‘The Pioneer Woman’ Ree Drummond Put a New Twist on Her Grandmother’s Green Beans
If you’re in the mood for green beans, The Pioneer Woman has just the recipe for you. Ree Drummond made green beans just like her grandmother used to prepare them. Here’s how to make her grandmother’s green beans.
Ree Drummond’s green bean recipe
During her latest cooking demonstration, Drummond showed home cooks how to prepare green beans with an added pop of flavor. “These are just like my grandma would have made, maybe with a little bit of a twist,” says Drummond on The Pioneer Woman show.
Drummond starts her green bean recipe by frying bacon. Once the bacon is fried, Drummond pours off all the grease except for about one or two tablespoons. Next, she turns up the heat and adds thinly sliced red onions. Then she adds fresh, diced jalapeños for a new twist on her grandmother’s recipe. Drummond says this ingredient isn’t typically added to green beans, but she wanted to give the dish a unique flavor. “I’m always innovating here in the Drummond Ranch kitchen,” joked The Pioneer Woman star.
Next, Drummond adds garlic powder. She says she doesn’t remember her grandmother ever using fresh garlic. “Everything was garlic powder back in those days,” she says. For the next step, Drummond adds a cup of beef broth or beef stock along with “plenty of salt and pepper.” She says you can also use chicken stock or vegetable stock for this recipe.
Drummond then places green beans in a pan. She says she purchased them already trimmed. She tosses the green beans so that they get coated with the onion and jalapeño mixture. Then she turns the heat down to the low setting and puts the lid on the pan. She advises home cooks to lift the lid slightly on the side so that some of the heat can escape. Drummond cooks the green beans for 10 to 12 minutes “until they’re tender but still have a little bite to them.”
Putting the finishing touches on grandma’s green beans
Next, Drummond slices the cooked bacon and sprinkles the pieces on top of the green beans. She says you can cut the bacon into fine pieces, or you can cut larger pieces. She then adds French fried onions, which she refers to as “a wonderful retro ingredient from another time and place.” Drummond says the green beans are the “savory part of the meal.” You can find the complete ingredients list and directions here.
Ree Drummond’s green bean casserole
If you prefer a casserole, Drummond also has a delicious recipe for green bean casserole. She refers to this dish as “a classic comfort food” that’s perfect for a potluck. “I see it at pretty much every potluck we ever have at our church,” says Drummond during her cooking show.
Drummond starts by melting butter in a pan with a quarter cup of flour. She whisks the ingredients, making a roux as the base for the sauce. Next, she mixes 2 ½ cups of whole milk with roughly ½ cup of half and half. She pours the milk and whisks it as she pours. You can find the complete ingredients list and directions here.
RELATED: ‘The Pioneer Woman’: The Real Reason Ree Drummond Makes Simple Meals
Follow Sheiresa Ngo on Twitter.
