Southern Green Beans (with or without potatoes)

This classic southern side dish is especially good in the summer when the beans are freshly picked!

Next time try my southern fried cabbage!

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why you'll love it
• 🧾 Ingredients
• 🔪 Instructions
• 🎥 Video
• 🥫 Storage
• 💭 Tips
• 👩‍🍳 FAQs
• 📚 Related recipes
• 📞 The last word
• 📖 Recipe

❤️ Why you'll love it

• Get the flavor of the traditional slow cooked recipe in a fraction of the time.
• Perfect side dish for so many main courses.
• Bacon. Bacon. Bacon.

If you're looking for a side dish that everyone loves, made with fresh vegetables, and goes with everything give these smothered green beans a try!

🧾 Ingredients

• If you prefer not to use seasoned salt you can use salt and pepper.
• You can use balsamic vinegar instead of cider vinegar.

🔪 Instructions

Step one

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Add the beans and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes, or until they are as tender as you like them.
3. Drain and set aside.

Step two

1. Heat a heavy skillet and add bacon.
2. Cook, stirring often, until the bacon is crispy.
3. Add the onions and saute until they begin to soften.
4. Add the garlic and saute 2 minutes.

Step three

1. Add in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.
2. Stir in the stock, seasoned salt, vinegar, and sugar.
3. Simmer, stirring often, until thickened.

Step four

1. Add the drained beans (and potatoes if you are using them).
2. Stir until the they are covered in the sauce.
3. Simmer for about 3 minutes, stirring often, until the vegetables are heated through.
4. Taste, adjust seasoning, and serve hot.

🎥 Video

Click on the image to watch me make this recipe from start to finish with extra tips! (Video opens in a new tab).

🥫 Storage

We almost never have leftovers when I make this for dinner! If you do, just store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Smothered green beans don't freeze well at all. They get mushy and the sauce separates.

• Use smoked sausage, turkey, or ham in place of the bacon. If you do that you'll need to add a few tablespoons of butter, oil, or bacon grease.
• You can set the cooked bacon aside when you add the rest of the ingredients then add it back in just before serving if you want to keep it crisper.
• We always grew the yellow wax beans along with pole beans. They're super pretty when mixed in this recipe.
• Add in diced, cooked potatoes. Make it easy by using canned potatoes, drained.
• Drain and rinse a can of red kidney beans and add them in with the other vegetables.
• Add a finely diced jalapeno with the onion.
• Use the flat, Italian style beans.
• If you like it spicy add a pinch or two of crushed red peppers.
• Add a tablespoon of soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce.

💭 Tips

Expert Tip: Use fresh green beans. Canned are too mushy for this recipe and frozen ones don't ever get the right texture. If you do use the canned type drain the well and only stir them in the sauce for a minute. You don't want them to cook at all - just heat through.

• Choose fresh green beans that are firm and crisp, and snap in half easily. If they are bendy or don't snap they aren't fresh.
• Like your veggies very tender? Go ahead and let them simmer up to 20 minutes.
• If there's not enough garlic or onion flavor for your tastes go ahead and add garlic or onion powder.
• If you'd prefer not to use seasoned salt you'll want to use 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper.
• Serve these hot. As the sauce cools it gets cloudy and is unappetizing. If that happens a quick trip to the microwave will solve the problem.

👩‍🍳 FAQs

Here are the questions I am most frequently asked about this easy green bean recipe.

📚 Related recipes

Here are some more of our favorites:

• Mom's Chili Soup Recipe is also called "cowboy soup". It's full of kidney beans, beef, and fresh tomato flavor.
• Southern Smothered Chicken is so easy! The chicken comes out fork tender!
• Chicken Fried Steak or Chicken Fried Chicken is a Texas favorite. It's most often served with biscuits, mashed potatoes, and gravy.

📞 The last word

Here's my experience...

• The reason I say to cook the flour for 2 minutes is that it takes that long to get rid of the "raw" flour flavor. Keep stirring and it won't scorch.
• If the sauce is too thick then thin it with a little chicken stock.
• If the sauce is too thin then just let it simmer, stirring often, until the liquid reduces - about 5 minutes or less.
• Don't dump the bacon fat off. You need it for the sauce and it adds a ton of flavor. Trust me.
• If the garlic scorches there's no saving it. You'll need to start over - sad but true.

I, like many of you, can remember picking a colander full of green beans from the family garden and sitting on the porch with my mom, trimming the ends and snapping them in half.

It seemed like summer lasted forever back then and those quiet moments working with mom were full of deep conversations, instruction I'll never forget, and stories of her own childhood on the farm.

It's those simple moments that make the most lasting memories and they are often unplanned. Vacations and big events are nice but be sure to take time for quiet conversation on the porch.

This smothered green beans recipe brings back those kinds of moments and memories. It's one of my favorite side dishes - I hope you like it, too.

📖 Recipe