Green Bean Casserole--substitute for mushrooms or leave out?

Question

Hi all!

In memory of Dorcas Reilly, I'm bringing this green bean casserole to a Thanksgiving dinner. However, my sister doesn't like mushrooms. I was just going to leave them out (and add some extra green beans) but I was wondering if the Home Cooking 'Hounds have another idea. Is there a substitute or can I just skip them? TIA

Answer

When my kids were mushroom haters, I chopped them up very finely. After cooking down, they just blend into the sauce. This works for people with texture issues. If she doesn't like the taste, then I think she should eat a side that she does like instead of you omitting the mushrooms, because they add a lot of flavor. It's hard to please everyone, all the time.
Alton Brown's recipe is the favorite I've tried, so far. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/best-ever-green-bean-casserole-recipe-1950575

Answer

Maybe make a side batch mushroom-less for your sister? The mushrooms are key to flavoring the casserole and the cream-of-mushroom white sauce that is on it. If she objects to texture rather than flavor you might puree the mushooms in the sauce. 

If she objects to mushroom flavor but is OK with the texture, maybe experiment using canned artichoke bottoms, sliced/chopped as a substitute. 

A whole different direction for both flavor and texture would be using sliced waterchestnuts, which add a celery-like flavor and crunch.

Answer

I’d make half (or less) without. I think it’s more flavor than texture, so you could try deeply caramelized onions instead, but it’s just easier to skip mushrooms for a portion.

Answer

Geen Bean Casserole is green beans, mushroom soup, and french-fried onions. Unless you are cooking just for your sister, why would you deprive everyone else at the dinner? If one person doesn't like a dish served to a group, he or she has the option of letting it pass. However if you are cooking just for your sister, maybe you could substitute Cream of Chicken soup for the mushroom soup.

Answer

You could leave out the mushrooms. Or the sister.

Answer

Bless your heart. I detest mushrooms, but I love the casserole, so when it is served, I try to (very discreetly) eat around them. No one ever offered to leave them out.

Answer

i've never made this casserole before. why the need to cook the green beans partially before the oven? wont the time in the oven be sufficient to cook the beans? just asking because i dont know.

Answer

I think I had this version one Thanksgiving. She used a slow cooker and Velveeta. It's basically green bean cheese dip, and not bad at all if you don't have a problem with Velveeta.

https://loveoffamilyandhome.net/2013/11/green-bean-casserole-recipe.html

Answer

I have a mushroom hating family member- she likes the flavor but not the actual mushrooms texture. So i make sure the mushroom chunks are large enough she just picks them out easily. Ha! 
The mushrooms are an important flavor in green bean casserole, so for sister i think it would be easiest to just make a small ramiken of mushroom free portion, since the overall dish really just isn’t the same without the mushroom flavor for the rest of the guests.

Answer

Thanks for the comments and suggestions. I'm going to make the recipe as is and she'll help with another side dish. FYI, I've only ever made this once before, about (yikes!) 18-20 YEARS ago, when a few of my fellow grad students did a Friendsgiving (before the term "friendsgiving" became a thing). Used the canned soup that time, but will make the bechamel from scratch this time.

Answer

Wow, I had no idea that people who don't like mushrooms (or are- God forbid- allergic to any of the casserole ingredients) aren't allowed to have green bean casserole. I came here hoping that somebody had actual suggestions other than "tell her to eat something else." I'll be leaving mushrooms out of my from-scratch casserole (no cream-of-whatever soup here). It may be more liquidy, but that's okay. I did like the suggestion to use artichoke hearts, so maybe I'll try that. Good luck with your casserole, nofunlatte!

Answer

I'm making that exact recipe. It's just two of us (mushroom-loving-me and my teenage mushroom-hating son) and I'm planning to use large pieces of mushroom so it'll be easy for him to pick them out. I'm also planning to double the fried onion topping, since he loves those (and who am I kidding, so do I). I don't think my son even knows what mushrooms taste like, so I'm not concerned w/ the flavor so much as him being able to easily extract the mushrooms from the dish.

Answer

UPDATE: So, I'm actually going to make the classic processed foods bomb. Yesterday in class (I'm a college professor), I asked my students what dishes they were most looking forward to eating and Green Bean Casserole came up. I mentioned that I was making this but from scratch with real fresh beans. The looks on their faces we're more horrified than than mine after grading their latest exam (seriously, the lowest possible B as the highest grade? A mean of D+?) So, in true homage to Dorcas Reilly, I am using canned beans, Campbell's cream of mushroom soup, and French's crunchy Onion. I do thank everyone for chiming in! Love the Home Cooking 'hounds!

Answer

The post-mortem: I made this the "traditional" way with canned green beans, canned cream-of-mushroom soup, and canned fried onions, plus a half-cup of milk (oddly, local cream-top organic!). In a word, this was revolting. Everyone ate some, no doubt out of kindness, except my Dad who loved it.

One positive thing--When I told my mom the recipe (Mom, you just basically open up four cans, add some milk and pepper, mix it up, and bake for half an hour), the quick-and-easy bells were going off in her head. I think she plans to add some cut up hot dogs to it and call it dinner!

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Green Bean Casserole--substitute for mushrooms or leave out?

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