Vegan Green Bean Casserole
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This gorgeous, creamy Vegan Green Bean Casserole is the perfect addition to your plant-based holiday meal. Made with fresh green beans and a homemade sauce (no canned soup!), this easy side dish is a crowd pleaser!
If you’re looking for more side dish ideas, you might like my Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans!
This recipe was originally published November 10, 2019. Photos and post updated October 24, 2024.
Why you’ll love this recipe
Ingredients
Here’s an overview of the key ingredients and steps to make Vegan Green Bean Casserole. See the recipe card below for full details.
- Unsalted cashews – blended with broth to make the base of the creamy sauce
- Vegetable broth
- Shallot and garlic – for flavour
- All-purpose flour – to thicken the sauce
- Soy sauce – to deepen the savoury flavour
- White wine vinegar – just a bit added to the sauce to brighten the flavour
- French string beans (haricots verts) or regular green beans
- Crispy fried onions – you can usually find these near croutons at the store. They’re a great shortcut ingredient that adds a nice crunchy texture to the dish.
How to make it
Start by preheating the oven, preparing the casserole dish and bringing a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Make your cashew cream in a high-speed blender by combining soaked cashews and broth.
Next, boil the green beans until tender crisp, then place in an ice bath to prevent overcooking while you make the cream sauce.
In a large skillet, sauté the shallot in olive oil until softened, then add the garlic and continue to sauté for another 30 seconds until fragrant. Sprinkle in the flour and stir until the shallot and garlic is evenly coated.
Slowly whisk in the broth to ensure the flour doesn’t clump, then add the final sauce ingredients (soy sauce, white wine vinegar, salt and pepper to taste) and continue to whisk until thickened. Then, add the cashew cream.
Finally, assemble the casserole. Drain the green beans from the ice bath and add to the skillet with the cream sauce. Gently toss the beans until they’re well coated, transfer to the greased casserole dish, top with crispy fried onions and bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges are starting to turn golden.
Tips for Success
Make ahead instructions
To make ahead, follow the instructions up until assembly, but don’t top with the crispy fried onions. Allow the casserole to cool, then cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When you’re ready to bake, top with the crispy fried onions and bake uncovered in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the edges start to turn golden brown.
How to reheat
If reheating in the casserole dish, cover with tin foil and bake in the oven at 350 °F for 20-30 minutes, until heated through. If reheating individual portions, you can microwave it for 1-2 minutes.
More holiday side dish recipes
- Vegan Stuffed Acorn Squash
- Green Beans Almondine
- Apple Almond Quinoa Salad
- Kale and Brussels Sprout Salad
- Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce
- Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Instant Pot Cauliflower Mash
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Vegan Green Bean Casserole
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Ingredients
For the cashew cream
- 1/2 cup cashews, soaked (for time-saving tip, see note 1)
- 1 cup vegetable broth
For the casserole
- 1.5 pounds french string beans, sliced in half (or regular green beans, trimmed)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large shallot, diced (about 1/3 cup)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
- pepper (to taste)
- 1 cup crispy fried onions
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F and lightly grease a 2.5-quart (2.3 litre) casserole dish. In a large pot, bring heavily salted water to a rolling boil.
- Make the cashew cream. Add the soaked cashews and 1 cup of broth to a high speed blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Make the string beans. Once the water is boiling, add the string beans and cook for 2-2.5 minutes (see note 2 if using regular green beans). In a large bowl, prepare an ice bath (I use a full tray of ice cubes and enough water to submerge the cooked beans). When the beans are done cooking, drain immediately and transfer the cooked beans to the ice bath.
- Make the vegan cream sauce. In a large non-stick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot and sauté until turning translucent. Add the minced garlic and continue to sauté for another 30 seconds, until fragrant. Sprinkle the flour over the shallot and garlic and stir until the shallots are well coated, then slowly whisk in the broth so the flour is well distributed and starts to thicken the sauce. Add the soy sauce, white wine vinegar and sea salt. Continue to whisk as the mixture thickens (total whisking time will be 3-4 minutes). Add the cashew cream and stir until well combined.
- Assemble and bake the casserole. Drain the beans from the ice bath and add them to the skillet with the cream sauce. Carefully toss until the beans are evenly coated (I use silicone tongs to make this easier), then transfer the mixture to the greased casserole dish. Top with the crispy fried onions and bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges are starting to turn golden.
Notes
- To soak cashews quickly, soak in boiled water for about 20 minutes.
- To substitute regular green beans, blanch for about 4 minutes (or until tender, but still crisp) and proceed with the rest of the recipe as directed.
- This casserole can be made up to 3 days ahead of time. Assemble the casserole as directed, but leave off the crispy fried onions and don’t bake. Store covered in the refrigerator. When your’e ready to bake it, top with the crispy fried onions and bake for about 25 minutes or until heated through and the edges are turning golden.
Nutrition Estimate
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Please leave a review below and share your results!
I will tell you- I’m not vegan, but I LOVED this green bean casserole. It’s creamy, super flavorful, and truly gives the traditional green bean casserole a run for its money. I promise if you make this for your family, they will never be able to tell that it’s vegan and it will probably become the new family favorite!
So happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe as much as we do!
Thank you for posting this recipe. It’s so refreshing to find people offering vegan recipes that aren’t mushroom dependent. Just because we eat plants doesn’t mean we like mushrooms (or coconut…)! The taste is spot on, but I did cook my green beans a bit longer since I like them on the softer side. I’ve also tried this with sunflower butter (1/4 cup) in place of the cashews and it was awesome as well. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
You’re welcome! So glad you enjoyed it. And it’s great to know that sunflower butter works too!
Loved this recipe, as I personally hate cream of mushroom soup which is traditionally used. Super simple to put together with ingredients already in my pantry. It was a hit at Thanksgiving with non-veg eaters and got a request to make it again for Christmas!!
So happy to hear you enjoyed it, Elizabeth. Thanks for leaving a review and Merry Christmas!
Hi there! Making this in preparation for Thanksgiving this year 🙂 how long should the cashews be soaked for? Overnight? So excited for this recipe! Will post results 🙂
Hi Sara, yes, you can soak them in the fridge overnight, or boil water in the kettle and soak in hot water for at least 20 minutes. Hope you enjoy it!
Can this recipe be modified to add mushrooms? If so, would I pound be good?
Hi Sharon, I don’t see why not, though I haven’t tried it myself. I’d start with a cup of chopped mushrooms and go from there!
Thank you!