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This Healthy Green Bean Casserole is creamy and cozy! A wholesome twist on the classic savory dish, this version is vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free.
This Healthy Green Bean Casserole is a cozy and wholesome twist on the classic green bean casserole we all enjoyed growing up. Unless…you’ve never enjoyed this American staple before, in which case you should buckle up and get ready to taste one of life’s greatest casseroles.
This vegan & gluten-free version is made from quick caramelized onions, a creamy mushroom “soup”, and crunchy cooked green beans (no mush to be seen here!). Instead of crispy fried onions on top, this casserole gets sprinkled with my 2-ingredient Crispy Tamari Roasted Almonds.
INGREDIENTS FOR HEALTHY GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE
For The Casserole:
- Green Beans: are the backbone of this famous casserole. If they aren’t overcooked, they maintain their delicious crisp texture throughout the dish and bring loads of nutrients!
- Yummy Vegetable Blend: Mushrooms, Yellow Onion, and Garlic bring ridiculous amounts of flavor, complimenting the green beans without overpowering them.
- Chickpea Flour: acts as all-purpose flour would, helping to thicken the “gravy” and make this dish even more hearty.
- Savory Seasonings: For this recipe, we’ll be using a blend of spices that are rich, savory, and salty, with a slight peppery kick! Tamari, Thyme, Smoked Paprika, Nutritional Yeast, and Black Pepper make this dish anything but flavorless.
- Non-Dairy Milk: adds the ~creamy~ factor we’re looking for in this dish. I used soy milk for this recipe, but you could also use another high-fat plant-based milk like oat or full-fat coconut.
For The 2-Ingredient Tamari Almond Topping:
- Slivered Almonds: add just the right amount of crunch! If you’d prefer, you can use pecans here instead.
- Tamari: takes the slivered nuts to a whole new level, adding a bit of umami flavor and savory goodness to our crunchy topping!
HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE
Personally, I’m not a fan of overcooked, mushy green beans, so I like to add them in just before baking this casserole in the oven. If you’d like them to be on the softer side, you can simmer them with the creamy mushroom “soup” for a few minutes before adding them to the oven.
- Add the onion to a pan and sauté until onions have begun to caramelize. Reduce the heat and deglaze the pan by adding a bit of tamari.
- Add the mushrooms and garlic to the pan and sauté, then add the nutritional yeast, thyme, smoked paprika, and black pepper.
- Whisk in the chickpea flour and non-dairy milk, then reduce heat to simmer until the “soup” thickens. Turn off heat and stir in the green beans.
- Add the almonds and tamari to a bowl and mix until the almonds are evenly coated. Transfer your creamy green bean mixture to a casserole dish and sprinkle on the almond topping.
- Bake until the top is bubbling and the edges are golden brown. Let cool, then serve and enjoy!
When I was a kid, I loved nothing more than a crispy, cozy green bean casserole around the holidays. For me, it’s those classic dishes that really hit home. I love being able to recreate my childhood favorites, but with a wholesome twist.
This Healthy Green Bean Casserole is the ultimate wholesome dish for the holidays, or as a hearty dinner side. I like to serve it alongside more of my childhood holiday favorites like mashed potatoes, oven-roasted veggies, and freshly-made stuffing! This casserole is best served fresh, but you can keep any leftovers you have in the fridge for up to 5 days.
If you’re looking for more healthy holiday recipes, you’ll also love this Healthy Sweet Potato Casserole, this Pecan & Pumpkin Custard Pie, and this Easy Vegan Stovetop Stuffing!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
Vegan Green Bean Casserole
This Healthy Green Bean Casserole is creamy and cozy! A wholesome twist on the classic savory dish, this version is vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free.
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 40 Minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: Serves 6 to 8 1x
- Category: Side
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
For the Casserole:
- 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons low-sodium tamari, divided
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 cremini mushrooms, finely chopped (about 2.5 ounces / 70g)
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 – 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- 1/4 cup chickpea flour
- 2 cups (475 ml) creamy plant-based milk*
- 16 ounces (450 g) fresh green beans, ends trimmed and cut in half
For the Tamari Almond Topping: (Optional)
- 1 cup (90 g) slivered almonds (or sub chopped pecans)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons low-sodium tamari
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 375F and set a 8×8″ (or similar sized) casserole dish to the side.
- Caramelize the Onions: Bring a large, nonstick pot to medium-high heat and add the onion along with 1-2 tablespoons of water. Stir the onions occasionally; you will notice the edges of the onions starting to brown, as well as brown marks on the bottom of the pan. Continue dry searing the onions for 3-5 minutes, then deglaze the pan with 1 tablespoon of tamari and reduce the heat to medium-low. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape off the brown bits on the bottom of the pot.
- Make the Soup: add the mushrooms and garlic to the pot and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Then, add the nutritional yeast, thyme, smoked paprika, and black pepper to taste. Stir well and let the spices toast for 1-2 minutes. While toasting, whisk the chickpea flour and plant milk together until smooth. Add the milk mixture to the pot and stir well. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally; the soup should noticeable thicken. Turn off the heat and stir in the green beans.
- Bake: Mix the almonds and tamari together in a small bowl, until evenly coated. Transfer the creamy green bean mixture to the casserole dish, then top evenly with almonds. Place the dish on the top rack of the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes; the mixture should be browned on top and bubbling when it is finished, but it will appear slightly liquid-y. Remove from the oven and let set for at least 5 minutes before serving as desired.
- Leftovers: this recipe is best served fresh, but leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Green Beans: the green beans in this recipe are fully cooked, but still retain some crunch. If you would prefer your green beans to be completely soft, add them in with the plant milk and simmer with the soup mixture to pre-cook them before baking.
- Milk: I would recommend using soy milk for this recipe; however, another creamy plant-based milk (such as full-fat coconut or a creamy oat milk) should work well in its place. Try to make sure the milk has at least 8-9g of fat per 1 cup serving.
- Other Substitutions: tamari can be replaced with coconut aminos or reduced sodium soy sauce. Chickpea flour can be swapped for brown rice flour, and all-purpose gf blend, or all-purpose flour.
Keywords: healthy green bean casserole, homemade green bean casserole, vegan green bean casserole, green bean casserole with almonds
Delicious and I don’t feel guilty eating leftovers all week! I used frozen green beans and just cooked them in the sauce a bit longer before putting them in the oven. The green beans stay crisp, which I like and the sauce is perfection!
★★★★★
So glad you enjoyed it!
Hello! I love all your recipes!
I wanted to know if you think almond milk or kefir milk would work good as a substitute for soy milk? Since kefir is more towards a liquid yogurt, do you think that would work just fine? Thank you!
Glad you love them, Isabella!
Both almond milk and kefir milk can be suitable substitutes for soy milk in this Vegan Green Bean Casserole recipe. Almond milk will provide a mild and nutty flavor, while kefir milk, with its yogurt-like consistency, can add a tangy taste to the dish. Consider choosing unsweetened varieties to maintain the savory profile of the casserole. Experimenting with these alternatives allows you to tailor the flavor to your preference.
Hi. Could the mushroom sauce part be made the day before, then added and baked with the greens the next day? Or even just adding it to the greens and then baking the next day? Trying to save time.
You can make the mushroom soup the day before, but it might thicken in the fridge, so you’d likely need to heat it back up before mixing in the green beans. Though, I wouldn’t mix in the green beans the day before as they would get soggy.
Hey:) can you recommend a replacement for the mushrooms? I can’t figure what will mach it the best
Tnx!
If you prefer to make this without mushrooms then you can just leave them out. However, it is such a small amount that I do recommend using them for the extra umami flavour. To achieve the flavour without the texture, you might add in about a tsp of mushroom powder 🙂
Fantastic recipe! Delicious and creamy. Smash hit for our Thanksgiving dinner.
★★★★★
Great, Thank you Kristinn! 🙂
Never liked green bean casserole growing up but my partner did and requested a vegan version. I made this with the traditional fried onions on top instead of almonds and it was soo good! 1000x better than what I remember from when I was a kid. Definitely making this again.
★★★★★
Glad to hear that, Cora! Thank you for the feedback.
The creamy mushroom soup in this recipe is by far the best out of all the vegan green bean casseroles I’ve made! The only change I’ll make next time is parboiling the green beans first. I also prefer firmer green beans but mine did not soften at all after 30 mins. I bumped the oven up at 400 and cooked for an additional 15 mins and they were still very crisp and crunchy. I’m not sure why since I made no substitutions. But I will def use this recipe again, highly recommend with that one change! I appreciate your soup has more seasonings like smoked paprika and nooch, unlike many other recipes that only have salt and pepper and tend to come out bland. Yours rocks!
★★★★★
Thanks Denise! 🙂
Awesome recipe! The almonds on top were the star of the show. I’m going to make those and put them on everything! This recipe is so easy and it’s such a healthy alternative. More proof that you can eat healthy at anytime, including the holidays! Thanks for making our Thanksgiving delicious. We are thankful for your recipes!
★★★★★
Thank you sarah – those almonds sure are addicting!
Made this for Thanksgiving and everyone loved it! Next time I will add the green beans to the soup mixture to cook a few minutes. They were really, really crisp and we all would have preferred them softer. I do have one question: Recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of tamari, divided, but only 1 tablespoon is called for in deglazing and the other tablespoon is never address. Can you clarify that for me? The topping has it’s own tamari amount so that’s not it. Thank you!
★★★★★
Thanks for the feedback, Denise! That was a typo on our end – I will fix it now!
Hi Caitlin! I made it today and it was a success! Everyone loved it. Thanks for sharing all your amazing recipes!
★★★★★
Thanks so much for making the casserole!
Love this dish! It turned out great! I didn’t have slivered almonds so used crushed sunflower seeds and cashews for the topping instead. Worked just fine! Also subbed coconut aminos, since I was out of soy/tamari and needed to up the salt because of that.
★★★★★
Those are good replacements! Thanks for making it!
I started this recipe today and realized my roommate (who moved out yesterday) took her pantry items with her! So I had to make MANY substitutions but it still turned out delicious. I used almond milk, AP flour, panko instead of almonds, and worst of all I didn’t have nutritional yeast! I mixed in some vegan cream cheese, yellow miso paste and tahini instead to try to add some creamy/umami/cheesiness to it and it was still really good! I think in the future I might add some red pepper flakes since I prefer a lil extra spice. The mushroomy gravy part was soooo good I could have eaten that on its own! Also i think I would prefer my green beans a little softer so next time I’ll take Caitlin’s suggestion to cook them longer before it goes in the oven.
★★★★★
Happy to hear you were able to make it work even with some big changes!
Love that you are doing more oil-free dishes! I can’t wait to try this one. Cheers!
★★★★★
Let us know how you like it!