Green bean casserole without fried onions keeps that flavorful crunch while ditching the French onions from a can. Instead, this casserole is topped with Ritz crackers for a buttery crunch!
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Green bean casserole without fried onions is delicious enough for your holiday table but easy enough to serve all year long.
When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait until my mother popped open the can of French fried onions. I would sneak a handful before she added them to the top of the casserole dish.
Then I had kids…
And they promptly flicked off my favorite part and ate their green bean casserole without French fried onions — so we needed a new plan. I tried bread crumbs, but the dish just didn’t taste rich enough or have that crunchy texture I loved.
So green bean casserole with Ritz crackers was the way to go! Not just any crackers…it had to be buttery, salty, crunchy Ritz crackers. They make the best topping if you are going to eat green bean casserole without onion on top.
How To Make Green Bean Casserole Without Fried Onions
A full printable version of this recipe with ingredient measurements is available at the bottom of this post.
STEP ONE: Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
STEP TWO: Drain and add green beans, condensed soup, pepper, ½ cup cheese, and ⅔ of the bacon in a large mixing bowl. Mix well and transfer to a circular or 11 X 8 baking dish.
STEP THREE: Bake the bean mixture for 30 minutes, uncovered, until bubbly.
STEP FOUR: Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, bacon, and cracker crumbs. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the top is golden brown.
What to Serve With Green Bean Casserole Without Fried Onions
- Instant Pot Scalloped Potatoes and Ham
- Cornbread Stuffing
- Frozen Ham in the Instant Pot
- Easy Deviled Eggs without Mustard
- Air Fryer Roast Beef
- Cranberry Orange Sauce
Variations for Making an Easy Green Bean Casserole
- Use fresh green beans instead of canned green beans. You can also use frozen green beans. So go crazy! Just make sure you cook the green beans first and drain off any water to avoid a watery casserole.
- Make it extra creamy. Try half cheese and half sour cream in this recipe! It makes a super creamy, tasty dish, even without French onions!
- Add chopped mushrooms. Button, crimini, portobello — change up the type of mushrooms you use to give this green bean casserole without fried onions lots of texture and hearty flavor.
More Holiday Side Dishes You’ll Love:
- Broccoli Casserole with Ritz Crackers
- Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Roasted Acorn Squash
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- Air Fryer Ham
- Cornbread Stuffing
- Corn Casserole Without Sour Cream
Tips for Making the Best Green Bean Casserole with No Onions
Traditional green bean casserole uses canned green beans, canned soup, and crispy onions. The trick is to add loads of texture and crunch with other ingredients!
Reimagine green bean casserole without onion, using freshly grated cheese for flavor and crispy bacon for texture. A Ritz cracker topping provides all the crunch you’ll need, and chopped mushrooms make the dish extra hearty.
Don’t be scared to go without French fried onions! This easy green bean casserole is really flavorful thanks to Ritz crackers as your onion substitute.
How to Store Green Bean Casserole with Ritz Crackers
Store your leftover green bean casserole with no onions for 3-5 days in your refrigerator in an airtight container.
You can reheat it in the oven at 350F degrees (uncovered) for 15-20 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly. The topping will likely get mushy if you reheat it in the microwave.
Can I Make Green Bean Casserole Ahead of Time?
Absolutely! Mix up your casserole and stick it in the fridge until you are ready to bake. Just don’t add the toppings until you are ready to put it in the oven.
Green bean casserole without onions does not hold up very well to freezing. Thankfully, the dish comes together in just a few minutes, so there is little need to make it so far ahead that you’d want to store it in the freezer.
More Green Bean Recipes
- Green Bean Casserole with Cream Cheese
- Crack Green Beans
- Green Bean Casserole Without Mushroom Soup
- Sausage Green Bean Potato Casserole
- Green Bean Tater Tot Casserole
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Green Bean Almondine
Green Bean Casserole Without Fried Onions
Ingredients
- 2 14.5 ounce cans green beans, drained
- 1 10.5 ounce can cream of mushroom soup
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- pinch of kosher salt
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese divided
- 6 slices cooked bacon crumbled and divided
- 1 1/2 cups Ritz crackers crushed for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the green beans, condensed soup, pepper, ½ cup cheese, and ⅔ of the bacon in a large mixing bowl. Mix well and transfer to a casserole dish 11×8 casserole dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes, uncovered, until bubbly.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese, bacon, and crushed crackers, then return to the oven and bake an additional 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the top is golden brown.
Notes
How to Reheat This Green Bean Casserole:
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 2. Cook leftover green bean casserole, uncovered, for 15 to 20 minutes, until heated thoroughly.Nutrition
This nutrition information is based on the exact products I used in this recipe. Brands and sizes of products could alter exact nutrition and should always be calculated independently.
This looks pretty delicious!
Delicious side dish. I will definitely make this. It’s packed with veggies but also cheese. Yum!
This is really helpful! Thanks a bunch for sharing this amazing recipe! Will surely have this again! Well done! Highly recommended!
If I premake this (like the night before Thanksgiving) can I put it in the freezer and then bake it or would I bake it and put it in the fridge and reheat it? What would be the heating instructions for both? TIA!! I’m so excited for this recipe!
Hi Jamie, I recommend prepping it the night before Thanksgiving and keeping it in the fridge covered in foil without the Ritz crackers on top. When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven and cook at 350 for the time stated and then add another 10 minutes or so. Then add the Ritz crackers and finish it up as normal.
Can I leave out the bacon?
Of course, you can opt to leave out the bacon if you wish.