Buttery Sautéed Green Bean Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Should sauteed green beans be crunchy? ›

It depends on how tender you'd like the beans to be. If you like your green beans super tender, go ahead and sauté them the whole 10 minutes. If you like your green beans on the crisp side, though, you'll probably only want to cook them for five to eight minutes.

Butter: A bit of butter adds a rich flavor and helps the seasoning stick to the green beans. Seasoned salt: Buy seasoned salt from the store, or make your own seasoned salt at home. Chili powder: This is an unexpected knockout seasoning. Chili powder adds a touch of spice and color without being too overpowering.

Add green beans to pan and sauté over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add boiling water to pan and cover. Cook for about 15 minutes, just until beans are tender. Add vinegar, butter and salt and pepper and stir.

Why are my sautéed green beans tough? They would only be tough if they were undercooked. By briefly simmering them, then sautéing the green beans, they're perfectly crisp tender, and flavorful.

Sautéed green beans only require a few ingredients and about 10 minutes to make, and this cooking method also saves space in the oven for you to roast your main course. While blanching the green beans before sautéing them isn't an essential step, it can lend a nice crunch and vibrant color to them.

After the green beans are boiled, remove them from the pot and strain them through a colander and then immediately pour them into your buttered pan. Season the green beans with salt and pepper.

Brine your beans while soaking them by adding a tablespoon or two of salt to the soaking liquid, a trick from Cool Beans author and bean guru Joe Yonan. It effectively brines the beans, making them both tastier and more evenly cooked as it helps to soften the beans' skins, improving the final texture.

The ingredients listed in order are: "sea salt, granulated garlic, black pepper, granulated onion, ground cumin, and other spices". I have used the recipe listed on this site and included equal amounts of garlic powder and onion powder.

Put a pan of salted water on to boil. Meanwhile, trim the the beans. Once the water is boiling, steam or boil the beans until tender. Drain well, then tip the cooked beans into the bowl with your dressing and toss everything together, making sure all the beans get coated.

Why add baking soda to water when cooking green beans? ›

Your Beans Will Cook Faster

Well, creating an alkaline (or basic) environment by adding a small amount (about 1 teaspoon per cup of dry beans) of baking soda to your soaking/cooking water can actually help your beans cook faster.

In doing a little research, America's Test Kitchen recommends adding some baking soda to the boiling liquid to help the beans tenderize faster, as well as absorb more flavor.

2-5 minutes boiled (never wait for the green to leach into the water), 5-6 minutes steamed or 3 minutes sauteed in garlic and olive oil should yield firm, delicious, iron rich veggies. Sliced squashes on the other hand, are hard to overcook and retain their sweetness very well.

If you are boiling beans, simply begin tasting them after a few minutes. At first you will have a hard time biting through them. As the texture softens, the green beans are closer to being perfectly cooked. When you can just bite through with no resistance, they're done.

When the water reaches a rolling boil, add the green beans and stir gently until the water returns to a boil. Cook until just tender but not mushy, about 4 to 4 ½ minutes.

When properly cooked, green beans should still have a crisp texture, and a vibrant, bright green color. As discussed above, overcooked green beans can be identified by their drab, olive-green color and their mushy texture.

Likewise, don't think you've done something wrong if your beans are still crunchy after a few hours of cooking; I've found that some beans can go from crunchy to creamy in the space of fifteen minutes, right when I thought all was lost. If you're ever in doubt, just keep simmering.