inch dish. You may need to adjust the baking time to bake it for closer to 40-45 minutes.
- Watch the casserole carefully after putting on the topping, don’t let it burn!
Make ahead instructions
Once the casserole is assembled but unbaked, cover it tightly with foil and refrigerate it for up to 2 days. Do not freeze it, the sauce splits easily in the freezer!
To bake the casserole cold from the fridge:
- Remove the casserole from the fridge, uncover and let sit on the counter as the oven heats up.
- Bake the casserole for around 35-40 minutes, or until bubbly around the edges.
- Top with cheese, almonds and fried onions and finish baking for 5-8 minutes, until the topping is golden.
More easy holiday sides
If you tried this recipe, don’t forget to add a review by tapping the stars in the recipe card below!
Green Bean Casserole
This Green Bean Casserole is topped with cheese, almonds and fried onions for the ultimate holiday side!
Ingredients
- 1 (10 3/4-oz) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
- 1/4 cup evaporated milk; see notes for substitute
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 cans cut green beans, one can drained and the other undrained
- 1 package French fried onions (2.3oz for a milder onion taste, 6-oz if you’re a crazy onion person)
- 1 cup shredded cheese (I used a cheddar blend)
- 1/3 cup slivered almonds, or more to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350F (if baking casserole straight away) and lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish.
- Add condensed cream soups, milk and Worcestershire sauce to mixing bowl; mix well. Fold in green beans and HALF of the fried onions.
- Transfer green bean mixture to prepared casserole dish. At this point, you may refrigerate the casserole (tightly covered with foil) for up to 2 days. See notes for baking instructions from fridge.
- Bake casserole in the hot oven for 30 minutes, until bubbly around the edges.
- Carefully remove casserole from oven and top with cheese, almonds and remaining fried onions (in this order). Finish baking until onions are a deep golden, about 5-8 minutes.
- Rest casserole on the counter for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
To bake casserole cold from fridge:
- Remove casserole from fridge, uncover and let sit on the counter as the oven heats up.
- Bake casserole for around 35-40 minutes, or until bubbly around the edges.
- Top with cheese, almonds and fried onions and finish baking as instructed above.
Ingredient notes
- Use fresh or frozen green beans: If you want to use fresh or frozen beans, you’ll need about 1½ pounds fresh or 16 ounces frozen. You must cook and slice the fresh or frozen beans first, and you must increase the milk the recipe calls for to 2/3 cup to make up for the liquid in the undrained can of beans.
- I like using evaporated milk for the extra richness, but feel free to use regular milk if you’re baking the casserole straight away. If you’re making the casserole ahead, I strongly recommend using evaporated milk.
- We like mushroom soup best; but you can pretty much use any hearty flavor - onion, mushroom, chicken, bacon...
Double the recipe
You can double the recipe and bake it in a 9×13 inch dish. You may need to adjust the baking time to bake it for closer to 40-45 minutes.
Comments
No Comments