EASY Green Bean Bundles

Have you ever forgotten that you were supposed to make some sort of dish for a get-together, or were just at a loss, in general, for an easy side dish idea? I LOVE these green bean bundles for both such occasions! They are super easy to make, but they are always a hit, whether I’m serving them to a crowd or to my family just as a side dish for dinner! I mean, come on, who doesn’t love bacon??

All you need for this delicious recipe is: Green beans, bacon, salt, pepper, and brown sugar. I usually try to stick to using the whole green beans that come in a bag from the freezer section of your local grocery store (I’m personally a HUGE fan of Aldi), but canned green beans will work in a pinch. They are just a bit more tedious to work with because of the smaller size of the green beans.

I purchase whichever package of bacon is the best bang for my buck whenever I go shopping. (If they are having a sale on bacon, I buy several packages at once and stick all but one into the freezer when I get home to have later). Anyway, I cut the bacon packages in half longways for making these green bean bundles. I don’t like it when the bacon has to be double wrapped around itself. The exterior will get crispy as bacon should, but the interior layer will not, and that just isn’t a very appetizing texture for me.

Next, I usually set up a small assembly line: Cut open the bag of THAWED green beans, bacon strips on a small plate, and a cookie sheet. Then, simply take 3-5 green beans in one hand, grab a slice of bacon, and wrap it around the bundle of green beans. Move from one end of the green beans to the other.

I try to pull the bacon decently tight around the green beans. This seems to ensure the bundle stays together during the cooking process without having to place an annoying toothpick in each bundle. Place the bundle on the waiting cookie sheet with the exposed end of the bacon facing down. Start on the next bundle and continue this step until you have the amount of bundles that you desire!

The final step will be to sprinkle salt and pepper over your bundles. It doesn’t take much. Literally just a sprinkle over the whole tray. As for the brown sugar – I add a bit more, adding a “finger-full” over the top of each individual bundle.

Now you are ready to cook them! Turn the oven to 400° and pop the bundles in there to warm up with the oven. Set a timer for 20-30 minutes depending on how crispy you like your bacon. I usually check on them at 20 minutes, and then every 5 minutes until they are my desired level of crispness. Enjoy!

What did you serve your green bean bundles for/with? Let me know in the comments!