Vegan Green Bean Casserole features fresh green beans, a creamy mushroom sauce and plenty of crispy fried onions. A classic holiday dish! It’s easy to make and can be prepared ahead of time.
Green Bean Casserole is a must-have Thanksgiving side dish, along with Sweet Potato Casserole, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy and Stuffing.
But you don’t have to wait for Thanksgiving to make green bean casserole, it’s good any time of year! It’s great alongside Vegan Meatloaf, Lentil Loaf or even Vegan Chicken. It’s the only recipe for Vegan Green Bean Casserole you’ll need!
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Green beans – Fresh or frozen. If using fresh, trim the ends and chop if desired.
- Olive oil
- Mushrooms – I used cremini. White button mushrooms are fine as well.
- Garlic
- Vegetable broth – I always use Better than Bouillon, but any vegetable broth works.
- Flour – I use all purpose flour, but use a gluten free mix if needed.
- Vegan creamer – There are so many brands these days, use a completely unsweetened and unflavored one. I used an almond/coconut mix.
- Non-dairy milk – I used soy, but you can use almond or cashew as well. Just make sure its unsweetened and unflavored so it doesn’t ruin the dish!
- Salt
- French fried onions – Yes, I’m using those delicious french fried onions, and plenty of them! If gluten free, try these gluten free french fried onions.
How to make Vegan Green Bean Casserole
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then cook the green beans for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large cast iron skillet (at least 10 inches), warm the olive oil and then add the mushrooms and garlic, cooking for 3-5 minutes until the mushrooms have softened. Sprinkle the flour on top of the mushrooms, then slowly add the broth, stirring constantly. Add the creamer and milk. Stir and cook for about 5 minutes until thick and creamy. Add salt to taste.
To the skillet, add the green beans and 1/3 cup of the french fried onions. Stir to combine.
Add the rest of the onions and cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately!
Don’t have a cast iron skillet?
No problem. You can use a large casserole dish instead. Once the mushroom sauce is done, transfer it to a greased casserole dish, along with the cooked green beans, 1/3 cup of onions and mix, then add the rest of the onions and bake.
Can I make this vegan green bean casserole ahead of time?
Sure! Just follow the instructions up until the point you add it to the casserole dish. Once you have it in the dish (or simply leave it in the pan), cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Keep the french fried onions separate, except for the 1/3 cup you add in the bowl. You could do this one day in advance.
When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and cook for about 30 minutes (it will take a little longer since it will be cold straight from the fridge). Top with the french fried onions and cook 5-10 more minutes.
More incredible Thanksgiving recipes
- Vegan Cranberry Pecan Cheese Ball
- Vegan Pot Pie
- Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
- Vegan Pumpkin Pie
- Vegan Pumpkin Roll
Vegan Green Bean Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 pounds fresh or frozen green beans
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened vegan creamer (I used coconut/almond)
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened, unflavored soy, almond or cashew milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 6 ounces french fried onions (French's or Trader Joes)
Instructions
- Cook the Beans: Trim the ends, if using fresh beans. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add the beans and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. If you don't have a 10 inch cast iron skillet, lightly grease a large casserole dish and set aside.
- Warm the oil in a large cast iron skillet (10 inches) over medium-high heat. Now add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for 3-5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft.
- Sprinkle the flour on top of the mushrooms, then slowly add the vegetable broth and stir until the mixture thickens. Add the vegan creamer, then the non-dairy milk, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes until thick and creamy. Add salt to taste. Remove from heat.
- To the skillet, add the green beans and 1/3 cup of the french fried onions. (If you don't have a cast iron skillet, add all ingredients to the casserole dish instead.)
- Top with the rest of the french fried onions, place the cast iron skillet (or casserole dish) in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the onions are crispy but not burnt. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Gluten free: Substitute gluten free flour for the all purpose flour and try these Gluten Free French Fried Onions .
- For the milk/creamer: Make sure to use unsweetened and unflavored creamer and milk. I used a coconut/almond creamer and unsweetened soy milk. Check the ingredients for sugar, or vanilla, as those would ruin the dish.
- Prepare green bean casserole ahead of time: Follow the recipe as written, except do not preheat the oven. Once the green beans, mushroom mixture and 1/3 cup french fried onions are mixed and added to a casserole dish, simply cover with foil or wrap and place in the refrigerator until ready to cook. This can be done a day in advance. When ready to serve, remove foil or wrap and bake for 30 minutes (until warm in the middle). Top with french fried onions and cook for 5 more minutes and serve.
Nutrition
*This recipe was first published November 2018 and has been republished with new photos and an improved recipe.
Made this for Thanksgiving and it was delicious!! Will make it again for sure! Thanks
You are welcome, Diane! Thank YOU for your wonderful review and feedback! I’m glad you loved the casserole, and wish you happy cooking!
Hi Nora! Do you have any recs for those of us that don’t like mushrooms? Thanks!
Hmmm I’m not sure here, I suppose you could leave them out but I haven’t tried it.
Can this be done in a crock pot? I saw the traditional non vegan recipe that is very basic and cooked in a slow cooker. 2-3 hours on low or 1 hour on high. Do you think it would work?
Hi Amy. I haven’t tested it but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work in a crock pot! The topping won’t get crispy in a crock pot, but that’s not the end of the world. Your cooking time sounds right. Let me know how it turns out for you! Happy Cooking!
So good!! Did a trial run before thanksgiving, and it was great. I used nutpods coconut almond Unsweetened creamer, and Unsweetened cashew milk. I used 2.5 cans of green beans.
This is the only green bean casserole recipe I’ve ever made because it is that good!! Based on another comment, I did swap out the half and half for plain unsweetened yogurt (vegan of course), and that got rid of the slightly weird taste I always got from the creamer. I’ll be making it like this from here on out-incredibly delicious!! Thanks Nora-your recipes are my go-to!
Easy and delicious. Made this the day before Thanksgiving and stored in fridge. Next day added the onions on top and baked. Came out perfect!
This was fantastic! I couldn’t find plain vegan creamer, so I used some plain vegan yogurt I had. It worked perfectly. I also used more mushrooms because the container I bought was larger than I needed. My non-vegan family loved it and they even asked if they could keep the leftovers. That makes it a winner in my book!
So great, Deb! Thanks for sharing your positive review and feedback! I appreciate you!
Nora, we are so thankful for you. You and your recipes ROCK!!!
She is so amazing and sweet! I started with her recipes when I first became vegan. They’re so simple anyone can learn little tricks and substitutes for vegans. Love you Norma thank you so much! You have the best food blog ever 💗🩵 sending love happy new year 🙂
Made for the first time today for Thanksgiving tomorrow. Will see what kind of reaction it gets. It tasted good until I added the unsweetened coconut/almond creamer. That coconut flavor was jarring and unpleasant, and did not go with the flavor profile. I had to keep adding things to disguise it. Soy sauce, a staple of traditional green bean casserole helped cover it up and is something that adds to the dish anyhow, as well as a bit of organic miso paste. I will make the recipe without the creamer in future. The sauce never thickened for me.
Oh that’s a bummer. Certain creamers have too much flavor, so it does depend on what you use. Next time you could try a different brand or even use canned coconut milk instead, though that will likely taste a bit coconut-like.
I’ve made this the last two years alongside a standard green bean casserole for the non-vegans. It is so good, I am only making this version for 2023. I have substituted almond/oat milk for the creamer. I’ve also used frozen and canned beans with good results. Nora has never failed me!
Hi! I am planning on making this recipe for thanksgiving. I just watched the video and noticed that the creamer is powdered. Could you tell me where you found powdered creamer that is vegan😬
Hey, sorry for the confusion. I don’t usually use powdered creamer, I almost always use some sort of unsweetened, unflavored vegan cream like Ripple or another brand. But powdered does work too! Hope that helps.
This recipe looks really good! I was thinking about making this for Thanksgiving. Are there any unsweetened creamer brands you would suggest? I usually only get sweetened ones, so I don’t know what the best ones are.
Happy Thanksgiving! 🧡🦃🧡
Ripple has a half and half that is unsweetened that I’m using this year. It’s pretty good!
Is Ripple half and half the best non-dairy creamer for this?
Ripple has a half and half that I use. It’s pretty good! Enjoy!
If using frozen green beans, do you recommend thawing the beans ahead of time and removing excess moisture? Or should I just add the frozen beans directly to the casserole dish at step 5 (if so, would that affect the cooking time)?
Thank you!
You actually are going to cook the green beans first (whether fresh or frozen). Follow step 1 and cook them, then drain and set aside while you prepare the rest of the casserole. Hope that helps!
This is such a great dish!
What do you classify as a serving for this? 1 cup? 1/2 a cup?
Thank you!
It’s a total of 10 servings, so to be exact it would have to be divided by 10. I would say the serving would be about 3/4 cup for each.
Can I use your cashew cream recipe for the “vegan creamer” or how can I make my own please? Thank you!
You can yes! Or you can use canned full fat coconut milk. Hope that helps!
Better than any green bean casserole EVER!!! Even my non vegan fusspots raved. I make it even when it’s not Thanksgiving! 😂 So far I’ve made it 3 times in the last 2 months.
Hey Cindy. Wow thank you so much! I am so glad you are loving and sharing the green bean casserole! It is a shame to only eat something so delicious once a year! I appreciate you for sharing your wonderful feedback!
Absolutely delicious!! I tasted the mushroom sauce before I mixed it with the green beans. It’s yummy on its own and I was wondering if it would make a good cream of mushroom.soup?
I think it would yes!
Thanks for this recipe. You explained it so well and made it fun and easy. My family was amazed!!
You are welcome, Colleen. It’s good to hear that the instructions were easy to follow! Thank you for your great feedback!
Hi Nora, LOVE your recipes! I have canned green beans, will those work for this recipe? Thank you in advance. Happy Thanksgiving! 🧡
They should work, though I haven’t tried it. Should be fine! Happy Thanksgiving!
I just made this recipe using canned green beans and it came out great!
Hi Laura. Thank you for sharing your great feedback! I’m glad the casserole turned out great!