After Halloween, Thanksgiving is my next favorite American holiday. Both of these days encourage socializing without asking guests to spend money on presents. I’m also a sucker for good foods and sweet treats. Green Bean Casserole is quintessentially American and yet it is often neglected. I am hoping this Green Bean Turkey Casserole can take this recipe from the neglected leftover section of your Thanksgiving table to a year-round dinner staple!
Green bean casserole was the second recipe I took on in my journey to learn how to actually cook. I started with mac-n-cheese. There was many a night where my boyfriend and I ate magnificent mac-n-cheese’s but there comes a point where you recognize that you need to have more vegetables in your dinner. And, no, adding frozen peas to your mac-n-cheese doesn’t count.
The first ever green bean casseroles I had were the classic canned versions. In my opinion, those still friggin’ rock. Dump dinners will forever be a staple in my heart. My only issue with canned cream of mushroom soup is that there are never enough mushrooms! My homemade recipe uses a full pound and honestly sometimes I up it to 2 pounds because ya girl loves the ‘shrooms.
Now green beans are undeniably delicious but they aren’t very filling. I added ground turkey to this recipe because I wanted a casserole that could easily be a meal on it’s own. This green bean turkey casserole fits the bill. You boil the green beans separately, but everything else is made in one pot!!! Also you get an amazing creamy factor without cream because I add whole milk to a simple butter and flour roux which makes the most delectable, but still lightened sauce.
Although the entire casserole is homemade and can-free, I still use pre-packaged fried onions. I have tried frying my own and honestly it’s a pain for something that doesn’t even taste as good as the processed ones. I’ve tried subbing in pankos/breadcrumbs in order to be a bit more calorie conscious and honestly I’d rather just eat less of the fried onions than eliminate them completely. They are just that good. I do have to admit that I just had the thought of putting prepared onion rings (like you get at a burger joint) on top, baking it, and calling it a day… and that sounds AMAZING. I will get around to trying that one day.
I hope you try this recipe. It requires some simple vegetable prep but is still easy to accomplish on a dinner night. In about 45 minutes total (not all of which is spent cooking!) you’ll have a filling, no non-sense dinner on the table.
My other favorite casserole recipes:
One pan vegetarian enchilada casserole
Zuchinni, corn, and chicken salsa verde Enchilada Bake
Green Bean and Ground Turkey Casserole
An easy way to transform the humble, but often neglected, green bean casserole into a one pot dinner! This homemade recipe uses fresh mushrooms for superior flavor and texture. I promise this will become an easy year-round dinner staple!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds trimmed green beans fresh or frozen
- water, for boiling
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1 large yellow onion, peeled and finely diced
- 1/2 cup broth, chicken or veggie not all at once! See Note 1
- 2-3 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pound mushrooms, mixed varieties, rinsed and diced
- 1 pound ground turkey 93 lean, 7 fat
- 2 tablespoon butter Note 2
- 3 tablespoon all purpose flour Note 2
- 1½ cups whole milk, more as needed
- 1 teaspoon table salt add more to taste, Note 3
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon dried herbs
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic or onion powder
- 8-10 ounces french fried onions
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375°. In a large pot, bring green beans, water, and salt to a boil. Boil for 7-10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
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In a large cast iron pot, sauté onions on medium heat. Add broth in small increments so that the onions do not burn. You may not need the entire ½ cup of broth. Once the onions have become fragrant, wilted, and yellowed add the mushrooms and mince garlic. Cook for another 2-3 minutes, add broth if needed, and stir often. Once mushrooms have cooked down in size, add the ground turkey. Use your spatula to constantly break up the ground meat so that it cooks in a small, uniform size. This also helps the turkey cook faster.
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After about 5 minutes on medium heat the turkey should be mostly cooked. Lower the heat and add the butter. Once the butter is mostly melted, add in the flour. Stir the mixture so that the flour absorbs the butter and forms a thick paste. Now it is time to slowly add in the milk, stirring constantly. The mixture should thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon but still stirs easily. Now it is time to season everything. Add extra salt to taste.
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Add the cooked green beans to the mixture, mix them to incorporate them into the dish. If there isn't enough sauce, then add a few splashes of mix and cook for another minute or two. When the mix is seasoned to taste and sufficiently saucy, top with french fried onions. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
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Leftovers should be placed in the fridge and eaten within 3 days for best taste and texture.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: Since this recipe already uses butter to create the roux I wanted to avoid cooking the onions and mushrooms in extra fat. For that reason I use broth to help cook the vegetables down. It is a calorie friendly way to cook. Read more about broth cooking in this “Healthier Cheeseburger Salad” post
Note 2: Normally for a roux you use an equal amount of butter to flour but the turkey gives off enough fat so this recipe reduces the amount of butter without affecting the roux.
Note 3: My friends and family are all serious salt fiends so I use way more than a teaspoon of table salt. For normal people, a teaspoon is a good starting point.
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