Instant Pot Cheesy Green Bean Casserole

Instant Pot Green bean casserole is a delicious and easy dish for any occasion. Quick to put together this is creamy, crunchy with fried onions, and cheddar cheese just like Grandma used to make!

Where did green bean casserole come from?

According to the Smithsonian Dorcas Reilly came up with this iconic dish in 1955. She was working at the Campbell's test kitchen in Camden, New Jersey. She was tasked with making a simple dish with ingredients any home cook would have available. The two required ingredients were Campbell's cream of mushroom soup and green beans.

At the time post-war America was definitely in the mood for easy, cheap, and quick meals. Convenience cooking and a love of new kitchen gadgets to make life easy were all the rage.

A whopping 40% of Campbell's cream of mushroom sales are generated from the green bean casserole that Dorcas created. No wonder the recipe is printed all over the cans! I hope you enjoy my simple version of this classic holiday side dish.

Prepping the canned vegetables

Drain the green beans, and mushrooms then add to the Instant Pot. You can make this in either a 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo or an Instant Pot Mini Duo 3-Quart. Add the chicken broth plus the salt and pepper to taste then stir it all together.

I like to use Better than Bouillon for this step, but I am in no way being compensated by them for this post. Salt and pepper to taste then seal the lid on the Instant Pot and cook on high (normal) pressure for 4 minutes. Follow with a quick release. Once done drain off the chicken broth or strain.

Prepping the green bean mixture

Once you have the drained vegetables back in the Instant Pot, put your oven on broil to preheat. Turn the pot on to saute mode. Add the butter to melt.

Once melted add back the green beans and mushrooms. Add the cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, shredded cheese, French fried onions, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Any sharp or mild cheddar or Colby Jack will be delicious for this recipe. If you have time, fresh shredded cheese off the block is always a delight and will give a nice lift to the dish.

Set the Instant Pot to saute, and stir the ingredients gently to combine well until the cheese is melted. Pour into a greased medium sized casserole baking dish. Top with remaining cheese and fried onions.

Finishing the casserole

To finish, just put the green bean casserole into the oven then broil for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the fried onions are golden brown.

Serve immediately, or eat the yummy leftovers if you have them for up to one week after preparing.

Tips to make it special

• Use fresh sauteed mushrooms instead of canned.
• Add a little diced sauteed onion to the mix to amp up that onion flavor.
• To change the ratio of soup to green beans you can just double the amount of canned beans used.
• To get more of the taste of the original recipe add in a teaspoon of soy sauce and a ¼ teaspoon of celery salt.

If you enjoyed this you may also like to learn how to make a pumpkin pie, my Perfect Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, and Instant Pot Apple Cider Brined Turkey for a complete holiday meal!

Recipe