Green bean casserole is a dish I have loved since I was a kid. And yes, growing up we had the canned version and I’ll still crush it if that’s available on a dinner table. I’m not above it. Ever. That’s how much I love green bean casserole, y'all.

But making your own green bean casserole is the move and worth every single second of work it takes. A creamy, savory mushroom and leek sauce. Tender, fresh green beans. Crunchy, buttermilk soaked and fried onion rings. What more could you want from a side dish? Ever since making it from scratch a few years back, I haven’t gone back to canned. You’ll be forever changed with this elevated version of a classic. Trust me.

Elevated Green Bean Casserole

Cook time: about an 1 hour

Serves: 8-10

3lbs fresh green beans, trimmed and blanched

Olive oil

3 cups yellow onion, diced

1/2 cup celery, diced

1 bunch green onion, thinly sliced

1 1/2 cups leeks, thinly sliced

3 cups white mushrooms, sliced

3 sprigs fresh thyme, kept whole

1 sprig fresh rosemary, kept whole

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

3 cups homemade roasted chicken stock*

1 1/2 cups half and half

1-2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Kosher salt, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Buttermilk Onion Ring Topping

1-2 cups buttermilk

4-6 small yellow onions, thinly sliced into rings

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tablespoon granulated garlic

1/2 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 cups All-purpose flour

2 eggs, beaten

*Note: the roasted chicken stock adds a great depth of flavor to the creamy mushroom sauce but if you don’t have any on hand, you can easily use boxed stock.

Preheat your oven to 375ºF.

To start, get the onion rings soaking in the buttermilk. These will be used for your topping later. You can use a large plastic bag or bowl to do this. Add the buttermilk, sliced onions, and seasonings. Depending on how large the onions are, adjust the amount of buttermilk needed to keep them covered. Set aside and store in the fridge while you’re making everything else.

Moving on to the casserole! In a large stockpot, bring liberally salted water to a rolling boil. Boil the trimmed green beans for about 4-5 minutes or until they turn very bright green. Then remove from the pot and immediately shock them in ice water. Set aside until you’re ready to assemble the casserole.

In a large saucepan or frying pan, over medium heat, add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan and sauté the white mushrooms until they’re seared and start to turn brown, about 10 minutes.

Then, add the diced yellow onion, celery, green onion, leeks, thyme, and rosemary. Stir well and liberally season to taste with kosher salt and black pepper.

Cook the vegetable mixture until the onions are translucent and the mushrooms are nice and toasty looking. Next, sprinkle the all-purpose flour all over and stir well to fully incorporate.

Cook the flour out for about 5 to 6 minutes to get rid of the raw flavor. Then, gradually add the chicken stock one cup at a time to the floured vegetables, stirring very well to make sure there aren’t any lumps in the sauce. Once the third cup of stock is added, bring the sauce up to a boil.

Let the sauce boil for about 10 minutes and then add the half and half, Worcestershire sauce, and adjust any seasons with kosher salt and black pepper.

Drain the green beans that have been resting in cold water. In a large casserole dish or roasting pan, add the blanched green beans and stir in the creamy mushroom sauce, making sure that the green beans are completely covered with the sauce.

Bake in the oven for at least 30-35 minutes or until the edges start to bubble like crazy. While the casserole is baking, work on the onion rings.

Preheat a frying pan with enough oil to shallow fry the rings. Drain the onions from the buttermilk and then toss them in plain all-purpose flour. Remove excess flour and dip into the beaten egg mixture and then back into the flour to dredge

Let them all sit on a sheet pan or large plate until all of the onion rings are coated and ready to fry. This allows the batter to stick well and prevents it from falling off when you’re frying them. Then, fry until golden brown and crispy. Drain on a paper towel lined plate and season with kosher salt to taste.

When the green bean casserole is finished baking, crank the oven up to 425ºF and remove the casserole dish. Evenly spread the onion rings across the casserole and place it back in the oven to crisp up the top, normally about 5-10 minutes, depending on your personal preference. Just keep an eye on it depending on how crispy and dark you want the onion rings to get.

Enjoy with your favorite roasted chicken or as the star of the show. However you like!

¡Buen provecho!