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This French Onion Butter Beans skillet is cozy, super simple, and full of rich French onion flavors. The onions cook low and slow until they’re soft, golden, and naturally sweet, then we add garlic, thyme, bay leaves, broth, and creamy beans to bring everything together nicely.
Table of Contents
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Benefits of Eating Beans
- Ingredients
- Variations And Substitutions
- How to make French Onion Butter Beans
- Rachel’s Tips For The Best Results
- How To Serve
- Leftover, Storage, and Reheat
- Recipe FAQs
- More Healthy Skillet Recipes You’ll Love
- French Onion Butter Beans Skillet (One-Pot Meal) Recipe
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This is one of those meals that feels comforting and a little fancy, but it’s made with really simple ingredients. The beans soak up all that savory onion broth, and a little parmesan at the end makes the sauce even richer and more satisfying. Here are some more reasons you’re going to love this dish:
- Plant Based Protein: This bean skillet meal has 8 grams of natural protein.
- Full of Fiber: These beans will keep you feeling fuller longer because there are 7 grams of fiber in each serving!
- Inexpensive Pantry Staple: Beans are one of my favorite budget-friendly pantry staples. They’re inexpensive, nourishing, and so good at soaking up flavor.
Looking for more healthy bean recipes? Then don’t miss this Black Bean Tacos Recipe, or this Hearty 3 Bean Soup Recipe that are both naturally high in fiber and protein.
Benefits of Eating Beans
Canned beans are usually inexpensive, convenient, and still very nourishing. Dried beans are typically even more affordable per serving, especially if you cook a big batch and use them throughout the week. They’re filling, versatile, and add fiber, plant-based protein, and texture to meals without raising the grocery bill too much.
Why is Fiber so incredibly important? And why are beans great at delivering to your health?!!
Not getting enough fiber is linked to a greater risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and specific cancers. It also helps with managing your weight by keeping you full, supports healthy blood sugar levels, and promotes better digestive health. Research indicates that adding just 8 grams of fiber daily can lower your disease risk by anywhere from 5% to 27%. [Source: Harvard Health]
Beans are loaded with fiber, plant-based protein, antioxidants, and micronutrients.
And they’re linked with:
- Digestive and heart health
- Less belly fat
- Supporting weight loss
We consider beans a COMPLEX CARBOHYDRATE if you’re participating in a program here at CFC.
Ingredients
These are the clean ingredients that make this French Onion Butter Beans recipe perfect for a meatless meal or easy weeknight side dish.
6 servings
- 2 Tbsps grassfed butter, ghee, unrefined organic coconut oil, avocado oil, or olive oil
- 2 large sweet onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 bay leaves
- 3 tsps dried or fresh thyme
- 1/2 cup dry white wine or bone broth
- 1/2 cup beef bone broth
- 2, 15oz cans butter beans, great northern beans, or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well
- sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- shredded parmesan cheese, to serve if desired
Variations And Substitutions
- Make this vegan by using vegetable broth instead of beef bone broth, vegan parmesan, and a vegan oil instead of ghee or butter.
- Swap the butter beans for cannellini, great northern, or any bean you have on hand.
How to make French Onion Butter Beans
Step 1. Melt your butter or oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring frequently, for about 25-30 minutes, until nicely caramelized.
Step 2. Once your onions are golden brown, add garlic, bay leaves, thyme, wine, and broth. Bring to a heavy simmer, stir, then turn to a low simmer.
Step 3. Add the beans and season with sea salt and pepper to your taste. Allow your beans to simmer in the onion sauce for 10-12 minutes, to combine the flavors.
Step 4. Stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired and simmer for 2-3 minutes to thicken up the sauce.
Step 5. Remove the bay leaves just before serving and serve with additional grated parmesan if desired and enjoy!
Love,
Rachel
Rachel’s Tips For The Best Results
- If you have the time cooking your own dried beans is a great healthy option.
- Don’t worry about cooking with wine, all the alcohol cooks out of the dish.
- Use real wine, not “cooking wine”, or your meal may taste like rubbing alcohol.
- For best results, use this non-toxic chef pan, my favorite bay leaves, and this healthy sea salt.
For a great summertime bean recipe, try this Easy Marinated Bean Salad or this Crunchy Veggie & Bean Chopped Salad.
How To Serve
Serve these French onion beans as a meatless main dish, spoon it over roasted salmon or halibut, or enjoy it alongside roasted chicken or steak. It’s warm, hearty, and perfect for a comforting evening when you want something nourishing without a lot of fuss.
It also goes really well with a slice of Ezekiel bread that you can use to scoop the bean mixture, or with a vegetable like roasted parmesan cauliflower, or roasted asparagus.
Leftover, Storage, and Reheat
If you have any leftovers they store well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and in the freezer for up to 2 months. This bean skillet can also be made ahead of time and stored the same way. Reheat in the microwave until heated through.
Recipe FAQs
Is this bean skillet vegan?
As the recipe is written, no this recipe is not vegan, however you can easily make it vegan by substituting the bone broth for a vegetable broth, using a vegan oil instead of butter or ghee, and using a vegan parmesan.
Can I use different beans in this dish?
Absolutely! Use what you have on hand. I use butter beans because they have a creamy texture, but any white bean would work.
Do you use canned beans in this recipe?
You can use canned beans or dried beans that you cook yourself.
Did you try this French Onion Butter Beans recipe? It would mean so much to me if you would comment and rate this recipe at the bottom of this post!
🩷Rachel
More Healthy Skillet Recipes You’ll Love
French Onion Butter Beans Skillet (One-Pot Meal)
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsps grassfed butter, ghee, unrefined organic coconut oil, avocado oil, or olive oil
- 2 large sweet onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 bay leaves
- 3 tsps dried or fresh thyme
- 1/2 cup dry white wine or bone broth
- 1/2 cup beef bone broth
- 2, 15 oz cans butter beans, great northern beans, or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed well
- sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- shredded parmesan cheese, to serve if desired
Instructions
- Melt your butter or oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the sliced onions and cook, stirring frequently, for about 25-30 minutes, until nicely caramelized.
- Once your onions are golden brown, add garlic, bay leaves, thyme, wine, and broth. Bring to a heavy simmer, stir, then turn to a low simmer.
- Add the beans and season with sea salt and pepper to your taste.
- Allow your beans to simmer in the onion sauce for 10-12 minutes, to combine the flavors.
- Stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired and simmer for 2-3 minutes to thicken up the sauce.
- Remove the bay leaves just before serving.
- Serve with additional grated parmesan if desired and enjoy!
- Love,
- Rachel
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
