3-Ingredient Southern Granny Green Beans - A Thanksgiving Must Have

Duration: 13:34 1985 transcript words EN summary

Video summary

This video introduces a beloved Southern-style recipe for canned green beans that requires only three simple ingredients: green beans with their juice, oil, and sugar. The host explains that contrary to common advice suggesting the liquid should be drained, keeping the canning juice is essential because it retains all the nutrients and salt within the beans. The process involves cooking the beans in a pot until all the liquid evaporates completely, which takes approximately twenty to thirty minutes. This slow reduction is crucial as it allows the natural sugars in the beans to caramelize, transforming the dish from a simple side into a rich, savory treat that fills the home with an incredible aroma. A key point of discussion in the video is the use of sugar, which often surprises viewers given the vegetable nature of the dish. The host clarifies that this is not a sweet green bean recipe; instead, the sugar must be cooked down until it caramelizes and integrates fully into the beans. If the cooking process is shortened or if potatoes are added to the pot, the sugar will not caramelize properly and may make the potatoes taste overly sweet. Therefore, the recipe strictly calls for green beans alone to ensure the sugars concentrate and create a dark, grainy texture that mimics the look of beans preserved in a jar. The video also explores the choice between using bacon grease or olive oil as the second ingredient, offering a comparison of how each affects the final flavor. While bacon grease provides a traditional Southern taste with a distinct savory note, the host personally prefers olive oil for its deliciousness and health benefits, noting that it still delivers an authentic slow-cooked flavor without the heavy taste of animal fat. Viewers are encouraged to choose based on their own preferences, whether they are die-hard bacon lovers or those seeking a lighter option, but both methods result in fantastic green beans when executed correctly with patience. Ultimately, the recipe is presented as a game-changer for anyone looking to elevate canned green beans into a Thanksgiving must-have side dish that rivals homemade garden varieties. The host shares how many viewers have reported that this method has changed their perspective on canned vegetables entirely, allowing them to enjoy store-bought cans with a depth of flavor previously thought impossible. By following the specific steps of reducing the liquid completely and caramelizing the sugars, cooks can achieve a dark, nutty, and savory result that honors traditional Southern cooking techniques while offering a flexible option for modern kitchens.

Read the full video transcript

Hey y'all. I'm Tammy and this is Collarded Valley Cooks. Today I'm bringing you the most delicious southernstyle green beans that you can make at home in three ingredients that comes from a can. This video is one of our most popular recipes. It's had over millions of views and people have even made it and posted it as greeny green beans. Now, my original recipe used three cans of green beans. Now, if you're going to have a lot of Thanksgiving sides, I would just recommend you using the two large cans of green beans. Now, today I'm showing you how to make these for Thanksgiving. Um, each of these is equivalent to three cans. So, you use the juice and all. And I know a lot of y'all have been told, "Oh, you need to drain that juice off of these. It tastes like the can. You need to get the salt out of it or whatever you've been told." Uh, but I'm telling you, um, I've learned that this is the absolute best way to do it. It tastes amazing. All right, we're going to add these in. Remember, when you're cooking all of that juice down and these beans, every nutrient and vitamin that was in that juice is actually in the bean, as well as all the salt that was in the juice is in the bean, which is a good thing. You're not pouring out the nutrients when you drain them, cuz we don't drain them here. We're going to make one pot with olive oil and we're going to make the other pot with bacon grease. We're going to use the bacon grease and I'm going to let you know how they taste, the difference in the taste. So, this one is three cans. I've got my handy dandy little bacon keeper right here. Bacon grease keeper. It has a little filter on the top. And we are going to scoop out. An eighth cup. See if I can just pour it. And this is bacon grease that's going to go in these beans. So, if you don't want any kind of animal fat in yours, I'm telling you, the olive oil is delicious. And you can use regular cooking oil as well. Now, this is the bacon grease. So, the green beans are an ingredient, the oil is an ingredient, and last but not least. Now, the ingredient that makes you raise your eyebrows is the sugar. And I have so many people that say, "Sugar? You lost me at sugar." We are not making sweet green beans. These green beans are not going to taste like sugar if you cook them all the way down and caramelize it. Now, if you don't caramelize the sugar and you don't cook them all the way down, you're going to taste the sugar in the green beans. All right? But I'm telling you, if you go by the recipe and the method, you will be amazed. And now you're going to put the tablespoon of sugar. And make sure it's level. Don't let it be heaping. There's the third ingredient. A lot of people are like, "Where's the third ingredient?" And they don't count the beans. Now, a lot of you ask about putting potatoes in these green beans. I'm going to go ahead and tell you no. And that is because there's sugar in there and the sugar gets absorbed into the potatoes and that is sugar that doesn't caramelize. So it makes your potatoes taste sweet. I do not like potatoes cooked with this style of cooking green beans. All right? Do not cook your potatoes in this pot. I did it one time before and I was so disappointed. So, just remember that all of that sugar has to get caramelized, and it can't do that if you've got potatoes in there because they're going to absorb it. The way I wrote this recipe, it's super simple. If you're using one can of green beans, you're going to use the can of green beans, juice and all, a teaspoon of sugar, and a tablespoon of oil. If you get a can like this, this one is 28 o. It's equivalent to two of these cans almost. You're going to use two teaspoon of sugar and 2 tablespoon of oil. If you use three cans or one of these, then you're going to use the tablespoon of sugar and an 1/8 cup of oil. All right, I'm going to place both of these on my stove. and you cook them on high. Leave your comments below if you've made my green beans. I am just going to kind of stir them up just a little bit. That's got bacon grease on it. I don't want to combine it with my other one cuz I want to compare the taste. And this one is the olive oil. This is my original recipe. This is what a lot of people are doing online and calling it granny green beans and they're using the bacon grease. So, I really wanted to try it. Put a lid on it and let it come to a boil. And then once it starts boiling, we'll take the lids off and the magic will start to begin. So, when they come to a boil, you're just going to take the lid off of them, and you're going to cook them all the way down to where there's absolutely no liquid in this pot. The house is really starting to smell good. You'd be surprised at just what making Granny Green beans can make your house smell so good, so I am getting hungry as it cooks. But remember, be patient and let it boil all the way down. It's going to take at least 20 to 30 minutes to cook these beans all the way down. That's what people don't like to wait on is the cook time, but trust me, it's worth it. You can still see some juice. So, you've got to wait until that's completely gone. This liquid has to completely uh leave the pot through evaporation and that way it can begin the caramelization process of the sugars and the oil. Um, and that is a absolute must. You can't skip it and you can't cut this short. If you serve these green beans right now, they're not going to taste like my granny green beans. We haven't even got to the step that's the most important yet. All right. Once they cook all the way down, you're going to see that when you pull them back, there's absolutely nothing in the bottom, but just a few drops. Okay. They're going to start to sizzle. This one back here's still got more liquid in it. It's not quite as far along as the one in the front, but the concept the same. So, I'm going to show you what you do. You're going to let that sizzle for two to three minutes. uh and stand by it and stir it and don't let them burn on the bottom. All right, this is the most important part. Don't walk away. Don't answer the text. Don't check the mail. As the last of the water evaporate, you'll hear this sound from a gentle bubbling to an aggressive sizzle and crackle. And that's your cue. that the sound of caramelization. Really, what happens is that the beans are now uh they're not boiling any longer. They're really frying in the oil and the concentrated sugar. And you'll see that brown glaze um what chefs call fond forming on the bottom and sides of the pot. And then you'll smell an incredible nutty, savory aroma. That's the smell of success. So, you're going to grab your pot with a pot holder and you're going to mix these beans up. You're going to go around the edges of this non-stick pot. And all the caramelization that has splattered onto the sides of the pot will now be in the beans. And there you have grainy green beans. They're nice. They're dark. You just smash them up a little bit to make them look like granny's coming out of a canning jar. And I'm telling you, they're delicious. I'm going to scoop out and just see exactly how many servings I think this is. I have so many people that say, "Your green beans have changed my life. I will never can any more green beans out of the garden when I can make these canned green beans from the store taste this good." All right, here's the fun part. Trying these green beans. And I am super excited to try them with the bacon grease as well. I believe that's how Cooking with Marshall did his. These are the olive oil, my original recipe, green bean. We're gonna put it next to it because who knows what a difference it's going to make. We're going to see. And that's the bacon grease green bean. And remember, they're both three ingredients. Green beans, the oil, and the sugar is it. >> All right, y'all. I'm trying these. Tammy never makes them with bacon grease and I tried them and to me if you grew up with bacon grease in them I mean both of them are really really really good. Um but bacon grease gives it a little more sour flavor. And this tastes like my mama longs green beans that she always she always had canned green beans that she put put up in a jar from her garden when she made hers. So I don't taste the bacon grease as much as Tammy does. To me it just tastes like, you know, and there's not a whole bunch of bacon grease in there. So yeah, either way, they're fantastic. >> It's good. I can taste the bacon grease. I can if you like the taste of bacon grease, you can use that recipe, but my personal preference is the olive oil and that's just how I am. Um, I'm not a big fan of bacon grease in a lot of things. Now, I know a lot of you are and a lot of you probably think you can't be a southern cook if you don't use bacon grease. I use it but sparingly. So, at my age and some of you that's older than me. If you can get a delicious slowcooked southern green bean flavor with olive oil instead of using bacon grease, why not do it? Because it's better for you. You do it either way. If you're a bacon grease lover, absolutely use the bacon grease. I wouldn't put any more in it than what I call for. And I prefer the olive oil. I just think it makes the bean taste so good. But you can decide what you want to use. I hope you've enjoyed seeing the history behind these grainy green beans. I hope you've enjoyed seeing my original cookbook in 2017 with the recipe and now the new master cookbook in 2025 will have it in there as well. If you have a favorite way of making your green beans taste delicious and you've never tried my greeny green beans, I urge you just to use three cans of green beans and do it this way and give it a try and see what you think. Um, you might be pleasantly surprised and it may be a game changer for you like it has been so like it's been for so many other people that watch this and make this recipe at home. We thank you so much for watching Colored Valley Cooks where we cook like our mamas did. Y'all come back and see us and leave your comments below if you made my green beans.