Garlic Green Beans

These simple green beans are sautéed in a garlic infused butter and seriously couldn’t be any more delicious! The perfect side dish for just about everything.

Preparing Green Beans

The great thing about green beans is they’re fairly low maintenance. Most stores will sell trimmed green beans, so I recommend grabbing them if you can. If not, don’t panic. To be honest, it’s only the very long bits at the end you’ll need to trim. As you can see in the photos, a little tip won’t harm you.

If you want to fully trim the green beans, just evenly line them up and slice off the very ends.

Parboiling

To get the party started I always boil the beans until just about fork tender, before combining with the garlic butter. Just pop the beans in cold water with a heavy pinch of salt and bring to the boil for a few mins until fork tender. You can also steam the beans too if you’d prefer.

Garlic Butter Green Beans

Alrighty, here’s where things get good.

To make the garlic butter I always start off with unsalted butter. Not a deal breaker if you’ve got salted, but it just gives you a little more control over the seasoning if you’re using unsalted butter, especially if you’ve parboiled them in salted water. 

With regards to the garlic, I like slicing a clove up into very thin strips. This way you’ll end with mini garlic chips that are golden and crispy.

How to make Garlic Green Beans (quick summary)

1. Melt butter into a large pan over medium heat.
2. Add garlic slices and stir until they begin to brown.
3. Add parboiled green beans and toss until full coated.

You may also find the butter starts turning a deeper shade of brown. In contrast to the garlic, this is actually a desirable thing. Browning the butter adds a gorgeous nutty flavour!

Personally I like my green beans with a little ‘bite’ to them. Slightly al dente even. This is completely down to preference, but if they are still a little firm for your liking after you’ve coating in garlic butter, just lower the temp and let them fry for a few more mins to soften.

Garlic Green Beans

Easy side dishes

• Dauphinoise Potatoes
• Honey Balsamic Roasted Carrots
• Broccoli and Cauliflower Cheese
• Roasted Baby Potatoes
• Cheesy Baked Asparagus

Alrighty, let’s tuck into this garlic green beans recipe shall we?!

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How to make Garlic Green Beans (Full Recipe & Video)

Garlic Green Beans

These simple green beans are sautéed in a garlic infused butter and seriously couldn't be any more delicious! The perfect side dish for just about everything.

5 from 4 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American / British

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 7 minutes

Total Time: 12 minutes

Servings (click & slide): 6

Calories: 57kcal

Author: Chris Collins

Cost per serving: £1 / $1

Equipment:

• Pot
• Large Frying Pan
• Pasta Tongs
• Sharp Knife and Chopping Board

Ingredients (check list):

• 14oz / 400g Green Beans (preferably trimmed)
• 3 cloves of Garlic, very thinly sliced into strips
• 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter
• Salt & Black Pepper

Instructions:

• Pop your green beans in a large pot of cold water and add a heavy pinch of salt. Bring to a boil until the beans are just about fork tender. They will continue to cook in the pan, so make sure they're not overcooked at this point. Drain when ready.
• Meanwhile, melt your butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add in your garlic slices and allow to crisp up slightly. If they brown too quickly take the pan off the heat and turn to low. The garlic will go from golden crispy to burnt and bitter very quickly, so just be careful.
• Add your green beans and toss until fully coated. Season with a good pinch of salt and pepper, give a final toss then serve whilst still hot!

Quick 1 min demo!

Notes:

a) Trimmed Green Beans - Most stores will have pre-trimmed beans, but if you've got regular ones I recommend lining them up and slicing the very tips off. I tend to only discard the very long bits, too much fuss to get rid of every tip!

b) Tenderness - As you can see by the video, I like my beans pretty firm, with a 'bite' to them. Nothing worse than soggy green beans (IMO). But just work to preference, if they're still too firm after you've coated them in butter just switch the heat to low and sauté for a few more minutes until they soften to your preference.

c) Brown Butter - You may notice the butter start to turn brown. This is actually desirable, as it will turn into a gorgeous nutty flavour. So fear not.

d) Steaming - Feel free to steam the beans instead of boiling them. I just often find there's too many to fit on a steaming basket. Up to you!

Nutrition:

Nutrition Facts

Garlic Green Beans

Amount Per Serving

Calories 57 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Fat 3.99g6%

Saturated Fat 2.466g12%

Trans Fat 0.155g

Polyunsaturated Fat 0.223g

Monounsaturated Fat 1.002g

Cholesterol 10mg3%

Sodium 35mg1%

Potassium 147mg4%

Carbohydrates 5.11g2%

Fiber 1.8g7%

Sugar 2.17g2%

Protein 1.35g3%

Vitamin A 575IU12%

Vitamin C 8.5mg10%

Calcium 28mg3%

Iron 0.71mg4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition is based on the absence of salt unless stated as a measurement in the ingredients. Cost is worked out based on ingredients bought from UK supermarkets, then divided by the number of servings. In both instances these values are just for guidance. Please check out my FAQ Page for more info.

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