Tender Dutch Oven Green Beans with Smoky Bacon
I love making Dutch oven green beans! It was the only I was taught to make them down in Georgia. Green beans are seriously underrated. You can forget any boring notion about bland and uninteresting green beans when taking a mouthful of these Easy Southern Green Beans.
The South is well-known for its love of soul food, and that is evident not only in the well known comfort foods…but even in humble side dishes like a plate of green beans.
These green beans are combined with sauteed onions, garlic, and depending on your level of decadence ….crispy bacon bits!
Serve these easy Southern green beans with roast meats, grilled meat, casseroles, meatloaf, and so much more!
TIPS FOR MAKING EASY SOUTHERN DUTCH OVEN GREEN BEANS
- You can easily double the recipe if you are planning to feed a larger crowd. Just remember to increase the overall baking time to ensure that your dutch oven green beans are hot upon serving.
- If you opt for using fresh beans for this recipe, make sure that you boil them until they are tender-crisp and drain well.
- Did you make a big batch and have lots of leftovers? These dutch oven green beans can be used in other recipes such as green bean casserole, added to a favorite pot pie recipe…you could even add them into 12 beans soup!
- You can easily swap meats instead of bacon! You can use ham, smoked sausage, smocked ham hocks, and even smoked turkey wings. They'll add lots of amazing flavors!
WHICH IS BEST? CANNED, FRESH, OR FROZEN GREEN BEANS?
Honestly, the answer to this is purely personal preference although I always maintain that fresh produce produces a better taking dish every time! But y'all know me, and I love fresh green beans!
Canned green beans are super convenient, and so are frozen beans that you may already have in the freezer instead of having to make a trip to the store for its fresh counterpart. If you're using canned, you will be able to greatly reducing your cooking time to 20 minutes or less.
if you decided to frozen, then you will have the same cooking time as your fresh green beans. Frozen green beans are flash frozen, so their given a quick steam bath to blanche.
STORAGE AND FREEZER TIPS
Once cooked, any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Personally, they're not going to last that long, but there you have it. You'll have 4 fabulous days of freshness!
If you want to freeze the leftovers, you absolutely can! It'll last up to 2 months in the freezer in an airtight freezer safe container.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH DUTCH OVEN GREEN BEANS
Easy Southern green beans can be served as a side dish to so many main meals, whether that be grilled or roasted meats, meaty or vegan casseroles, stews, or meatloaf.
If you want, you can totally eat it by itself! However, I would be sure to make some kind of yummy cornbread to go along with it. Want to spice it up to balance the flavor of the cornbread? Splash some Cholula in it, or maybe a little extra creole seasoning! That flavor would balance out the cornbread!
It’s truly one of those recipes that you always want to have close on hand, especially around the busy holiday seasons or if you're looking to bring something to your next Wednesday Church supper social.
MORE DELICIOUS DUTCH OVEN RECIPES
Ingredients
Method
- 1. Heat a Dutch oven on medium high heat, and add bacon. Cook bacon until crispy.
- Drain the excess fat from the pot.
- Add the onions and garlic. Cook for 3-5 minutes, or until onions have been sweated.
- Add the chicken broth and deglaze Dutch oven. Scrape bottom of Dutch oven with a wooden spoon to release any bits stuck to bottom. I like to call them flavor bits
- Add in green beans, cajun seasoning, salt and pepper to taste.
- Reduce heat to Low. Cover and cook for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, or until the green beans are soft. Using my Dutch Oven, green beans were done in about an hour for me.
