This Green Bean Casserole Without Mushroom Soup features tender green beans, a creamy sauce, lots of cheese, and your favorite toppings—a perfect Thanksgiving side dish. Once you make this easy recipe, you will never use that can of soup again!
🥣Ingredients
Green beans—fresh (preferred), canned, or frozen green beans
Onion
Butter
Sour cream
Flour, salt, black pepper, sugar
Shredded cheese
Ritz crackers
Jump To (scroll for more)
- 🥣Ingredients
- 👨🍳How to Green Bean Casserole Without Mushroom Soup—Step-by-Step Photo Instruction
- 🔪Green bean options
- 🥣Sauce options and variations
- 🧀Cheese options
- 🥣Topping options
- 📏Pan size choice
- ⬇️How to make this a "for two" friendly recipe
- 📆How to make green bean casserole ahead of time
- 🍽️Serving
- ❄️Storage of leftovers
- ❓FAQs
- ⚕️Food Safety
- 📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
Featured Comment by KrissyG :
"Great recipe! Thank you:)"
With the holidays approaching, green bean casserole is one of the most beloved side dishes. But I find making it from scratch is fresher with more taste.
This recipe offers many options. Instead of canned green beans, use fresh or frozen ones, cut or French-style. To customize the dish, add cheese and toppings of your choice. Most importantly, it does not use a can of mushroom soup with its ten-plus mysterious ingredients and can tastes.
👨🍳How to Green Bean Casserole Without Mushroom Soup—Step-by-Step Photo Instruction
1. If you are using fresh green beans, clean and trim them. Precook them by boiling or steaming them until they are almost done.
2. Cool the beans in an ice bath to stop further cooking.
3. Chop an onion.
4. Cook in butter until clearing some, about 2-3 minutes.
5. Stir in flour until smooth, and cook for two minutes. Remove from heat.
6. Add seasoning, sour cream, shredded cheese, and green beans
7. Transfer the bean mixture to a casserole dish. At this point, you can cover it and refrigerate it to cook for 1 to 3 days.
8. Make your topping of choice. I suggest crushed Ritz crackers with butter. Alternate toppings are discussed below.
9. Cover with a layer of shredded cheese and sprinkle the topping over the casserole.
10. Bake in a 350° convection or 375° conventional oven for 35-40 minutes until the top is golden and the casserole is bubbly.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
🔪Green bean options
This recipe works fine with fresh, frozen, or canned green beans. You may use French-cut or straight-cut beans.
- Canned beans should be drained before use.
- Frozen beans are usually thawed and drained before use.
- Fresh green beans are recommended, but they must be cooked before use. Use either steam or boiling water. Do not overcook them; they should be slightly undercooked. Stop the cooking by using an ice bath.
Precooking fresh green beans
Look for green beans that are vibrant green, have smooth skin, show no swelling of seeds, have good firmness, and are without wrinkles or bad spots.
You are cooking them to just a bit tender, not mushy. They will cook a little more in the casserole.
Microwave: in a covered bowl with the bottom covered with water for 4-6 minutes.
Stovetop: In boiling salt water for 4-5 minutes.
Always stop your precooking with an ice water bath.
🥣Sauce options and variations
Why no can of soup? Cans of soup are commonly used in casseroles and crockpot cooking to thicken and sometimes add flavor. But for that, you are adding a lot of chemicals and flavors that I don't enjoy.
In this recipe, we are thickening with a traditional roux made with butter and flour. Then add seasoning, cheese, and sour cream. For more discussion on creating a roux, see How To Make Gravy at Home.
If you want gluten-free, use a gluten-free flour substitute for the roux. And carefully check all the ingredients on any ingredients.
Optional additions to the sauce include chopped cooked bacon, sliced mushrooms, and garlic powder. Fresh garlic may be used, but it should be added to the roux and cooked for one minute before adding the flour.
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🧀Cheese options
Sharp Cheddar cheese is commonly used and provides a great classic taste. But any cheese will be fine, such as Colby Jack, Gruyère, or Swiss cheese (my choice).
🥣Topping options
Now, we are into the passionate part of green bean casserole. Everybody has their favorite topping.
I suggest topping with crushed butter crackers (Ritz) with butter. Again, this is a break from tradition for many, but it is a great and easy topping.
If you want the traditional canned French-fried onions, remove the cracker topping and cook as directed, adding 1 to 1 ½ cups of French-fried onions for the last five minutes of cooking.
The third option is Panko breadcrumbs. Mix 1 cup of Panko breadcrumbs with 2 to 3 tablespoons of melted butter. You can add ¼ cup of grated Parmesan to the bread crumbs. Add the breadcrumb mixture at the beginning of cooking the casserole.
📏Pan size choice
A full-size recipe is perfect for a 2 ½-quart casserole dish, and the topping is set for that size. You can use a 9 by 13 casserole, but it is larger, so it will be thinner. You will want to increase the topping by about 50% to cover the larger area.
A half-size recipe fits a 1-quart casserole dish, or you can use an 8 by 8, 6 by 9, or 8 or 9-inch round dish. You may need to adjust the amount of toppings.
⬇️How to make this a "for two" friendly recipe
Since this is generally a family holiday recipe, I have set the amounts and instructions to 8 servings. However, you can easily cut it in half if you want.
- Use the recipe card and adjust the number of servings to four.
- Use the amount of ingredients in the ingredient list, not the instructions—those do not adjust.
- Cooking time will be about 10-15 minutes shorter—watch the top color.
📆How to make green bean casserole ahead of time
Make the casserole without the topping, and do not cook it. Cover tightly and refrigerate for 2-3 days. Add the topping and cook when needed.
🍽️Serving
This casserole is an All-American Thanksgiving side dish. Serve it with Roasted Turkey Breast, Sausage Dressing, and Sweet Potato Casserole. See Thanksgiving Recipe Roundup for all the recommendations.
❄️Storage of leftovers
The cooked casserole can be refrigerated airtight for 3-4 days. It can also be frozen for 3-4 months.
❓FAQs
When first opened, canned green beans tend to be overcooked and mushy, so cooking them in a casserole for more time will exacerbate the texture problems.
Frozen green beans are an excellent choice. They are picked fresh, blanched, and flash-frozen. However, they must be thawed and drained before being added to the casserole to finish cooking.
I'm always a fan of fresh vegetables. They provide the best results as long as you have a good source and prepare them correctly for the casserole.
Fresh green beans should be precooked until slightly tender. Use boiling water with a teaspoon or two of salt on the stovetop. Alternatively, use a covered dish with water covering the bottom in the microwave. Cook for 4-5 minutes, then, to prevent overcooking, stop the cooking process in an ice bath.
⚕️Food Safety
This casserole is frequently used for parties or large gatherings. However, it should be discarded if the temperature falls below 140° for over 2 hours. For more safety tips, see the USDA Food Safety Page.
📖The Recipe Card with Step-by-Step Instructions
Green Bean Casserole Without Mushroom Soup
Video Slideshow
Ingredients
- 2 pounds green beans - Canned, frozen, or fresh
- 1 onion - small
- 3 tablespoons butter - divided
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup sour cream
- 2 cups shredded cheese - of choice
- 12 butter crackers - Ritz crushed
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° convection or 375° conventional.
- If you are using fresh green beans, clean and trim them. Then, precook them until slightly tender. On a stovetop, boil water with a teaspoon or two of salt. In a microwave, cover a dish with water on the bottom. Cook for 4-5 minutes, then stop the cooking in an ice bath to prevent overcooking.
- Chop one small onion. Add two tablespoons of butter to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until clearing some, about 2-3 minutes.
- Stir in two tablespoons of flour until smooth, and cook for two minutes. Remove from heat.
- Add 1 teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of black pepper, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and 1 cup of sour cream. Mix well. Stir in about 2 pounds of green beans and 1 cup of shredded cheese of your choice. Cheddar cheese is commonly used, but Colby Jack, Gruyere, or Swiss cheese are good choices.
- Transfer the bean mixture to a 2 ½ quart casserole dish. You can cover at this point and refrigerate to cook for 1-3 days. Do the topping at the time of cooking.
- Crush 12 Ritz crackers to make ½ cup of crumbs. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a microwave, then mix the butter with the crushed crackers. You can use a cup of French fried onions added in the last 5 minutes of cooking.
- Top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese. Sprinkle the topping over the casserole.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes until the top is golden and the casserole is bubbly.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- First, never cook a new recipe for the first time for an important meal. Do a test run a week or two ahead.
- This is an easy recipe to cut in half. Use a small casserole dish—about 1 quart—and cooking time will be a bit faster. Watch the color of the top. The recipe post provides more instructions.
- Many prefer canned beans, but you can use any beans you like. I prefer fresh, but frozen or canned will do. Two pounds of beans will require about three cans of drained green beans.
- Most will want cheddar cheese, which is fine, but I love Swiss cheese here.
- You should try the Ritz cracker topping, but if you want the traditional can of French-fried onions, that should work fine. Leave off the crackers and cook as directed, but add the onion rings for the last five minutes of cooking.
- I've included instructions for breadcrumb topping in the post.
- It's a great make-ahead dish. Do up to mixing the topping. Then, you can cover and refrigerate for 1-3 days. Create and use the topping just before cooking.
- Leftovers are good in the refrigerator for about three days.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Adapted from Allrecipe's Grandma's Green Bean Casserole.
Originally Published November 21, 2015. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Liz Elam says
Wonderful alternative to the standard recipe.I had trouble with a too thick sauce so added enough milk to make it creamy. Did anyone have trouble cleaning the pan once the sauce was made…Swiss cheese mess?
Lauren says
I’ve been searching other green bean casserole recipes, I really want to try this one! What do you think about substituting the sour cream for cream cheese?!
DrDan says
Hi Lauren,
Welcome to the blog.
When creating a recipe post, I usually read many recipes. There were a few that used cream cheese. I don't remember now which but they are out there.
Having said that. I'm not a fan of cream cheese in casseroles or things like chili or southwest recipes. And my wife (who liked this recipe) will ask what I did and then not eat it. So, it is a matter of individual taste.
Dan
Heather says
Two tablespoons of butter dried up in 2 seconds and left my flour in crumbles? There's no way that's all the liquid that can be used.
DrDan says
Hi Heather,
Sorry, it didn't work well for you. The usual ratio of flour to fat for a roux is 1:1 and that is what this is. You can increase the butter (double) if you wish.
My best guess of what happened to you is the butter used was your issue. The butter should be real butter with full fat. Many butter substitutes are whipped or have a lower amount of fat.
Dan
Elisabeth Wasslen says
I would love to try this, but cannot do dairy. Can I just ask, what kind of soup were you using in the original recipe? I am a big vegetable lover, and so is my family, and I think we would all enjoy this. Thank you in advance.
DrDan says
Hi Elisabeth,
Welcome to the blog.
If you are lactose intolerant, I know there is lactose-free sour cream available. I hear there are dairy free versions but I have never seen them. Of course, there are dairy free subs for butter and cheeses.
The original recipes for this use Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup which does have milk products. I don't know of substitutes that are dairy free unless you want to make your own.
This recipe is just so dairy heavy, it seems hard for you to do. Can I interest you in bacon? I have an excellent green bean bacon recipe that we use for special meals. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/baked-bacon-green-beans/
Sorry I'm not more help.
Dan
Elisabeth Wasslen says
Thank you. I so much appreciate your help. Usually I use unsweetened coconut beverage and coconut yoghurt, e.g. I am also allergic to wheat, egg white and soy so I am always looking for good things I can eat. Actually I can eat very old cheddar cheese without consequence. I will definitely try the green beans with bacon. Looks so good to me.
Sandra says
Another winner. I used Swiss cheese and Ritz crackers. Yummy. The second day it had thickened up a bit so I would suggest a thinner sauce if making ahead
DrDan says
Thanks Sandra, I have never done this one "make ahead" so great tip.
Dan
DrDan says
Hi Krissy,
No, I have not. But I would expect a little downgrade with frozen. I have tried both in other recipes and the texture and flavor seems to suffer just a little.
Dan
KrissyG says
Thank you, Dan! We'll go with fresh green beans... making this week. :)
KrissyG says
Great recipe! Thank you:)
Wondering if anyone has tried frozen green beans yet... We'd love to know of/about the taste, texture, etc.
DrDan says
I don't do nutrition info due to the many variables. But if you want an estimate then check at https://www.caloriecount.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php.
About the frozen beans. I suspect some texture issues with the things I have done before with frozen beans. But give it a try and report if you would please.
DrDan
DrDan says
Thanks for the notes and rating. We had it for Thanksgivings and I used cheddar. Good but I like the Swiss cheese a little more.
Dan
Tracey says
Hi, Dan.
Did a "trial" run of this yesterday making sure it was at least liked by all (I was going for loved by all but a solid like would have made it tested and family approved). I, as well could never wrap my head around the other GB Casserole and can't even swallow whatever those things called onions were/are. So when I saw this it was a must try mainly for my husband who has missed this dish he grew up on solely because I would not make it (and I didn't grow up on it my grandparents refused to make it thank goodness!). Just for FYI I used fresh green beans.
Well the votes are in. Two liked it and two loved it! Sold! I gave some to my empty nester next door neighbors and one said this is pretty good the other said I love this version!
Thank you for an alternative to that other stuff. This dish will be on our holiday dinner table tomorrow.
Tracey
PS... I'm sure it's user error but once again can not get the stars to work. Would you so kindly give it 5 stars for me if you can?
Tracey says
Just an update... one of the nurses my husband has worked with for years got sick and went home. We know them well so I sent over two dinners for them. Thought nothing more about it until the phone rang and Chris (the hubby) said two things. One was to let me know that the macaroni and cheese I made was out of this world (funny thing about that was it was a last minute add on for the kids. Simplistic made on the stove top with 4 ingredients. I had never made it before, but it will be made again. A LOT!). The other comment was on your GB casserole! He said that if he had to choose between the meat and one of those dishes he would no doubt have had a vegetarian dinner! Ha! Just thought I'd let you know how much it was enjoyed along with my "not on the menu Mac and cheese"! Haha
Hope you had a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving day and meal.
Tracey