There’s nothing better than a big dish of vegan green bean casserole in the fall. If you’re searching for a dish to take to your next vegan (or non-vegan) Friendsgiving gathering, or you just want a cozy fall meal, look no further.
This recipe makes enough casserole to be an entree for 3-4 people, or a side dish for 5-6 people. If you’re planning to take this to a big vegan potluck, or for Thanksgiving dinner, go ahead and double the recipe.
How to Make Vegan Green Bean Casserole
So, to get started, you’ll want to make sure you have all of your tools and ingredients laid out and ready to go.
Tools you will need:
- a large pot (if using fresh green beans)
- frying pan or skillet
- a high speed blender (or other decent blender using pre-soaked cashews)
- 9 x 9 inch square baking dish (or large cast iron skillet)
Ingredients you will need:
- 1 pounds fresh or frozen green beans
- 4 ounces fresh Cremini (also known as Baby Bella) mushrooms
- 1/2 medium white onion
- vegetable oil (I use safflower.)
- fresh garlic
- dried thyme
- raw cashews (heaping 1/3 cup of them)
- cornstarch
- soy sauce (or Bragg’s liquid aminos)
- onion powder
- salt
How to Cook Fresh Green Beans
If you’re using fresh green beans, you’ll want to prep and cook them before doing anything else. If you’re using frozen green beans (which I actually recommend for this dish), go ahead and skip to step 1 below.
To prep your 1 pound of fresh green beans, you’ll first want to rinse them in a metal strainer or steamer under some cool water to remove any remaining flecks of dirt from the garden. Then, go ahead and put a pot of water on to boil, while you finish trimming your green beans.
Next, you’ll want to trim your green beans by cutting off the tips on both ends, and cutting them in half. Like this:
Place trimmed and cut green beans in a strainer or steamer and slowly lower into your pot of boiling water. (Or, if you don’t have a metal strainer or steamer, go ahead and put your green beans right into the boiling water. You can drain the water off later.)
While your green beans are boiling, don’t leave the kitchen. You’ll only want to boil your greens for about 3 minutes…which is just enough time for you to prepare an ice bath–2-3 cups of ice cubes mixed with enough cold water to cover the green beans.
After 3 minutes have elapsed, remove green beans from heat, and, using a strainer or tongs to fish out the greens, place green beans directly into your ice bath. Now you’re ready to make your green bean casserole, so jump down to step 1 below.
Making the Casserole
*Note: If you’re using frozen green beans, go ahead and pull them out of the freezer to start the thawing process an hour or so before beginning to cooking process. If you forget, it’s totally fine, just microwave the frozen green beans for a minute to get some of the frost off. (See numbered photos below.)
- Pre heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then finely chop 1/2 of a white onion (about 3/4 cup chopped) and roughly chop 4 ounces of cremini mushrooms (also known as baby bella mushrooms) (about 1 1/2 cup chopped).
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet on medium-high heat, and sauté your mushrooms and onions for about 5 minutes-6 minutes, adding your clove of garlic at the very end.
- While the mushrooms and onions cook, stir them occasionally, not constantly, because you’ll want to allow a nice golden crust to form on your mushrooms. When they’re done, remove from burner, and set aside.
- In a high-speed blender (like Vitamix or Blendtec), place a heaping 1/3 cup of raw cashews (whole or in pieces), 1 cup + 2 tablespoons of water, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce (or 1 teaspoon Bragg’s liquid aminos), 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon onion powder. Blend on high until mixture is completely smooth, and there are no remaining gritty pieces of cashews.
*Note: Don’t have a Vitamix or Blendtec high-speed blender? No problem–just make sure you soak your cashews for 3-4 hours (or overnight) in the refrigerator before making this recipe. Then, any solid blender should work.
5. If your green beans are frozen, go ahead and add them to your mushroom and onion mixture in a skillet now.
6. Pour blended cashew mixture into the skillet (with green beans and mushrooms, if green beans are still frozen), otherwise leave the green beans out until baking time.
7. Heat skillet on medium/high heat, just until mixture has started to bubble and thicken (about 2-3 minutes).
8. Pour green bean, mushroom, onion, and cashew mixture into a large cast iron skillet (if not already using) or 9 inch by 9 inch baking dish. Place it in the pre-heated oven.
Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes, or until casserole is hot and bubbly. Sprinkle your French fried onions on the top, and bake uncovered for another 5 minutes.
Finally, serve and enjoy!
More Vegan Fall Recipes
Looking for more vegan fall recipes? Here are some great ideas to get you started:
- Creamy Vegan Macaroni and Cheese
- Vegan Cranberry Pecan Kale Salad with Marinated Tofu
- Vegan Pumpkin Cookies
- Vegan Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Spice Scones with Maple Glaze
- Vegan Apple Oatmeal Cookies
- Vegan Creamy Wild Rice Soup
Creamy Vegan Green Bean Casserole
Equipment
- Large pot (if using fresh green beans)
- Skillet
- Blender (preferably high-speed like Vitamix or Blendtec)
- 9 inch x 9 inch baking dish or cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 1 pound green beans (fresh or frozen)
- 1/2 cup French fried onions (any vegan brand)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 1/2 cup roughly chopped cremini mushrooms (also known as baby bella mushrooms, about 4 ounces total)
- 3/4 cup finely chopped white onion (or about 1/2 of a medium white onion)
- 1 clove garlic (crushed)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
For the Creamy Cashew Sauce:
- 1/3 cup (heaping) raw cashews (whole cashews or pieces)
- 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons water
- 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce (or 1 teaspoon Bragg's liquid aminos)
- 1/4 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
Instructions
- If you are using frozen green beans, make sure you remove them from the freezer 1 hour before cooking, so they have time to slightly thaw. If you forget, go ahead and microwave them in a microwave-safe dish for 1-2 minutes to get the frost off before baking.
Preparing Fresh Green Beans
- If you are using frozen green beans, jump to "Starting the Casserole" below. If you're using fresh green beans, you'll want to begin by rinsing your green beans in a strainer.
- Fill a large pot with about 3 quarts of water (or enough to cover green beans) and bring to boil.
- Trim off the ends of your green beans, then cut them in half.
- Place green beans in a strainer or steamer, if you have one, and lower into your pot of boiling water. If you don't have a metal steamer, no worries, place green beans directly into boiling water, and remove them with tongs when blanching is complete. Leave green beans in boiling water for about 3-3 1/2 minutes.
- While your green beans cook, prepare your ice bath with 2-3 cups of ice and cold water in a pot or bowl.
- Remove green beans from pot of boiling water after 3-3 1/2 minutes, and place green beans directly into ice bath, and set aside.
Starting the Casserole:
- Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
- In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil on medium-high heat for 15-20 seconds. Add mushrooms, onions, salt, thyme, and saute for 4-5 minutes. Stir occasionally, but not constantly, to allow for golden crust to form on mushrooms. Add 1 clove crushed garlic during last 30 seconds of cooking.
- Remove skillet from heat and set aside.
- In a high-speed blender, place rinsed raw cashews, water, soy sauce, cornstarch, onion powder, and salt. Blend on high until mixture is completely smooth without any gritty cashew pieces.
- Pour cashew mixture over sauteed mushroom and onion mixture in your skillet. Return skillet to medium heat, and stir constantly, until sauce has begun to bubble and thicken.
- Place green beans (fresh blanched or semi-thawed frozen) in a cast iron skillet or 9 inch x 9 inch glass baking dish. Pour creamy thickened cashew and mushroom sauce over your green beans, and gently fold together.
- Place in preheated oven and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until casserole is hot and bubbling, and green beans are tender.
- Sprinkle French fried onions over the top of casserole and bake for an additional 5 minutes until golden.
- Serve warm and enjoy.
Notes
- If you don’t have a high-speed blender like Vitamix or Blender, but you do have a different kind of blender. Go ahead and soak your cashews for 3-4 hours (or overnight) in the refrigerator before attempting this recipe.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove, adding a few extra French fried onions for added crunch, if desired.
Fantastic – even my non-vegan husband gave it a thumbs-up. I’m making a Thanksgiving meal with most of the traditional favorites, but vegan versions of as many of them as possible so this was a practice run. And I don’t feel like I am eating a mouthful of chemicals and preservatives like the non-vegan version I used to eat. Thanks!
Hurray! So glad you liked it! :)
Can cashew milk be substituted instead of soaking and blending raw cashews?
You know, you probably could. It probably won’t be quite as rich, because store-bought cashew milk is meant more for eating with cereal/drinking, and not used as much as a cream, as I am here. I’m sure it would still be delicious.