Name: Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons Butter; 7 ounces Thick Bacon (6 slices) (rough chopped); 1/2 cup Yellow/Brown Onion; 1/3 cup Fresh Water; 3 cloves Fresh Garlic (minced); 1 teaspoon Sea Salt; 1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper; 1/2 teaspoon Sambal Oelek Ground Chili Paste (or Red Pepper Flakes); 2 pounds String Beans (trimmed/string removed)

Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans are a traditional side dish in the South. Green beans simmer in bacon infused broth until tender and flavorful. Low carb and keto!

Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans

Oh yes, you knew it was only a matter of time, before I posted my famous Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans recipe.

Southerners really love their long cooking, soft green beans and bacon.

From living in Charleston, South Carolina for a few years, I gained appreciation for this Southern staple.

Cast of Ingredients for Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans

What is Southern Style Green Beans?

It is a very popular and staple side dish found in the South.

Bacon is pan fried and the string beans are coated in bacon grease.

Liquid is added to the pot and the beans simmer or a couple of hours until very soft and tender.

One Inch Chopped Bacon Pieces

Ingredients for Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans.

Thick sliced bacon.
Onions
Butter
Fresh Garlic
Sea Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Sambal Oelek Ground Chili Paste or a favorite hot sauce
String Beans

Bacon is cut into one inch pieces.

The fat from the bacon will render.

Coupled with the liquid from the onions, a nice and rich “broth” is born!

Diced Onions, Minced Garlic

Tender sting beans are the star of the show.

Diced onions and minced garlic add to the flavor of the cooking broth.

With a sharp knife, dice the onions and mince the garlic.

Trim Green Beans, Remove Strings

How to Make Southern Style Green Beans.

Fresh Sting Beans work best for the best flavor and texture.

Cut off the ends.

Pull the sting from the seam of the beans. Hence the name “string” beans.

Chop the beans in half and place in a bowl of water.

For the holiday season, another green bean recipe to try is my Pressure Cooker Green Bean Casserole.

Enjoy my Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans with Pressure Cooker Braised Short Ribs!

Sauté Bacon and Onions in Butter

How to make Southern Style Green Beans.

Start with a very hot pot.
Add butter and bacon and cook to render fat.
Add diced onions, seasonings and make a cooking broth.
The onions will release water, which helps to deglaze the cooking pot.
Cook green beans until tender

The butter adds a rich flavor and helps keep the bacon from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Hot sauce (try my homemade recipe) or red pepper flakes are commonly used in Southern Green Beans.

I prefer using Sambal Oelek Ground Chili Paste, as the flavor doesn’t interfere with the other flavors and gives the beans a very nice taste, without being spicy hot.

Scrape Bottom of Pot as Onions Cook

As the onions and bacon are cooking, use a good wooden spatula to scrape the bottom of the pot.

The stuck on bits at the bottom of the pot is called “fond.”

It is full of flavor.

It won’t all come up at this step, so don’t worry.

Fresh Garlic and Seasonings

The small amount of water will help to remove the rest of the fond from the bottom of the pot.

Use a good, firm spatula and make sure the bottom of the pot is free from any stuck on brown bits.

Some people like to add a ham hock.

Others use chicken broth. If you don’t have my Homemade Bone Broth available, grab some Better than Bouillon Chicken Base.

Bacon and Onion Grease Broth

When making Southern Style Green Beans on the stove top, several cups of water is added.

The string beans simmer for a couple of hours, until the liquid has evaporated and the beans are infused with the bacon onion broth.

As my Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Bean recipe cooks in a Instant Pot, Mealty MultiPot or Pressure Cooker, not much water is needed since it is cooking ins a sealed chamber.

The green beans themselves will release enough water to easily bring the pot to pressure.

Coat Green Beans in Bacon Grease Broth

Tips and Tricks.

To make a stainless steel pot non-stick, let it fully heat before adding any fat.
Use thick sliced bacon, so that it doesn’t disintegrate during cooking.
Chop up the bacon before cooking,as it will cook faster.
Pull the string out of the green/string beans before cutting. You don’t want stringy chewy strings messing with your Pressure Cooker Southern Style Green Beans!
Scrape up fond with a good spatula while bacon is cooking.
Regular, not flavored bacon, gives the most authentic flavor.

The fat from the bacon will render.

Coupled with the liquid from the onions, a nice and rich “broth” is born.

Coat String Beans with Bacon Broth

The onions will continue to break down and add to the water content.

Here is the best part! No cooking for a few hours.

The beans only need a short cook time and it is all hands off.

Go check out my other recipes, while the Instant Pot, Mealty MultiPot or Pressure Cooker is doing the hard work.

Other Southern Recipes to Enjoy.

Pressure Cooker Southern Style Boiled Peanuts

Pressure Cooker Southern Style Cheesy Grits

Southern Style Old Fashion Buttermilk Biscuits

Air Fryer Southern Fried Catfish {Louisiana Cajun Style}

Southern Style Turkey Sausage Gravy

Holiday Party Ham Buns Southern Baked Ham Cheese Sandwiches

Pressure Cooker Southern Style String Beans

I can’t wait for you to try my recipe.

When I lived in Charleston, literally, every restaurant served Southern Green Beans.

All my friends would cook them several times a week.

Kitchen Equipment and Essentials

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Here is the handy printable recipe.