Looking for a healthier way to serve green beans for the holidays? This tasty recipe is made completely from scratch--no canned soup here! Impress your friends and family members this holiday season with this amazing, healthy side dish.
Looking for other holiday side dishes? Try these baked artichoke hearts and roasted sweet potatoes with cranberries.
Ingredients
Most of the ingredients for this green beans with mushroom recipe are easy to find at your local grocery store.
- Green beans: Use fresh, not frozen or canned.
- Mushrooms: Fresh white button mushrooms are what we used, but feel free to use whatever fresh mushrooms you have.
- Nuts: We used walnuts that are dry toasted to give them more flavor.
- Shallots: We used shallots to make the dish more fancy, but you can also substitute with a sweet onion or a red onion.
- Bacon: We used bacon in this recipe, but if you want this vegetarian, just omit it.
How to Make
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, submerge the fresh green beans, and cook for 5 minutes, then drain.
Shock the beans in an ice water bath for a few minutes, then drain in a colander (affiliate).
Saute the sliced mushrooms in butter over medium high heat until they are brown and the liquid has evaporated.
Remove the mushrooms, add more butter, and saute the shallots.
Remove the shallots and pour in ¼ cup white wine to deglaze the pan. Scrape off the bits of mushrooms and shallots with a wooden turner (affiliate).
Return the mushrooms, bacon, and shallots to the skillet. Stir to mix, then reduce the heat to medium low.
Whisk together the olive oil, sugar, and salt in a small bowl.
Toast the walnuts in a dry skillet over medium high heat. Stir constantly for a few minutes until the walnuts are fragrant and they start to darken. Set aside.
Return the green beans, mushrooms, bacon, and shallots to the large skillet. Turn up the heat to medium high for a few minutes, and stir until everything is heated through.
Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the dressing.
Garnish with fresh parsley and toasted walnuts, then serve while it's still warm.
Recipe FAQs
Look for crisp, brightly colored green beans that feel firm and snap quickly and easily when bent. They should also have no brown spots or wrinkles. You can tell when they are going bad when they are limp, dry, and rubbery. They also don't snap when bent in half.
Start by bringing a pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Submerge them and cook until bright green, anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Shock them in an ice water bath to stop the cooking process, then drain in a colander.
Green beans pair well with the following main courses: cedar plank salmon, roasted Thanksgiving turkey, pan fried pork chops, grilled steak, and stir fried chicken.
Don't purchase more than one week before Thanksgiving, and they should be at their peak. Store them in the vegetable drawer in a plastic bag or a reusable container in the fridge to keep them crisp.
Expert Tips
- Do you have picky eaters? Keep the mushrooms large.
- Want to avoid mushy beans? Don't over boil them.
- Want to change this up? Add shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano as a garnish.
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Recipe
Green Beans and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 3 pounds fresh green beans, cut into 2 inch lengths
- 6 slices low-sodium bacon, crumbled
- 1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
- 3 tablespoons salted butter
- 3 medium shallots, sliced and separated into rings
- ¼ cup white wine
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons walnuts, chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Submerge the fresh green beans and cook for 5 minutes, then drain. Shock in an ice water bath for a few minutes, then drain in a colander.
- Cook the bacon in a skillet, flipping it with a fork. Drain it on paper towels until cooled, then crumble it into bite-sized pieces.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the mushrooms until they have turned brown and all the liquid is gone. Remove the mushrooms and set aside.
- Add a little more butter to the same skillet, then cook the shallots until golden brown. Set aside.
- Pour in ¼ cup of white wine to deglaze the pan. Scrape off the browned bits of mushrooms and shallots with a wooden turner.
- Place the chopped walnuts in a small skillet over medium-high heat, and dry toast them, stirring constantly. Watch them closely, as they can burn easily.
- Return the mushroom, bacon, shallots, and green beans to the large skillet. Turn the heat down to medium low to heat through.
- Meanwhile, whisk the oil, vinegar, and salt together in a bowl.
- Once the green beans are heated through, remove from the heat and pour the dressing over them and toss to combine.
- Add the toasted walnuts to the mixture in the skillet and toss again, then garnish with chopped parsley. Serve while still warm.
Notes
- Do you have picky eaters? Keep the mushrooms large.
- Want to change this up? Add shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano as a garnish.
- Want to avoid mushy beans? Don't over boil them.
- Have green bean and mushroom leftovers? Place in an airtight container, and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on September 27, 2017 and was updated on October 5, 2018, and November 1, 2021.
Beth
The mushrooms give the dish a lovely umami flavor. The green beans are soft but still have a bit of crunch.
Emma
I love the combination of green beans and mushrooms!