Keto Green Beans and Bacon

These keto green beans and bacon are a popular side dish in our household. This is a deliciously easy recipe to make with fresh beans from the garden. We eat it all year round because it only takes 15 minutes to make and has 4.5g net carbs!

You might also like this low carb green bean casserole recipe.

We having been making this keto green beans and bacon dish for years and years. Actually my husband’s family introduced it to me and now it’s one of my favorite recipes. Not only is it simple and delicious, it’s low carb too so that is another reason I make it so much.

With summer just around the corner, this is even better with fresh green beans from your garden. The flavor from the bacon fat along with the crispy bacon bits is so delicious with the beans and it only takes 15 minutes.

So if you need a quick and flavorful side dish for dinner that the whole family will love – even the kids – try these green beans with bacon. It’s great vegetable side dish to feed a crowd too!

More delicious low carb green bean recipes to try.

We eat a lot of green beans. Mostly because everyone in my family likes them and because my husband grows a lot of them all summer long. I also like them because there are not many carbs in green beans so they make a great low car side dish for dinner. 

Therefore I have a lot of  green bean recipes you might like, such as my Asian green beans almondine and my low carb green bean casserole.   But these sweet & spicy Asian green beans pictured below are my newest obsession and they only take 10 minutes.

Are green beans low carb or keto friendly?

Yes green beans are a fairly low carb food. According to Self Nutrition Data 1 cup of raw green beans has 4.1g net carbs. I feel that the carbs in these beans is fairly low for a vegetable and that 1 cup is a large portion.

Green beans are a good source of vitamins and minerals such as folate, vitamin C and vitamin A. They are also a good source of fiber and protein. (source)

This recipe uses 3 cups go green beans total and the bacon and parmesan cheese have little carbs so overall making this a good side dish for a keto dinner!

All you need is 3 simple ingredients.

You really only need 2 ingredients for this dish. In the summer I use green beans from our garden but in the winter I buy everything from Aldi. Below are the French green beans that I like because they are very tender.

And of course bacon strips and parmesan cheese. I like center cut bacon by the way because it produces the perfect amount of grease.

I don’t think you will need salt and black pepper because the bacon and parmesan have salt in then. However if you want, you can season with salt and black pepper while you are sautéing the beans. If you want to add a little heat you can sprinkle some hot pepper flakes at the end.

How to make keto green beans and bacon.

This keto green bean recipe is super easy to make and takes little time because you are cooking the beans in the microwave before sautéing them.

1. Precook the beans in the microwave for 4-5 minutes. I use this microwave vegetable steamer almost daily for dishes such as this. Or you can add them to a microwave safe bowl with a few tablespoons of water. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Get out a large skillet and heat to medium high heat. Add the uncooked bacon and turn down to medium heat. Cook it to your liking then take out and place bacon on paper towels to absorb the grease.
3. Using the same skillet with bacon fat, add your precooked beans. Cook them until they start to brown and have sufficiently softened. This should take about 5 minutes.
4. Crumble the cooked bacon and add back to the pan. Mix well and serve with grated parmesan cheese on the side. You can shake a little on top before you eat them.

Store leftovers in an airtight container. Please scroll down to view the printable recipe card.

Recipe Notes & Tips

• While fresh beans are preferred, I have made this with frozen green beans. Just cook them before adding to the pan.
• If your bacon is very fatty and there is excess grease, try saving some of  it for another day. It can sit on the counter for quite a while.
• The grated cheese is not really necessary but that is how my hubby’s family eats it. My son would eat almost any vegetable with grated cheese so that is why we use it too. 
• You can make this simple side dish for a holiday meal or big parties. It’s nice because you can do the cooking ahead of time and then just saute them together before serving. Just make sure to keep the grease when you fry the bacon.
• We make this same recipe with Brussels sprout, broccoli, you name it. Just do it the same way you would this recipe. Make sure to precook the veggies so that they are pretty tender before salting in the bacon grease.

Well I hope this keto green beans recipe as much as we do. It’s the perfect side dish for a busy weeknight meal as well as a holiday side dish. Even a picky eater will love it. 

If you are not low carb or keto, you can add potatoes to this dish too. They go well if you want to make this a more substantial side dish.

The nutrition facts for 1 serving is: 134 calories / 55g fat / 7.5g carbs / 3g fiber / 14.7g protein = 4.5g net carbs