I’m just going to say it, we are in love with these Instant Pot caramelized bacon green beans. We are not, however, fans of the typical green bean casserole that’s served during the holiday meals. Don’t hate me! The thing is, usually the green bean casserole is made with cream of mushroom stuff that gives both my hubby and I shivers of digust. The only part I like to eat is the unhealthy fried crunchy onions on top and those don’t exactly count as eating vegetables.

We do love to have at least one side of vegetables with our holiday meal and simple steamed green beans seasoned with salt and pepper, was the usual choice. Then bacon entered the green bean scene. Using the Instant Pot, we were able to make these fresh green beans into an easy instant pot carmelized bacon green beans masterpiece.

Make this for your next holiday meal, especially if you’re in charge of bringing a side, and you’ll have raving fans. But why keep it to the holidays? Make it anytime you get the craving.

WHAT MAKES INSTANT POT CARAMELIZED BACON GREEN BEANS SO ADDICTING

Fresh green beans means best tasting fresh flavor, more nutrients and excellent tender texture when you bite into them.
Salty crisp bacon flavors the beans and pairs so well with the sweet sauce
Coconut aminos are the healthy soy/gluten free replacement of soy sauce and provide a sweet sauce. However, you can use soy sauce instead of coconut aminos.
Coconut sugar matches the flavor of coconut aminos yet doesn’t make the dish taste like coconut at all. Just sweet and salty, the perfect combo without refined sugar. You can substitute brown sugar if you need to.
Onions and garlic provide depth and flavor that also brings delightful aromatics to the instant pot caramelized bacon green beans.

WHY THE INSTANT POT MAKES BACON GREEN BEANS EASY TO MAKE

This entire recipe can be made using just the Instant Pot
No need to watch a boiling pot of green beans on the stove
No straining/draining of hot liquid from the pot required
Perfectly steamed green beans that are bite tender but not mushy
Frees up your hands so you can make the other holiday food
Utilizing the keep warm mode feature on the Instant Pot means the veggies stay warm until ready to serve

If you want to multi task to help save some time and don’t mind washing one extra dish, I also share my oven method for cooking crispy bacon. I usually opt for cooking the bacon in the oven because it does save me time and I can cook all of the bacon together on the pan! Trust me, taking the extra time to add bacon to this dish is what makes this incredible. My family gobbles this up so quickly, it’s ridiculous.

HOW TO COOK BACON WITH THE OVEN METHOD

Line a large cooking sheet with foil (for easy clean up later).
Place bacon on cookie sheet, without overlapping bacon pieces.
Place bacon in a cold oven. Turn oven on to 400F and cook for 18-20 minutes or until crispy.
Remove bacon from oven and place on a paper towel lined plate to absorb the grease.
Once cooled, chop bacon into bits.

HOW TO COOK BACON IN THE INSTANT POT

Push saute mode on the Instant Pot. While the pot is heating up, chop bacon into 1/4″ slices.
When screen reads HOT, add bacon and cook until crispy. The grease from the bacon will release, therefore no additional oil is needed. You may have to cook in 2 batches.
Remove cooked bacon and allow to rest/drain on a plate covered with 2 layers of paper towels to absorb the grease.
Make sure to deglaze the pot by adding 1/4 cup of water to help loosen up the cooked on bacon bits in the pot as you scrape with a spatula. This takes about 3-4 minutes to do. Deglazing the pot prevents any BURN error on the screen when pressure cooking afterwards.