These sautéed green beans with garlic are an easy vegetable side dish that is full of flavor and comes together in no time at all. I’m almost embarrassed to post this as a recipe!
But it’s just so good I have to! These green beans are fresh, buttery, and full of garlic flavor. They taste so delightful it is unreal!
Ingredients for this recipe
- Fresh Green Beans (nothing canned or frozen)
- Olive Oil
- Butter
- Salt
- Garlic
A note on using fresh green beans
There is something special about a fresh green bean. The snap, the crunch, the fragrance. But there are a few tips and trick to storing and preparing them properly.
Storing Green Beans. Keep green beans in the crisper drawer of your fridge. They will last for a few weeks like this. However, if the beans begin to turn brown, develop mold, or a bitter or “off” smell, it is best to discard them. Those beans are bad.
Washing and Trimming Green Beans. I do not rinse my green beans until I’m about to use them. Rinsing early introduces moisture into the beans and if not properly dried off before being returned to the refrigerator, the beans can mold or go bad. To avoid that, place the beans in a colander in the sink and rinse them with cool water. Jostle the beans around to ensure they are all clean and discard any that look like they’re past their prime. Then trim off the end where the bean was connected to the plant. If the beans are fresh enough, this end should snap right off without any problem. Don’t worry about trimming the bottom end, that’s good bean!
How to sauté green beans with garlic
- Rinse the beans. As directed above.
- Sauté. There’s no need to blanch the beans before cooking in this recipe. Just toss the beans in a preheated pan with olive oil. Cook for a few minutes. The beans will go from a dull green to a shiny and vibrant deep green. Season with salt.
- Add butter and garlic. A tablespoon of each to add real flavor. Cook for another minute or two more, or until the garlic is fragrant.
- Serve warm. On the side of anything delish. Like a pot roast.
Prep the green beans. Sauté beans in olive oil. Add butter and garlic.
Storing cooked green beans
As with virtually any leftover vegetable, these green beans can be stored in the fridge after cooking. They will keep for another day or two. Though they may not still have the impressive snap and crunch from when first cooked, the flavor will still be delicious! And, truth be told, sometimes I enjoy a softer, more wilted green bean. Maybe one that’s even got a little char on it from being cooked at a very high heat. Yum!
Sautéed Green Beans with Garlic
Ingredients
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 pound green beans cleaned and trimmed
- 2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 TBSP butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
Instructions
- Heat a large cast iron pan or skillet over medium-high heat and add olive oil. Heat until oil begins to shimmer.
- Toss in green beans and sprinkle with salt. Stir constantly and cook until tender, about 5 – 7 minutes. The beans will turn a deep, rich green color. Lower heat and add in butter and garlic, stirring until garlic is fragrant and butter has melted, about 1 minute more. Remove from heat and serve immediately.
Notes
- To prep green beans: place beans in a colander and rinse under cold water. Snap off the end of the bean that was once connected to the entire plant (it will have a little stem attached). Voila! A prepped green bean!
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