I have a bone to pick with America. Yes, you heard me right. It’s time we have justice for a classic Thanksgiving dish.
Recently, a survey for the service Instacart asked Amerians what were their favorite turkey-time foods. According to the survey, Cranberry sauce came in last and the second-to-last was green bean casserole. GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE. If you want to look more at the survey, here’s a link.
Anyway, let’s get back to the matter at hand. Green bean casserole is a good dish and people need to respect it. For people who don’t know, green bean casserole is green beans and cream of mushroom soup topped with fried onion. There’s no one way to make it but that’s the most common way. Some people add bacon to it too. With that in mind, I would like to show you why green bean casserole doesn’t deserve that absurd spot in the poll.
First, it’s got most of the food groups represented. There’s veggies, dairy, carbs and meat. It covers all the bases and a dynamic dish like that deserves to be thought of as superior.
Second, it’s inexpensive to make. Green beans cost next to nothing and if you buy them canned, it’s even less. Also, cream of mushroom soup is like $1 at most grocery stores. Boom, you have a dish that cost less than $5 to make and it’ll last you awhile.
Third, it takes zero skill to make. All you do is pour soup and green beans in a dish, mix them up and top it with fried onion. Then you stick it in the oven and it’s done. It’s so much easier than basting and thawing and cooking a whole gosh darn turkey.
Fourth, it has a complex taste. The salty soup with the sweet flavor of the green beans creates a savory flavor in your mouth. And savory things are better because they combine sweet and salt, and who doesn’t want the best of both worlds.
So, do you see why green bean casserole is undeserving of its second-to-last spot? It’s savory and simple, something that everyone wants in a Thanksgiving dish. I will die on this hill defending green bean casserole, no joke.
If you’re curious about green bean casserole, here’s the Campell’s official recipe.
Happy feasting collegiettes and happy Thanksgiving.