Description
Southern Green Bean Casserole Thanksgiving – a homestyle dish that brings warmth and flavor. Learn my family’s cherished recipe, full of creamy goodness.
Ingredients
Scale
- Fresh & Canned Goodness:
- 2 (14.5 ounce) cans cut green beans, drained well (or 1.5 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed and blanched)
- 1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
- Creamy Sauce Essentials:
- ½ cup whole milk
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- Flavor Boosters:
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon black pepper (freshly ground, to taste)
- Crispy Topping:
- 1 (6 ounce) can crispy fried onions
Instructions
- Prep Your Beans:: First things first, get those green beans ready. If you’re using fresh, trim the ends and blanch them in boiling salted water for about 5 minutes, then plunge them into an ice bath to stop cooking. You want them crisp-tender, not mushy! Canned? Just drain them really, really well. I once forgot the ice bath step for fresh beans, and they just kept cooking, ending up way too soft for my liking, oops!
- Whip Up the Creamy Sauce:: In a big bowl, whisk together that cream of mushroom soup, whole milk, sour cream, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, and a good grind of black pepper. Whisk it until it’s super smooth, no lumps allowed! This is where the magic happens for your Southern Green Bean Casserole Thanksgiving. Give it a little taste—adjust the pepper if you like, but hold off on salt for now.
- Combine and Fill:: Now, gently fold those prepped green beans into your creamy sauce mixture. Make sure every bean is coated in that luscious goodness. Then, pour it all into your prepared 9×13 inch baking dish. It should look inviting and ready for its oven journey. I always get a little messy here, a bean or two usually escapes the bowl, but that’s just part of the fun, right?
- Initial Bake:: Pop that dish into your preheated oven at 375°F (190°C) for about 20-25 minutes. You want the casserole to be bubbly around the edges and heated through. The house will start smelling absolutely divine, a true sign of Southern Green Bean Casserole Thanksgiving in progress! This is the part where I usually peek through the oven door every five minutes, honestly.
- Add the Crispy Onions:: Once it’s bubbly, pull the casserole out of the oven. Now for the star of the show: generously sprinkle those crispy fried onions all over the top. Don’t be shy! This is what gives it that iconic crunch. I’ve been known to ‘taste test’ a few (okay, a lot) of these onions while I’m sprinkling them, they’re just too good.
- Final Golden Bake:: Return the casserole to the oven for another 5-10 minutes, or until those crispy onions are beautifully golden brown and even crispier. Keep an eye on them, they can go from perfectly golden to slightly burnt really fast, I’ve learned that the hard way! Let it rest for a few minutes after it comes out, just to set a bit, then dig into your glorious Southern Green Bean Casserole Thanksgiving!