Green Bean Casserole with Crispy Onions
Inspired by techniques from America's Test Kitchen and Food Network Kitchen.
Blanched green beans in a cream and browned-mushroom sauce, baked until bubbling and topped with homemade crispy fried onion rings.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Fry the onions. Separate the onion rings and toss them in the 40 g flour. Heat the oil in the medium pan to 180 °C and fry the rings in batches for about 3 min until golden and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and sprinkle with the pinch of salt; the flour coating is what makes them crunchy.
- 2
Blanch the beans. Bring the water and 1 tbsp salt to the boil and cook the beans for about 6 min until crisp-tender. Drain, rinse under cold water and pat dry. Cooling them stops the cooking so they stay green in the oven.
- 3
Make the sauce. Heat the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan). Melt the butter in the large frying pan over medium-high heat and cook the mushrooms for about 7 min, until browned and their liquid has evaporated. Add the garlic and thyme for 1 min, then stir in the 2 tbsp flour for 1 min. Whisk in the cream, water, soy sauce, salt and pepper and simmer for about 5 min until thickened; the soy sauce adds savoury depth in place of stock.
- 4
Bake and top. Stir in the beans, spread everything in the baking dish and bake for about 15 min until bubbling at the edges. Stir, scatter over the crispy onions and bake 5 min more, until hot through (74 °C). Serve hot.

Cat tip
Brown the mushrooms properly before adding the flour; pale, wet mushrooms give a thin, bland sauce.
More from the cat
- Fry the onions in small batches so the oil stays hot and they crisp rather than soak up oil.
- Make the sauce and beans up to 4 hours ahead and chill; add 5-10 min to the baking time.
- Keep the onions uncovered at room temperature until needed so they stay crisp.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers covered up to 3 days. Reheat in a 180 °C (160 °C fan) oven for 15-20 min until piping hot (74 °C); the onions will soften. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
Equipment
- large saucepan
- colander
- medium frying pan or saucepan for frying
- slotted spoon
- large frying pan
- whisk
- 2.5-3 litres oval baking dish
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 342 kcal |
| Protein | 7.4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 25.3 g |
| of which sugars | 9 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 25.5 g |
| of which saturates | 13.2 g |
| Fibre | 5.8 g |
| Salt | 1.72 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
2.2 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
