Love the barbecue restaurant style soft meaty green beans? Try my recipe for Southern Green Beans–made with bacon and onions and done in less than 30 minutes time. This classic southern side dish will become a new family favorite.
At a young age, I enjoyed vegetables. But my favorite vegetable growing up was green beans, and even better if we happened to be at a restaurant that served the southern style green beans. You know the green beans that are soft and full of bacon and onion flavor. They’ve been cooking for hours and fall apart in your mouth. To me, there is nothing better than those coveted green beans. I know–some might call me crazy. Especially being such a “foodie” but sometimes we have to go back to the basics!
Please take note, that at that time, I had never went to a Southern restaurant. My parents have never enjoyed eating southern food, and frankly, I grew up in the North as did my parents.
Years ago, when my son was a toddler. We went to Southern restaurant that served both barbecue like ribs, smoked turkey breast, and my favorite shrimp and grits. Of course as soon as I saw that they had Southern Green Beans on the menu I had to order them. Any time my son was with us I always put vegetables on his plate. I honestly never expected him to eat them because he was a meat and potato boy. To my surprise, he devoured the green beans. Great taste-buds think alike. So in my attempt to get my son to eat more vegetables I started to recipe test and recreate the Barbecue Style Green Beans you get at the barbecue restaurants.
Just as I suspected, he devoured these green beans making me one happy mama. So whenever we are eating barbecue and I have the hankering for those soft flavorful green beans, I find myself making southern style green beans. Six years later and he is still eating these green beans!
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Why this Recipe Works
Delicious Flavors – Southern-style green beans are known for their rich and savory flavor. They are typically slow-cooked with ingredients like bacon, onions, and seasonings, which infuse the beans with a deep, smoky taste. The combination of these ingredients creates a dish that is both hearty and satisfying, making it a popular choice for comfort food lovers.
Nutritional Value – Green beans are packed with essential vitamins and minerals, making them a nutritious addition to your meal. They are a good source of dietary fiber, which aids in digestion and helps maintain a healthy digestive system. Green beans also provide essential nutrients such as vitamin C, vitamin K, and folate, which contribute to overall health and well-being.
Versatility – Southern-style green beans are incredibly versatile and can be enjoyed in various ways. They make a fantastic side dish for a traditional Southern meal, complementing dishes like fried chicken, cornbread, or mashed potatoes. You can also serve them as a standalone vegetable dish or incorporate them into other recipes such as casseroles or stews. Their versatility allows you to experiment and get creative with different flavors and preparations.
Ingredients
- String beans – I like to use traditional string beans also known as green beans for this recipe. Some prefer Romano beans which are an Italian flat bean that is also in the same family.
- Bacon – I first developed this recipe just using bacon fat; however, I have found that true southern green beans have some form of meat in them. So I like to cook a few strips of bacon in the same pot I plan to boil the green beans in.
- Onion – For this recipe I love to use dried minced onions. This means I have very little prep to do.
- Liquid Smoke – This is my secret ingredient for this recipe. A little liquid smoke goes a long way.
How to cook fresh green beans Southern style
Place the diced bacon in a large sauce pot. Saute for 5 minutes until bacon fat starts to render and bacon crisps.
While bacon is cooking, trim and rinse green beans.
Place green beans in with the bacon and bacon fat. Fill with 3 cups of water. Add the salt, dried minced onions, and bacon fat to the pot. Place a lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Then, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes until soft. Divide evenly among plates and enjoy immediately.
FAQs
Here are all the frequently asked questions readers have asked when making this recipe.
My recipe feeds about 4-5 adults depending on how many other side dishes are made with the green beans. You can easily double or triple this recipe.
To make fresh green beans soft you just need to boil them for at least 20 minutes. This will soften them to be fork-tender similar consistency to canned green beans.
The easiest way to add flavor to green beans is by adding a spice like onion powder, minced onion flakes, garlic powder, seasoning salt or even chili powder. However, you should not add all of these seasonings in one pot, but they are all suggestions. I also love to add either bacon that I’ll crisp up in the pot prior to cooking or bacon fat. Another great option is adding diced ham to the pot of green beans. Depending on the flavors of the ham the green beans will take on additional flavor from the ham.
Tips & Tricks
Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks I’ve learned when making this recipe.
- Bacon Fat – If you don’t have bacon on hand, but happen to have bacon fat in your refrigerator. You can use 1 tablespoon of bacon fat in place of the strips of bacon.
- Meat – If you have ham on hand you can dice the ham and add that to the green beans instead of the fresh bacon.
- Lower Sodium – If you are trying to lower your sodium and/or don’t like salty food I suggest you only using 1 teaspoon of kosher salt at first, then taste and add additional if needed.
- Double – Love this recipe so much or maybe trying to feed a crowd? You can easily double the ingredients in this recipe to make more. Trust me–always make more of these barbecue green beans. They are so good!
- Canned Green Beans – If you choose to make these with canned green beans I suggest using a lower-sodium green bean and omitting all salt.
Best BBQ Side Dishes
If you are looking for more barbecue side dishes I have listed a few below. Of course, I love to serve these barbecue style green beans with loaded mashed potatoes and Grilled Barbecue Turkey Breast.
If you make this Southern Green Beans recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!
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Southern Green Beans Recipe
Equipment
- Stove Top
Ingredients
- 2 Bacon Slices diced
- 1 pound fresh green beans trimmed
- 3 cups water
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
- 1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke
Instructions
- Place the diced bacon in a large sauce pot. Saute for 5 minutes until bacon fat starts to render and bacon crisps.
- While bacon is cooking, trim and rinse green beans.
- Place green beans in with the bacon and bacon fat. Fill with 3 cups of water.
- Add the salt, dried minced onions, and bacon fat to the pot. Place a lid on the pot and bring to a boil. Then, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes until soft. Once the green beans are almost done mix in the liquid smoke.
- Divide evenly among plates and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Bacon Fat – If you don’t have bacon on hand, but happen to have bacon fat in your refrigerator. You can use 1 tablespoon of bacon fat in place of the strips of bacon.
- Lower Sodium – If you are trying to lower your sodium and/or don’t like salty food I suggest you only using 1 teaspoon of kosher salt at first, then taste and add additional if needed.
- Double – Love this recipe so much or maybe trying to feed a crowd? You can easily double the ingredients in this recipe to make more. Trust me–always make more of these barbecue green beans. They are so good!
- Canned Green Beans – If you choose to make these with canned green beans I suggest using a lower-sodium green bean and omitting all salt.
Jon Bindoon
These were delicious. Question, after 20min there was still a couple of cups of water left, do you strain this out? Doesn’t that take a lot of the bacon fat, onions, and salt with it?
Katie
Hi Jon, Glad you liked these. I always leave the liquid in with the green beans and just use a spoon with slotted holes to strain the green beans out while I scoop on to plates!
Vanessa
When are you adding the liquid smoke? So sorry if I missed that secret ingredient in the instructions.
Katie
Hi Vanessa, I apologize for the delayed response. I must have missed writing that in the recipe card. I just updated it. I like to add the liquid smoke in right at the end. You can add it while the green beans boil. I haven’t seen a difference either way.