These are my family's slow cooker green beans with ham hocks, y'all. We serve these up as a side dish at every holiday and cookout, and for good reason. They are so. Freaking. Good. And they're the easiest side dish you'll ever make.
Everything goes in the crockpot, you give it a stir, and you walk away. No browning, no babysitting, no burner space stolen from the rest of your Thanksgiving spread. These aren't the crisp-tender kind; the long cook is what lets the beans drink up all that smoky pot likker and turn silky, tender, and flavorful. They're even better the next day, so make 'em ahead if you want.
Some of my best childhood memories are snapping fresh beans into a big wood bowl with my mama and grandma. I keep that going with my own son now, snappin' beans during the Thanksgiving Day Parade is our little ritual and I love it more every year. I hope this'll instill the same tradition in your family!
(Want tender potatoes smothered right in? That's my southern smothered green beans and potatoes, made with bacon, smothered right on the stovetop.)
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Ingredients Needed
Full ingredients, measurements, and printable instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Fresh Green Beans — look for them loose or in big bags in the refrigerated produce section. If you have to use frozen green beans, cut the cook time way down and add them in the last hour or so, once the hocks are tender and the broth is built. They'll pick up flavor without going to mush.
- Smoked Meat — traditionally smoked ham hocks or smoked turkey necks and wings. Smoked pork sausage or andouille work beautifully too. And for the old-school cooks salt pork or a piece of fatback will give you that same rich, porky backbone.
- Yellow Onion — dice it small so it basically melts into the broth as it cooks.
- Granulated Garlic — garlic tastes different simmered in liquid than it does hit with high heat. Granulated garlic is already cooked before it's ground, so it gives you that mellow, savory garlic note we want here.
- Chicken Broth or Vegetable Broth — low-sodium, so you control the salt (those ham hocks bring their own).
- Red Wine Vinegar — just a splash for brightness and acidity to cut through the rich smoked meat. Apple cider vinegar or a splash of white vinegar works in a pinch.
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes — for a little warmth. Hot sauce works too.
- Salt and Pepper — go easy on the salt up front and season to taste at the end, since the hocks and broth are already doing a lot of the work.
My Slow Cooker Southern Green Beans Recipe
Step 1
Everybody into the pool.
Rinse and snap your green beans, tossing any that are limp or brown. Then dump everything, beans, ham hocks, onion, broth, and seasonings, into your lined crockpot and give it a good stir.
Step 2
Get to slow cooking!
Cover and cook on LOW for 6–8 hours (or HIGH for about 4–5 hours). It's an all day situation.
Step 3
The secret to knowing it's done.
Your beans are ready when they're full of flavor and reach perfect tenderness (not mushy) and the ham hocks are fork-tender.
Check in around 4-5 hours and try to pull a piece of meat from the bone; if it shreds off easy, you're there. Fish out the hocks, shred the meat, and stir it back through. Taste and adjust your salt and pepper before serving.
Equipment I Used
The slow cooker liners make clean up nonexistent, I love them!
Chef's Tips for the Best Green Beans
- Snap your beans instead of cutting them. Bending and snapping lets you feel out each whole green bean. You'll catch the limp or tough ones and know everything in the pot is firm, fresh, and critter-free. It's quality control.
- Keep that pot likker! Don’t pour it out, that’s liquid gold. Spoon some over rice or cornbread, or even use it as the base for another pot of greens or beans later in the week.
- Season at the end. Between the ham hocks and the broth, a lot of salt is already in play. Wait until the beans are done, then taste and adjust; it's the easiest way to avoid an over-salted pot.
- Canned green beans are a no-go here, try my Texas Roadhouse Green Beans if you want to have almost the same dish with canned green beans in just 30 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
They probably cooked a little too long or got boiled instead of gently simmered. You want a slow bubble, not a rolling boil, which is why I love doing this in the slow cooker. They should be soft and flavorful, not falling apart, so check on your beans around the 5 hour mark.
That’s a popular variation! A lot of folks love the combo of tender green beans and creamy baby gold or red potatoes. My smothered green beans and potatoes recipe is exactly that girl!
Up to 4–5 days in the fridge, tightly covered. The beans soak up more flavor as they sit, so honestly, they’re even better after a night in the fridge. They're the perfect side dish to make ahead!
Ham hock is the shank or ankle of a pig that has been smoked. You can also find it called 'pork knuckle' in certain regions.
Ham hocks have a distinctive meaty flavor and are tough with tons of fat, connective tissue, and (more often than not) have the skin still wrapped around the meat of it tightly.
You can find ham hocks at many local big box supermarkets, but you can also find them at butcher shops and ethnic markets for dirt cheap!
How to Store & Reheat
- Cool completely before storing so the beans don't steam and turn soggy. Keep the beans and meat in their pot likker in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- To freeze, portion 2–4 servings into gallon freezer bags, laid as flat as you can so they thaw faster. They keep well frozen.
- To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and warm low and slow on the stovetop with a splash of broth, or microwave in short bursts, stirring between. The flavor only deepens the second time around.g.
What to Serve with Southern Green Beans
- On the Holiday Table — right alongside a roast turkey, sweet potato casserole, creamy mashed potatoes, buttery dinner rolls, and sparkling apple cider sangria.
- On a Soul Food Plate — piled next to cornbread, creamy mac and cheese, buttermilk fried chicken, and peach cobbler for dessert.
- For a Cozy Sunday Dinner — with a Southern pot roast, fresh homemade bread, and a glass of pumpkin cider.
Craving more cozy recipes? Sign up for the Sweet Tea & Thyme newsletter, save this recipe with the Pin button. If you whip it up, tag me (@sweet_tea_thyme on IG/@sweetteaandthyme on TikTok) and don’t forget to leave a star rating and note below, it helps more than you know, friend.
Slow Cooker Green Beans Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs fresh green beans
- 2 smoked ham hocks
- 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 2 teaspoon granulated garlic
- ¼ yellow onion, small diced
- ½ tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, or hot sauce, to taste
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar, to taste
Instructions
- Rinse, dry, and snap the ends off your fresh green beans, discarding any green beans that are limp, brown, or otherwise not fresh.2 lbs fresh green beans
- Toss in the ham hocks, chicken stock, snapped green beans, garlic powder, onion, kosher salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and red vinegar. Stir well. Set your slow cooker to LOW (8+ hours) or HIGH (6-8 hours).2 smoked ham hocks, 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock, 2 teaspoon granulated garlic, ¼ yellow onion, ½ tablespoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- Secure the top of the slow cooker and let the green beans cook until the ham hocks are fork tender and can fall apart. Check around 4-5 hours if cooking on HIGH for their tenderness.
- After the time is done, serve hot. Keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Recipe Notes
Make Green Beans Ahead
Preparing your green beans before a big feast like Thanksgiving is a breeze. These green beans stay in your fridge for up to 5 days when stored correctly in an airtight container inside your fridge (not the door). Keep the beans and meat in the potlikker when storing, it keeps them from drying out. To reheat for serving, you can nuke it in the microwave for a few minutes until everything is heated through. You can also put all of it into a large saucepan or small Dutch oven and heat over medium-low until hot.Pro Tips
- Use fresh green beans - do not use frozen green beans or canned green beans. Canned green beans are soft already and frozen green beans' texture is compromised from being frozen. Fresh is best!
- Can't find ham hock? Salt pork or smoked turkey wings work, too!
- Don't eat pork? - Smoked turkey necks and turkey bacon have been a widely used pork substitute for collard greens and green beans. They still give a delicious smoky, meaty flavor and are a big part of southern cooking.
- Snap your green beans instead of cutting them - Bending the stems and snapping them in half lets you assess their freshness and quality. It's not just a lovely tradition but ensures each bean is firm, bright green, and critter-free, guaranteeing the most tender green beans for your meal.
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