Skip the tired green bean casserole this holiday season and serve these delicious bacon wrapped green bean bundles instead. Tender green beans are bathed in a sweet & savory marinade, wrapped up in strips of bacon, then roasted to perfection. Simple to make yet loaded with layers of flavor, they’re the perfect side dish to dress up any meal!

The holiday season means everything gets a little bit fancier including the side dishes- like sausage and apple stuffing or these boursin cheese whipped red potatoes.

And while most people think a holiday meal needs green beans, they also think that holiday green beans means green bean casserole.

While I love a good green bean casserole, it doesn’t do green beans justice when you could be enjoying these bacon wrapped green bean bundles instead.

Instead of cream of something soup and canned beans, this scrumptious holiday side dish uses fresh green beans and marinates them in a rich buttery sauce full of sweet and savory flavors.

Wrapped up with a crispy bacon finish these green bean bundles are a scrumptious and stunning must have for any special occasion!

Ingredients Needed

Despite the fancyish presentation this side dish only requires a handful of simple ingredients to come together.

To make them you’ll need:

Beans – Fresh green beans with the ends trimmed
Butter – I highly recommend opting to use real butter in this recipe. You can use salted or unsalted depending on your personal preference.
Sugar – Brown sugar
Seasonings – A blend of ground mustard powder, salt, and pepper
Worcestershire Sauce
Garlic – Minced garlic, either the jarred kind or freshly minced. Freshly minced garlic will yield the best flavor.
Bacon – Uncooked strips of thick cut bacon

Once you’ve gathered all your ingredients, you’re ready to whip those green beans into shape!

How To Make

Making these bacon wrapped green bean bundles requires a bit of patience, but they’re still easy and you can do a lot of the prep work ahead of time.

Plus your patience will be rewarded with a delicious side dish your holiday guests will devour!

Start by adding the green beans to a large pot, fill it with water, and then bring the beans to a boil and let them boil for 2-3 minutes.

Strain the beans and pat them dry, but be careful because they will be hot to the touch. Next transfer the green beans to a baking dish and spread them out in an even layer.

While the green beans are boiling you can begin making the marinade by adding the butter to a medium sized skillet set over medium low heat.

Once the butter’s melted stir in the sugar, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic. Continue stirring until the mixture’s evenly combined and smooth. Remove the skillet from heat and season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.

Pour the sauce evenly out over the green beans in the baking dish and give them a quick, but gentle, toss to make sure they are evenly coated in the marinade.

Cover the baking dish tightly with cling wrap and refrigerate for two hours, or up to overnight.

Separate the slices of bacon and cut them in half.

Now gather roughly 8 cold marinated green beans together in a bundle and wrap one half piece of bacon around them. Hold the bacon in place with a toothpick.

Then place the bacon wrapped green bean bundle on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray. Repeat until you’ve bundled all the green beans.

Bake them at 400F for 20 minutes. Flip each bundle over and continue baking them for another 15-20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven, let the beans cool slightly, then carefully remove the toothpicks from each bundle.

Since the bacon and beans are both still hot, I like to hold the bundle beans in place with a pair of tongs, and use my clean fingernails to gingerly pluck the tooth picks out.

Discard the toothpicks and use the tongs to transfer the green bean bundles to a serving dish or platter, then you’re ready to serve them and enjoy!

What Kind Of Green Beans Should I Use?

Fresh green beans are a must for this recipe to turn out. Using long slender green beans will yield the best results.

If you can find fresh ‘French cut’ green beans I recommend using them. They’re often found in the refrigerated section of the produce department with other prepackaged/bagged fresh vegetables.

While they’re usually easy to find at most grocers, if you can’t the traditional fresh green beans will work just fine. Try to choose longer slender ones when picking them out.

Storing

Completely cooled, leftover bacon green bean bundles can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

When you’re ready to enjoy them again, transfer them to a parchment paper lined baking tray and bake at 375 degrees until heated through.

Tips & Tricks

Fresh green beans are a must for this recipe to turn out. Using long slender green beans will yield the best results. If you can find fresh ‘French cut’ green beans I recommend using them. They’re often found in the refrigerated section of the produce department with other prepackaged/bagged fresh vegetables.
While completely optional, if you have the time I recommend blanching the beans as it will seal in their vibrant green color even when baked in the oven. To do this transfer and submerge the beans in an ice water bath immediately after boiling, then remove them once cooled and proceed with the rest of the recipe as written.
Be careful with the bundles when you remove the toothpicks since they will still be hot to the touch. Also try not to move them much afterwards as they may fall apart if jostled since only the crisped strip of bacon is holding them together.
For holiday preparations these can be marinaded and assembled up to a day beforehand, but wait to bake them until you’re ready to serve them.

Other Easy Holiday Side Dish Recipes

Dress up your side dish and give green beans a savory new spin this year. You want these bacon wrapped green bean bundles on your holiday menu.

They pair perfectly with both ham and turkey, and guests will rave over all the flavor packed into every bite!

Looking for other simple, but stunning side dish recipes to add to your holiday menu?

Try these:

If you’ve tried these BACON WRAPPED GREEN BEAN BUNDLES, or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!

Bacon Wrapped Green Bean Bundles

4.28 from 54 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Southern

Prep Time: 2 15

Cook Time: 30

Total Time: 2 45

Servings:

Calories: 114kcal

Author: Meaghan @ 4 Sons R Us

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans trimmed
6 tbsp butter
1 tbsp packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp minced garlic
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 lb thick cut bacon

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Add the green beans to a large pot. Fill the pot with water, and bring the beans to a boil. Let them boil for 2-3 minutes.
1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans
Transfer the beans to a strainer immediately to drain. Pat the beans dry. Transfer them to a 9x13" baking dish, and set is aside.
Add the butter to a medium sized skillet, and melt. Once the butter's melted stir in the sugar, mustard, Worcestershire, garlic, salt & pepper. Whisk the sauce together until evenly combined.
6 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp packed brown sugar, 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder, 1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 2 tsp minced garlic, salt & pepper
Pour the smooth sauce evenly out over the green beans in the baking dish. Seal the dish tightly with cling wrap, and refrigerate for at least two hours (or overnight) to let the beans marinate.
Remove the beans from the refrigerator. Separate the slices of bacon and cut each one in half.
Lightly grease a baking sheet with non stick cooking spray, in preparation for the green bean bundles.
Gather roughly 8 beans together in a bundle, and wrap a piece of bacon around the middle. Secure it with a toothpick. Repeat until all the beans have been wrapped & have been placed on the prepared pan.
1/2 lb thick cut bacon
Bake the green bean bundles at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Remove them from the oven, turn them over, and bake them for an additional 15-20 minutes.
Gently remove the toothpicks, without breaking the bacon bundle.
Serve the green bean bundles and enjoy!

Notes

Fresh green beans are a must for this recipe to turn out. Using long slender green beans will yield the best results. If you can find fresh 'French cut' green beans I recommend using them. They're often found in the refrigerated section of the produce department with other prepackaged/bagged fresh vegetables.
While completely optional, if you have the time I recommend blanching the beans as it will seal in their vibrant green color even when baked in the oven. To do this transfer and submerge the beans in an ice water bath immediately after boiling, then remove them once cooled and proceed with the rest of the recipe as written.
Be careful with the bundles when you remove the toothpicks since they will still be hot to the touch. Also try not to move them much afterwards as they may fall apart if jostled since only the crisped strip of bacon is holding them together.
For holiday preparations these can be marinaded and assembled up to a day beforehand, but wait to bake them until you're ready to serve them.