While they take their own sweet thyme getting ready, the wonderful old-fashioned flavor of Southern Style Green Beans is worth the wait. Just put them on early and let them simmer slowly on the back of the stove. They are quite simple to put together and they go with almost everything.
Kitchen Confessions
After I got married and moved across the country Aunt Hen confessed, “When you were still at home I got so sick of green beans.” Of course there is no denying that it was my fault. Southern Style Green Beans are still one of my favorite vegetables. Growing up, I would eat them every night if Aunt Hen would cook them for me. More often than she probably should have, she did.
Cooking in my own kitchen I continued to eat a lot of green beans. When I first cooked for myself I was happy enough to eat them straight from a can and warmed slightly. In time I learned how much I like fresh green beans in salads or cooked crisp tender with a simple dressing. I discovered that frozen green beans are delicious steamed and seasoned with a dash of sesame oil or soy sauce. And yet it was a long time before I was able to recreate the down-home flavor of Aunt Hen’s green beans. For all my discoveries, the secret to her simple standard eluded me.
Simply a Matter of Time
In the end, what I think it comes down to is a matter of time. The ingredients are easy enough: green beans (canned or fresh), bacon grease and/or ham scraps, a little onion and ground pepper and maybe a spoonful of sugar. Then you cook them and cook them…. longer than I used to have the patience for, about 2 hours for canned green beans and up to four hours for fresh. Finally I learned to put them on early, before I start preparing anything else. Then I let them simmer slowly, on the back of the stove, while I work.
While these green beans cook for a long, long time, they are simple to prepare. Still, you should be warned: they are nothing special to look at. Southern Style Green Beans can be dressed up in a pretty bowl. They might be garnished with crumbled bacon bits. Even so, they will look plain. And yet they are well appreciated, in an understated way. As plates are filled everyone will take a serving and leftovers will be hard to come by.
In my family these Southern Style Green Beans can be found at almost every holiday meal: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, Easter, and Derby Day. While they may not be the star of the table their presence is both expected and enjoyed. They also remain one of my very favorite comfort foods. While they do take their time getting ready, the wonderful old-fashioned southern style flavor is worth it ….
and, believe me, they go with everything!
Southern Style Green Beans
Course: Sides, VegetablesCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy10
servings10
minutes2
hours2
hours10
minutesThey may not be the star of the show but green beans, cooked low and slow in down home seasonings, go well with everything.
Ingredients
4 15-ounce cans cut green beans
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 Tablespoon bacon grease
2 Tablespoons minced onion
1 Tablespoon ham scraps (if you have them)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)
Directions
- Mix together in a large pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to low.
- Slow-simmer uncovered, adding liquid if necessary, for two hours or until dinner is served.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe can also be used with 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of fresh green beans cleaned and cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces. Cover beans with water. Add other ingredients, and salt to taste, then cook slowly until very tender, approximately 4 hours.
- Recipe adapted from “We Make You Kindly Welcome: Recipes From the Trustee’s House Daily Fare” at the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Kentucky
Do you drain your canned green beans? How many strips of bacon should I use?
I always need details so I won’t ruin the recipe.
Hi Connie! No, I don’t drain the green beans. I pour the contents of 4 cans of green beans into the pot, add the other ingredients and simmer. As to the bacon, well, strips of bacon vary a great deal. Generally, 2 or 3 strips of bacon will render enough bacon grease for the recipe. If you don’t already have grease set aside from frying bacon, dice three strips of bacon, fry in a small skillet until crisp, then add the contents of the skillet to the beans. If you are adding the bacon along with the bacon grease you won’t need to add the ham scraps.
I hope that helps!
It is best if all the water is drained off of the canned beans. I use a crock pot to slow cook my green beans, and use some beef boulliom
N for seaoning as well as the ham hocks or bacon grease.
It's been a while since I stopped by your blog, but I'm having fun reviewing the comfort food
Southern style green beans have replaced green bean casserole at our family's Thanksgiving dinners. To "dress them up" I top them with homemade french fried onions. Mmmm!
Hi Dan. Sounds good to me! Thanks for stopping in and leaving a comment.
And thanks to the rest of you as well. Southern Style Green Beans have a special place in my heart and your comments are a wonderful affirmation of this favorite side dish.
(My first comment on your blog.)Wonderful! Nourishing to the eye and the heart. Will have to try this one. Since they "go with everything," I think I'll make them with your crab cake recipe!
Lisa, these green beans remind me of my childhood and going to my great Aunt Lilian's for dinner – which was really lunch, but her big meal of the day. She made the absolutely best green beans using a very similar method.
Oh what memories… many thanks.
Yum! I live about 20 minutes away from Shaker Town and you don't get much more authentic than this. When I don't have time for true Southern green beans, I use saute thinly sliced shallots in butter and olive oil, until they are almost done and then thrown in a can of drained beans, salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes or so.
Green beans are always my go too side… next to corn and potatoes of course.
ya gots ta have the bacon grease and ham hocks, or at least one or the other. people who've never had southern green beans have no idea what they're missing when they eat canned or frozen stuff.
And here all these years I have been making them Southern style without knowing it! After Brussels sprouts, my favorite vegetable dish is green beans cooked like this. They make a complete meal for me when my husband is out of town…just a humongous pot of these will do me for a night or two..maybe some cheese and bread on the side.
Love your blog.Noble Pig pointed you out to me.
Oh man, nothing like a good old bowl of southern style green beans!