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These lemony green beans and mushrooms make an easy vegetable side dish that you can enjoy for holidays or busy weeknights alike. It’s so flavorful with tender green beans and savory mushrooms tossed in a bright and buttery white-wine lemon sauce. This simple recipe brings fresh flavor to your table!
Delicious Details
- Cuisine Inspiration: American
- Primary Cooking Method: Stovetop
- Dietary Info: Gluten-free, Dairy-free option
- Skill Level: Easy
Flavorful Lemon Green Beans and Mushrooms
Green beans and mushrooms is such a versatile side dish, festive enough for a holiday or a special meal along with balsamic roast chicken, yet quick enough to make on a weeknight with fast mains like strawberry balsamic salmon or almond crusted chicken. This recipe is based on one of my family’s traditional Christmas Eve side dishes, but these days, I’m known to throw it together on a random Tuesday.
The key to getting the best texture when cooking green beans—meaning crisp and slightly firm beans that are never soggy—is to lightly steam the beans and then cook them on the stove. This simple extra step enhances their flavor and offsets the tender mushrooms beautifully. A tangy lemon-wine sauce is the perfect finishing touch. We love this dish!
- Versatile. Green beans and mushrooms go so well with so many dishes! Serve a piping hot bowl with a cozy seafood dish like gluten free salmon Wellington or add them to the table when you serve Thanksgiving herb roast turkey.
- Did I mention quick? You need 20 minutes or less to make these beans!
- Adapt for the seasons. Use the recipe as your guideline and adjust it to the occasion. For example, throw in some dried cranberries at Thanksgiving, or add pomegranate seeds for a pop of color at Christmas.
What You’ll Need
Here’s the list of what you’ll need to make this green bean dish! Don’t forget to scroll to the recipe card at the end of this post for the full ingredient amounts.
- Green Beans: Make sure to choose fresh, firm green beans (skip limp beans and avoid any with brown spots).
- Butter: I use unsalted butter but salted butter is OK, too, though you may to adjust the added salt. To make dairy-free, substitute non-dairy butter or use olive oil.
- Onion: You can use a yellow or red onion depending on what you prefer.
- Thyme: Use either fresh or dried thyme.
- Mushrooms: White or cremini mushrooms work great.
- White Wine: Dry white wine adds extra flavor to the green beans. If you don’t drink wine, try chicken broth or vegetable broth.
- Lemon: You’ll need the juice of 1 fresh lemon. If you don’t have a lemon, you may use 1/4 cup of bottled lemon juice.
- Salt and Pepper
How to Make Green Beans and Mushrooms
I like my onions and mushrooms to be nice and soft so that they make a nice contrast to the more crisp green beans. Here’s an overview of how you’ll do it, and I’ve included the full instructions in the recipe card lower down.
- Prep the green beans. Steam the green beans for about 5 minutes.
- Saute the onion. Cook the onion and thyme in melted butter until softened.
- Saute the mushrooms. Now add the mushrooms to the pan and saute until soft.
- Add wine. Pour in the wine and lemon juice and reduce the sauce for about 5 minutes.
- Add beans. Stir in the green beans and cook a little longer until hot.
- Season. Add more salt and pepper to taste and serve hot!
Tips and Variation Ideas
- Steam, then sautee. As noted, that little extra step to steam the green beans makes all the difference. Steam the beans until they are slightly underdone; check them at 4 minutes and remove them from the steamer basket if they seem like they are getting too soft.
- Other mushroom varieties. White button mushrooms or cremini mushrooms are easy choices, but you could also try sliced shiitake or baby portobello mushrooms.
- Add lemon zest. Up the lemon flavor by zesting the lemon you will use for lemon juice into the pan.
- Keep it vegetarian. If you don’t drink white wine and are a vegetarian, substitute the wine for vegetable broth to add extra flavor.
- Orange instead of lemon. Swap orange juice (freshly squeezed if possible) for the lemon juice for a little note of sweetness. Or make cranberry orange glazed green beans!
How to Store and Reheat
- Fridge – Transfer cooled mushrooms and green beans to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To Reheat – Drizzle a little olive oil in a skillet, then add the green beans and rewarm them over medium-low heat until they are warmed through.
Make It a Meal
- Holiday sides. Mushrooms and greens are perfect on the holiday table! Pair them with other easy festive sides like instant pot mashed potatoes, gluten-free cornbread, orange cranberry sauce, roasted butternut squash, and more.
- Meat mains. Comfort-food main dishes were made to go with a side of green vegetables! We love them with slow cooker pot roast, roasted vegetable balsamic meatloaf, balsamic marinated flank steak, and apple pork chops.
- Alongside casseroles. Green beans make a nice vegetable side to richer casseroles like a tuna noodle casserole, chicken stuffing casserole, or cheesy chicken and rice casserole.
More Easy Veggie Sides
Lemon Green Beans and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 1 pound green beans, washed and ends snapped off
- ¼ cup unsalted butter (half a stick)
- 1 small onion or half of a medium onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme or 1¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
- ½ cup dry white wine or chicken broth
- Juice of one lemon (about ¼ cup)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place a steamer basket in a pot and add about an inch of water. Place the 1 pound green beans, in the basket and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Steam the green beans until they are just slightly underdone, about 4-6 minutes, as per your preference. Set aside and allow some of the excess moisture to evaporate.
- In a large saute pan, melt the ¼ cup unsalted butter over medium heat, add the 1 small onion or half of a medium onion, and 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, and cook for about 5 minutes, or until soft and translucent.
- Add the 8 oz. mushrooms, and saute until the mushrooms are soft, about another 5 minutes.
- Pour in the ½ cup dry white wine and Juice of one lemon, allow to reduce for 3-5 minutes, and then add the green beans, and stir to coat, cooking until the green beans are heated through and reach your desired tenderness.
- Season with Salt and pepper,to taste and serve. Garnish with lemon zest, if desired.
Did you make this?
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Looks awesome, and so easy.I was instantly drawn to the food, I am not sure what that says about me. The green been with white wine is a great combo..thanks for the info. Such an interesting flavor.
I always add lemon to my green beans and next time I’m going to follow suite with you and add a touch of white wine. Yum!
It does add a nice little flavor punch!
Love the lemon and wine combo. This would be a perfect side dish for any meal!
Simple and light…a perfect side dish!
Thanks Amy!
These beans look absolutely delicious!!
Thanks Conni!
What a wonderful way to make the green beans dish. I make something similar, but next time I’m using some wine as you suggest!!
Just a little wine adds so much!
Love the simple elegance of this!
Exactly! Thanks!
I use lemon with white wine often so I’ll bet the moscato gives this an extra flavor kick, Brianne!
Lemon and white wine are great together, and the Moscato was surprisingly good in a savory dish!
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Wine sounds like the perfect addition to these green beans and mushrooms…I’d love this dish at my table anyday.
Wine is kinda perfect when added to many thing 😉
I want to make this…perfect side: simple, but very elegant! My mother is a very basic eater, so in my house? It was green beans seasoned with garlic salt…my Mom wouldn’t have even added mushrooms to the mix. My sister and I are still trying to figure out where our foodie souls came from :lol:!
I know! Maybe it is our version of rebellion? 😉
What a fabulous side dish for the Holidays! I am so glad you are part of the #SundaySupper Family. Enjoy those little cuties this Holiday Season.
Thanks Isabel! Have a wonderful holiday with your family!
I’m always looking for tasty new ways to serve up veggies while still being healthy too. This is perfect!
I know! Sometimes veggies are only changed up by adding cheese or cream. I like being able to add flavor and keep them light!
I’m always looking for new ways to cook green beans this is a great new dish for me to try!
And so simple, too!
Yum! I’m always looking for vegetable sid dishes and mushrooms and beans are two of my favorites!
Me too!!
Perfect green bean dish! I love the addition of mushrooms and wine…I think everyone at our table we eat this vege!
Definitely an easy and tasty way to dress up beans.
I love the addition of wine to such an easy side dish. We eat sauteed green beans a lot, nice to know how to fancy them up 🙂
We eat a lot of simply prepared veggies too, so sometimes it is nice to add a little something more.
What a delicious, elegant side dish! I can see this going with any holiday meal…beautiful!!!
Sometimes the simplest dishes are the most delicious and elegant.
Green beans are my absolute favorite bean. I will eat them any way and I can’t wait to try your recipe along with the alternate of using red wine for when serving with steak.
I kind of wish this roads weren’t so icy so I could pick up some beans to make the red wine version with the steak we are having tonight.
This sounds like the perfect side any time of year 🙂
Yes, it can definitely work anytime of year!