French Onion Green Bean Casserole

Recipe By Chef John
Rating
Published Nov 9th
Prep 45m Cook 45m Additional - Ready In 1h 30m
Servings 10 servings Calories 216.5

The iconic green bean casserole is reworked with the flavors of French onion soup — caramelized onions and Gruyere cheese.

Recipe Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced lengthwise
  • salt and ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 ½ cups milk
  • 1 pinch ground nutmeg
  • 1 pinch cayenne pepper to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon ground thyme
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter
  • ⅓ cup panko bread crumbs
  • 2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed
  • 4 ounces shredded Gruyere cheese, divided
  • ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cooking Directions

  1. 1 Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch casserole dish.
  2. 2 Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir the onions into the pan; cook and stir until very soft and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Stir in sherry vinegar. Transfer to a small bowl, and reserve.
  3. 3 In the same skillet, melt 2 more tablespoons butter. Whisk in 2 tablespoons flour. Stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until the flour smells like baked pie crust, about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in milk, about 1/2 cup at a time, then whisk in nutmeg, cayenne pepper, and thyme. Bring to simmer, and cook until thickened, whisking constantly, 3 more minutes. Transfer to a bowl and reserve.
  4. 4 Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in clean skillet; stir in panko until all crumbs are coated; reserve.
  5. 5 Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil over medium heat, and boil beans until bright green and crisp but not raw tasting, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain very well.
  6. 6 Spoon half of the caramelized onions into the prepared casserole dish; top with green beans. Season with salt and black pepper. Spread reserved white sauce over the green beans; sprinkle with half of the Gruyere cheese. Top with the rest of the onions, and use the back of a spoon to push onions down into sauce and cheese. Top with the buttered panko crumbs, the remaining Gruyere, and Parmesan cheese.
  7. 7 Bake in the preheated oven until hot throughout and lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Let sit 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts

  • Calories 216.5
  • Carbohydrate 18.9 g
  • Cholesterol 38 mg
  • Fat 13 g
  • Fiber 3.7 g
  • Protein 9.4 g
  • Saturated Fat 7.9 g
  • Sodium 195 mg
  • Sugar 5.5 g

Reviews

  1. bridgetydidgety Nov 24, 2012 04:18 AM
    I made this for Thanksgiving because I didn't want to used french fried onions. It took longer than I expected it to, but it was delicious! My whole family loved it, even the people who don't normally like green beans. I used cheddar cheese instead of Gruyere cheese because that is what we had on - Read more ...
  2. sweetcocoa Oct 11, 2012 02:44 PM
    It came out exactly how it looked on the video and the taste was AMAZING!! I was never a fan for green bean casserole but, with this recipe I am a convert I needed a recipe. I got stuck with making this as a side dish for a dinner party. My hubby won't eat veggies - Read more ...
  3. DanielleLyn Feb 19, 2012 03:39 PM
    If you are wanting a more decadent green bean casserole other than the regular boring soup kind, this is it! This is one of my favorites now! I pretty much went exactly by the recipe except I flavored the white sauce with a little onion and garlic powders and used canned green beans instead of - Read more ...
  4. Schmolies Jan 6, 2012 06:44 AM
    This recipe is not worth the time or effort. It has some decent flavors but nothing that really makes it worth it. It looks good smells good and tastes mediocre. We love green bean casserole and were hoping this would be better then other versions. It's not and with all the amazing ingredients it's almost - Read more ...
  5. LAVERNEs Dec 18, 2011 07:17 PM
    This recipe was the hit of the big dinner party which included a delicious rack of pork and cheesy fantastic scalloped potatoes. It's rather a lot of work but I followed the recipe EXCEPT for adding 1/2 lb of cooked chopped bacon (divided) to both layers of the onions. I used the fresh haricot verts - Read more ...
  6. Vicki Dec 8, 2011 12:11 AM
    Nobody except my husband liked this at the Thanksgiving table. I thought it was pretty good, just not worth the effort that I put into it. Hate to say it, but I'll probably go back to the canned soup version.
  7. bigdreamer70 Dec 4, 2011 03:57 PM
    I was looking for a way to make the traditional 'green bean casserole' without having to resort to using the stuff from a can as I have to cook gluten-free. This version is way better and my taste buds were pleased! Yes--the cheese is pricey (I paid $4.99 for 4 oz) but it marries all - Read more ...
  8. KathyBarbieri Nov 28, 2011 02:12 AM
    Made this for Thanksgiving. Loved Chef John's video tutorial. "2 Large yellow onions" was hard to judge for me. Here in TX we grow 'em BIG. I ended up using 2 pans to caramelize the plethora of onions. Still, I used them all in the dish, when one of those biggies would have sufficed. I - Read more ...
  9. lucylove Nov 27, 2011 07:59 AM
    Why are there only 5 stars? This recipe deserves 10! So much better than the canned soup version. Everyone declared it a hit, and hubby said it was the star of the meal. Made this exactly per the video instructions, and will do it again next year. I assembled it the day before, brought it - Read more ...
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