This keto green bean casserole is made with fresh green beans and cheddar cheese.
Onions and mushrooms add texture and flavor, and the tasty sauce is made with sour cream and Dijon mustard. This casserole is wonderfully creamy and so delicious!
This tasty casserole is nothing like the recipe you might be familiar with, typically made with canned green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and packaged fried onions.
If you’re not a fan of canned/processed stuff but are a big fan of fresh green beans and of topping your vegetables with cheese 🧀, then I think you are going to enjoy this version a lot!
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Why this recipe works
This cheesy casserole is made with fresh green beans that are steamed until tender-crisp. None of those limp brownish canned beans! I also add onions and mushrooms, cooked in plenty of butter.
The easy sauce is made with sour cream, garlic, shredded cheese, and my secret ingredient – cayenne pepper – which adds just the right amount of heat and makes this dish so much more interesting.
The mixture is topped with shredded cheddar and – for crispness – with “panko” made from crushed pork rinds. Then I bake it until the cheese is melted and the casserole is heated through.
The result is a wonderfully flavorful casserole, made with real-food ingredients.
Ingredients
Here's an overview of the ingredients you'll need to make this tasty casserole. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below:
- Sour cream: I tried using Greek yogurt and felt that it wasn't as good.
- Dijon mustard: It's creamier and less vinegary than yellow mustard.
- Minced garlic: Mince it yourself, or use the stuff that comes in a jar.
- Kosher salt and black pepper: If using fine salt, you should reduce the amount you use.
- Cayenne pepper: Just a little. It doesn't make the casserole spicy, it just adds an interesting layer of flavor.
- Fresh green beans: I definitely encourage you to use fresh vegetables here, not frozen and definitely not canned. Canned green beans don't taste very good, in my opinion.
- Butter: I use unsalted butter. You can use olive oil if you prefer.
- Vegetables: I use onions and mushrooms. It's especially easy to use pre-sliced mushrooms.
- Shredded cheddar: I use sharp cheddar. Sometimes even extra-sharp - it's so flavorful.
- Crunchy topping: Pork rind “panko” - I buy it but you can also crush pork rinds in the food processor. You can also use almond meal, or simply skip this layer.
Instructions
Here's an overview of the steps for making this keto green bean casserole. The detailed instructions are listed in the recipe card below.
- Make the sauce: Mix the sour cream with the Dijon, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
- Steam the green beans in the microwave. Cook them until they are tender-crisp. You don't want to overcook them.
- Cook the onions and mushrooms in butter until soft.
- Mix all the ingredients together (except for half the cheese and the pork rinds) and transfer to a baking dish.
- Top the mixture with shredded cheese and with crushed pork rinds.
- Bake until heated through and the cheese is melted, about 20 minutes at 400°F.
Expert tip
The pork panko is optional, and you can use almond meal instead, but I do like its flavor and crunch.
You can use the store-bought brand suggested below in the recipe card. Or make your own by placing pork rinds in a resealable bag and using a rolling pin to crush them. The food processor also works well to crush plain pork rinds into pork "breadcrumbs."
Frequently asked questions
That's the beauty of this recipe! Since it doesn't contain liquids such as mushroom soup or milk, there's no risk of it being watery, and there's no need for a thickener such as flour or cornstarch.
The sauce here is based on sour cream, and as one would expect, it's exceptionally creamy.
I would say, however, that it's important to cook the mushrooms until they've released their liquids and the liquids have evaporated. Otherwise, the mushrooms will release liquid into the casserole.
It largely depends on the recipe. In this recipe, I bake it for 20 minutes in a 400F oven.
Keep in mind that the green beans and mushrooms are already cooked when they're placed in the oven, and we don't want to overcook them.
I love using pork-rind "breadcrumbs." They are exceptionally flavorful, and since you can buy them pre-made, they are also very easy to use.
While almond flour is certainly an option, it's not as tasty or as crunchy.
Variations
- As mentioned above, you can use almond meal as a topping instead of crushed pork rinds.
- Instead of the full amount of sour cream, you can use half mayonnaise and half sour cream.
- You can substitute olive oil for butter.
- Try using smoked cheddar - it's fabulous!
Serving suggestions
This tasty casserole can obviously be part of your Thanksgiving meal. But I actually like it enough to make it year-round. And since I bake it in a 400°F oven, I like to serve it with main dishes that I can bake in the same oven, such as:
Storing leftovers
You can keep the leftovers in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 3-4 days. The pork rind panko will lose its crispiness, but the casserole still tastes great when gently reheated in the microwave, covered, on 50% power. I don't recommend freezing this casserole.
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Recipe card
Keto Green Bean Casserole
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt (or ½ teaspoon of fine salt)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 cups fresh green beans cut into 2-inch pieces (12 oz)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup diced onions (4 oz)
- 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms (6 oz)
- 1 cup grated Cheddar divided (4 oz)
- ¼ cup pork rind “panko” (or almond meal)
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 1 ½-quart baking dish.
- Mix the sour cream with the Dijon, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Set aside.
- Place the green beans in a microwave-safe bowl. Add ¼ cup water. Cover and microwave until tender-crisp, about 4 minutes. Drain well. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and the mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until golden and tender, 5-7 minutes.*
- Remove from heat and let slightly cool. Mix in the steamed green beans, the sour cream sauce, and half the cheese.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining cheese and with the pork rind panko.
- Bake until the casserole is heated through and the cheese is melted, about 20 minutes.
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NOTES
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NUTRITION PER SERVING
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Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, and Country Living. 