Fresh green beans and a homemade, creamy mushroom sauce make this vegan green bean casserole so much better tasting than the standard mushroom soup recipe.
I had to write a quick post about this recipe because D. and I just had some for lunch and oh my gosh, it is good! Truly, we were scraping the casserole dish clean.
This is adapted and plagiarized from Alanna’s World’s Best Green Bean Casserole, and I have to say, the name fits. I made up a full recipe to bring to Thanksgiving at the in-laws’ tomorrow, but I set aside this small dish to bake today just for us (and to photograph just for you). Though I can’t say that either my husband or I were fans of green bean casserole in general, we’re now fans of this one.
Original 2006 Green Bean Casserole Photo
Warning: This is not a fat-free recipe. I’ve veganized it and taken out some of the butter/margarine, but there’s still Earth Balance margarine in the topping and some fat in the soy creamer. And oh, those fried onions! (Which I accidentally used a whole can of, instead of the half can the recipe called for.)
What can I say? You could try it completely fat-free as outlined in the recipe’s notes, but for a special occasion, this isn’t a huge an amount of fat. And the taste is amazing. No one will know it’s vegan!
2018 Green Bean Casserole Update
Twelve years (yikes!) have gone by since I posted this recipe, and since then it has become the recipe most requested by my extended family every Thanksgiving and Christmas. It has become a tradition for us and I hope it becomes one for you.
Thanks to Alanna for the recipe, and thanks to all of you readers for your support through all these years I’ve been posting vegan recipes. Your comments and input make blogging fun!
More Vegan Holiday Recipes?
If you’re looking for more holiday recipes, don’t forget to check the Thanksgiving and Holiday sections!
The Best Vegan Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
Beans
- 2 quarts water
- 1 tablespoon table salt
- 1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces or 2 12-ounce packages frozen cut green beans
Sauce
- 10 ounces mushrooms (I used a combination of regular button mushrooms and shiitake)
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- generous pinch cayenne pepper (had to add it for the New Orleanians)
- Salt to taste
- Fresh pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 3/4 cup vegetable broth (I used Imagine's No-Chicken)
- 1 tablespoon dry sherry (Alanna's brilliant addition)
- 3/4 cup unsweetened soy creamer or plain unsweetened plant milk
Topping (see alternate oil-free topping in Notes)
- 1 1/2 slices whole grain bread
- 1 tablespoon vegan margarine optional, but topping holds together better with it
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/16 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 3-ounce can French fried onions (see Notes for other options)
Instructions
- Beans: Bring the water to boil in a large pot. While it’s heating, cut up the beans. Add the salt and beans to the boiling water. Cover and cook for 6 minutes. Drain beans in a colander, and then spray for a minute with cold water to stop the cooking. Let them drain in the colander, shaking every now and then to get off all the water.
- Sauce: Trim and discard the mushroom stems and chop the mushrooms into pieces. Spray a non-stick pan with canola oil and heat it. Add the mushrooms, garlic, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Cook until mushrooms are very soft and exude their juices. Whisk the flour into the vegetable broth and add to the mushrooms along with the sherry. Simmer, stirring, until mixture thickens. Add the soy creamer and simmer until thick, about 5 to 10 minutes. Adjust the seasonings and stir in the beans.
- Topping: Put the bread, margarine, salt, and pepper into a food processor and pulse until crumbly. Pour into a bowl and add the onions. Stir to combine.
- To assemble: Put the green beans into an oiled casserole dish and top with the onion mixture. Bake at 425 F for about 15 minutes. If you are not serving this right away, refrigerate the topping separately; bring to room temperature before sprinkling the topping on the casserole and baking for about 20 minutes or until hot throughout.
Notes
Nutritional info is approximate.
Please pin and share:
Masha
This looks great! I've never liked the overly salty and fatty "classic" casserole, and I much prefer the fresh ingredients. I'm thinking this will be great for Thanksgiving, and topped with home-caramelized onions (it's easy!).
Anonymous
I'd like to make this for my carnivorous in-laws with soy allergies. Would rice/almond milk work as well?
Julie
I love to cook with coconut creamer (So Delicious brand). It produces the same results
SMc
We made this last night for a vegan T-day potluck.. used almond milk (my hubby didn’t see the soy creamer in the fridge), and it was delish that way. The only other change was that we poured a bit more of the fried onions (Trader Joe’s) on top of the topping the recipe called for… everyone loved it!! Fantastic recipe!!!
Karen Havling
I used almond milk when I made this for Christmas lunch this year. My family loved it!
SusanV
I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work with non-soy milks, but to get the thickness of soy creamer, you may need to add some cornstarch or other thickener.
Anonymous
Did a trial run of this recipe last night to see if it is T-day worthy and wolfed down half of the recipe in the taste test … it's a winner!
Kelsey
Hi Susan,
This looks great! I was just wondering how essential the sherry is to this recipe. Is there any way I could do without it? Thanks!
-Kelsey
SusanV
Kelsey, the sherry just adds a touch of flavor. Feel free to leave it out. Hope you enjoy!
girlalee
How thick is the mushroom sauce supposed to be? I cooked mine forever and it still didn't seem thick, so I added corn starch, and it is still not very thick.
Best,
Annalee
SusanV
Annalee, mine thickened soon after it reached a boil, so I don't know what the problem could have been. It sounds like you did exactly what I would have done, though, add corn starch. Maybe my flour was just more starchy than yours!
Have you baked it yet? There's a chance it will thicken as it bakes.
Anonymous
THIS IS REALLY A FANTASTIC BEAN CASSEROLE. The meat eaters will never know what hit them.
Jenna
this was SO GOOD!!! even my grandparents said it was better than the "other" green bean casserole. I already can't wait to make it again!
QuaneE
Just wanted to say that I've been using this recipe for about 3 years and absolutely love it! Thanks so much. My husband calls it my green bean casserole, but I know who deserves the real credit 😉 Thanks again.
Samanpka
I made this yesterday for a Thanksgiving potluck, and it seems that it was popular because every last bit of it was eaten up. The soy creamer really helped it hold up, and gave it a nice bright color. I followed the recipe exactly (with frozen green beans) except I could not find fried onions, so I bought a bag of fake onion rings (basically just onion flavored snacks), crushed them, and used them instead. It was okay, but I wish I could have tried using the real things.
I enjoyed the casserole so much that I decided to make another tonight (no Thanksgiving leftovers here), except for lack of green beans I just threw in all the frozen vegetables I had – broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts – and some cooked brown rice. I also used regular soy milk instead of the creamer, and added some arrowroot powder to thicken it some more. In the end it was a completely different dish, as this time I added half a chopped onion with the bread into the food processor for the topping. I'm eating it now and it's pretty tasty. Although it is nothing like the original green been casserole, I'm just posting these adjustments so that anyone lacking the proper ingredients can see what you can do with the basic recipe.
Thanks for another great recipe!
RunCrissieRun
This was simply amazing. It was easy to make (I used some homemade soy milk), and had a nice bite to it. Even my non-Vegan husband thought it was great. Thanks for yet another amazing dish!
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That really does look like the best green bean casserole… EVER. I'm making this for Christmas dinner. This one looks so fresh.
Jordan
Since someone asked a while ago, I just wanted to say that I made this with unsweetened plain almond milk this Thanksgiving and it was GREAT. Definitely the highlight of the meal, at least for me! My omni family were still raving about the turkey =(
Gelareh @ Orange Truffle
Is it sad taht I am already thinking about my Christmas dinner menue? The green bean casserol sounds wonderful. I am going to add it to my list of dishes for Christmas and start thinking about making it gluten free and vegan. 🙂
Tiana
I cannot even emphasize how delicious this casserole is. I was so impressed and would say that this is the best green bean casserole I've ever tried! I didn't have sherry so I just omitted it and it was still as good.
Tammy
I'm so excited to make this for Christmas dinner. I'll post it on my new blog after Christmas. Thanks! Tammy http://www.veganfamilyadventures.com
Kara Kehoe
I made this for Thanksgiving with my omnivore family — now they're all requesting it again for Christmas dinner AND asking for the recipe to share with their friends! Thank you for an awesome recipe 🙂
kimmykokonut
I made this for the second Thanksgiving in a row. Big hit! I used sourdough bread in the topping and chanterelles instead of button mushrooms and soy creamer. My test batch I used what was on hand and I don't recommend using hazelnut coconut milk creamer in this recipe! My husband said it tasted like sunblock! Thanks for such a solid recipe that onmi's love.
Nicole
thanks so much for posting! green bean casserole has always been my holiday weakness and i've been looking for a vegan version for a while. can't wait to try this one for christmas.
i would like to ask, though–do you think omitting the sherry would be too detrimental to the dish as a whole? i haven't had it before so i don't know what it may add in terms of flavor, but i try to cook without any booze (don't ask!). or perhaps you can think of a similar flavor substitution??
thanks!
Colin
Nicole,
You could try using a tablespoon of tamari/soy sauce/liquid aminos instead.
SusanV
Nichole, the sherry is completely optional. It just adds a little extra depth to the flavor that you will never know is missing.
Anonymous
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I'd never made green bean casserole before, but with your recipe it was easy, and tasty! It tastes sooo goood!! Thanks for inspiring me to cook something different! 🙂
–Cher
Anonymous
Susan, I've been lurking and trying your recipes and singing your praises for a few months now, since my DD found your site while looking for a dinner recipe. I made this for Christmas dinner last night and everyone who tried it liked it. The kids went "ooh, yuch, green vegetables" and my mother went "ooh, yuch, mushrooms", but I expected that. I found it a bit bland, maybe I should have added the salt and pepper in the sauce!
I've been eating vegan for 11 months now, after reading Dr. Neal Barnard's book about reversing diabetes. It's working for me.
Keep up the good work.
Karen G
Lea
This was DELICIOUS! I am going to try "vegan weeks" all next year, to see if I can go vegan full-time. I look forward to reading through your blog and trying all the fun recipes!
Tammy
I made this as part of our Christmas dinner and loved it! I linked to it on my blog. Thanks!
Nivi
Dear Susan,
I cannot wait to try this recipe! Could you please post nutrition facts on this recipe?
Thanks in advance!
Gabrielle
This looks absolutely amazing. I’m going to make this for dinner tomorrow night, what do you think is the approximate calorie count is for one seriving?
Rara
Mmmmm!! I’m in love with this recipe. It’s THE best green bean casserole e-v-e-r. Thanks so much for adapting it Susan!
Kristina
I made this recipe for a non-veg potluck – people loved it! The addition of shiitake mushrooms was brilliant. I also threw in some portobello mushroom pieces. I used sourdough bread instead of whole wheat, and Knorr vegetable broth, which is not really fat-free. It came out so delicious that I had to make an extra batch just for myself the next morning.
The best part is that now I have an excellent recipe for vegan cream of mushroom soup. 🙂
Jennifer
Had this home style green bean casserole along with your Mushroom, Lentil, and Wild Rice Timbales and some vegan mashed potatoes and let me tell you…delicious! The casserole turned out beautifully and reminded me so much of my pre-vegan days where I made green bean casserole from cream of mushroom soup for every holiday…and have missed it so much!! My husband who is non-vegan and who, for the life of me I will never understand why, dislikes the texture of mushrooms…BUT I made these two mushroom saturated dishes together anyways figuring I could blend them well enough and all would be well, and it worked! Your recipes are incredible and I’m so excited to find a site (finally!!) where I can get incredibly delicious and HEALTHY recipes. Can’t wait to have leftovers for lunch and find a new recipe to try tomorrow for dinner.
Oh yeah – Great dish!
Sunny
Pretty awesome that I found this right before the holidays! I am so excited to be making an entirely vegan Thanksgiving dinner this year– and I won’t be alone! Pretty amazing what kinds of stuff they are coming out with now.. Yippee.
-Sonny
Ashley Craft (Taste for Healthy)
This looks so delicious!! I am definitely making this for Thanksgiving this year!
P.S. I’ve been really enjoying your blog! 🙂