Canned green beans don’t have to be boring. Add onions and bacon to kick up this pantry staple a few notches. These sauteed canned green beans are a family favorite. The combination of green beans with bacon and onions comes together to create a perfect comfort dish.
Bacon and Green Beans Ingredients
- Bacon strips
- Reserved bacon grease
- Onion
- Canned green beans
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
How to make Green Beans With Bacon
- Cook your bacon in a medium-sized skillet until crispy.
- Drain the bacon grease, reserving 2 tablespoons of it inside of the pan.
- Add in your chopped onion and then cook for a few minutes until translucent in color.
- Drain half of the liquid from your can of green beans.
- Add the green beans and remaining liquid into the pan with the onion.
- Cook until the liquid has almost completely evaporated.
- Add your bacon back into the pan, stirring well to combine.
Tips for Green Beans with Bacon and Onion
- You can use yellow onion or a red onion. The flavor change between the two does make the dish taste slightly different as red onions are usually a bit sweeter, but both onions turn out well in this recipe.
- It doesn’t matter which brand or cut of green bean you choose to use, they all work well. So if you like whole or french cut green beans, feel free to use the ones you love the most.
- You can choose a thick or thin sliced bacon depending on how crunchy or chewy you want the bacon to be. Just keep in mind the flavor of the bacon, because each one will give a different end result.
Variations for Green Beans and Bacon
- Adding a dash of red pepper flakes
- Adding in minced garlic
- Using frozen (steamed) green beans
- Adding in a little balsamic vinegar
- Using bacon bits instead of bacon strips
What to Serve with Bacon Green Beans
- Smoked Beef Ribs
- Herb Crusted Beef Tenderloin
- Roast Beef Sandwiches
- Herb Crusted Chicken
- BBQ Baked Chicken
- Creamy Tuscan Chicken
- Oven Baked Teriyaki Chicken
Green Bean and Bacon Recipe FAQ
Canning green beans actually helps to preserve a lot more of the nutrients than you may think. Green beans are still full of fiber and of all of the canned vegetables, green beans are amongst the most healthy. A good nutrition tip is to check the back of the cans and select the brand with the lowest sodium level as some have a lot more than others.
While this canned green beans with bacon recipe could be made with fresh or frozen green beans, canned is just so much cheaper and easier to keep on hand. Canned green beans can sit in your pantry for years before going bad, making them the perfect addition to an emergency food stockpile.
Yes, you can prepare this recipe up to a day in advance and keep it stored in an airtight container in your fridge. I recommend not adding the crispy cooked bacon until just before serving so that it can stay crispy and not become soggy from the liquids in this dish.
Canned green beans on their own are already pretty tasty, but when you add in bacon and onions, you elevate it to an entirely new level of awesomeness. With just two strips of bacon and chopped onion, you can enjoy a crunchy, soft, savory, and slightly sweet dish that is incredible, cheap, and easy!
More Favorites from Longbourn Farm
Canned Green Beans with Bacon and Onion
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 strips bacon chopped
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease
- 1/3 cup onion chopped, yellow or purple
- 1 can green beans about 15 ounces
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan.
- Drain bacon grease, leaving 2 tablespoons in the pan.
- Add the onions, cook until translucent.
- Drain half of the liquid off of the canned green beans.
- Add the green beans and half the liquid into the pan with the onion.
- Cook until almost all the liquid is evaporated.
- Add bacon back into the pan. Stir to combine.
S. Thornburg says
The instructions should say in the beginning to REMOVE bacon and reserve the grease…I was going step by step with your instructions and did not remove the bacon. Now the bacon is no longer crisp…When you are in a hurry more accurate step by step instructions are definitely needed…Hopefully the results will still be ok. Wish I would had known ahead of time…Still will be good I’m sure…
Alli says
Thank you for pointing this out, I’ve updated the recipe card.
Carol says
Bacon green beans. Along with the chopped onion, saute 2 minced garlic cloves along with it; and a dash of red pepper flakes. Great side dish for Thanksgiving.
Alli says
Great additions!
Corrie W says
I am not a “green bean eater”, but I ate these. They are great. I used frozen (then steamed) green beans and it turned out fantastic! This recipe has become my Go-To Recipe! Thank you for posting it.
Alli says
So happy to hear that, Corrie! Thanks!
Lori says
Can I make this a day ahead?
Alli says
Yes! But add in the bacon right before serving so it doesn’t get soggy.
Janet says
I added balsamic vinegar and a little sugar. Turned out great!
Alli says
Yum! Thanks, Janet!
Anonymous says
Super short on ingredients and improvised with bacon bits, minced onion flakes, and heated it in the microwave with a little butter and water. Delicious!
Alli says
So glad you liked it!
Alli says
Love a good canned green bean recipe!