An easy recipe for sauteed green beans. The green beans are sauteed in butter and seasoned with garlic and crushed red peppers. Just don’t overcook them!
I’ve been making these sauteed green beans very often. They are tasty and healthy, and one of the few vegetables that all of us can agree on – grownups and picky eaters alike.
How to make sauteed green beans
Green beans are wonderful when quickly boiled and salted. This is actually my favorite way to make them – boiled green beans. But variety is nice, and sauteing green beans in butter and garlic is also a great way of making them.
Regardless of how you choose to cook green beans, the most important thing, in my opinion, is to avoid overcooking them. You want them to be tender. But they should still have a bite – much like “al dente” when cooking spaghetti. You don’t want them to be mushy or droopy.
On the other hand, you certainly don’t want them too crunchy! Raw green beans do not taste very good. Although I hear that when young and picked fresh from one’s garden, they most certainly are.
In my experience, cooking sauteed green beans for about 10 minutes over medium-high heat is perfect. But you’ll need to double check in your kitchen. Because as you know, cooking equipment vary greatly, and this includes your cooking range as well as your pan.
Should I blanch green beans before stir-frying?
I suppose in an ideal world you should. But we don’t live in an ideal world. Hurried and pressed for time most nights, I am not a fan of multi-step recipes. So no, I don’t blanch the green beans before sauteing them.
What to serve with sauteed green beans?
Anything, really. It’s such a versatile side dish. I often serve them with sweet and sour meatballs, with pesto chicken, or with barbecue beef stew.
What about leftovers?
You can keep leftover sauteed green beans in the fridge, in an airtight container, for 3-4 days. Reheat the leftovers gently, in the microwave on 50% power. They are also good cold!
Sautéed Green Beans
INGREDIENTS
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 lb. fresh green beans, ends trimmed
- 1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium-high heat.
- When the butter stops foaming, add the green beans. Cook, stirring often, about 2 minutes.
- Add the salt. Cook, stirring often, 3 more minutes.
- Add the black pepper, garlic and crushed red peppers. Continue to cook, stirring often, about 5 more minutes, until beans are tender but not mushy.
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