There’s nothing better than a new way to fix a beloved vegetable that everyone goes wild for!
Who knew that mixing soy sauce, sugar, and a bit of garlic and black pepper would help create an Asian-inspired sauce that is just as tasty as fish sauce, stir-fry sauce, and teriyaki sauce?
These Asian green beans give you a new way to prepare your green beans without the family going, “Green beans…again!” Indeed, it’s rare to find a recipe for green beans that rivals the old standbys, like plain green beans out of the can, green beans and ham, or green bean casserole. So, I’m excited to share this recipe with you, which kids and adults both love.
What else is great? It’s on your table in 20 minutes flat, and you only need ingredients you probably already have in your fridge, pantry, and spice rack; I’ll just bet!
Why You And Your Family Will Love Asian Green Beans
Asian green beans have a complex flavor profile of sweet, salty, umami, and sour, activating the taste receptors in your mouth, and that’s because they’re full of delicious FLAVOR. Plus, serving Asian green beans gives you a whole new way to get your family enthusiastic about eating vegetables.
For some families, getting adults to eat vegetables is challenging enough—not to mention Cheetos and cereal-obsessed children.
My father thought that potatoes represented all the vegetables he needed without a thought for salad, while I gobbled down whole salad bars worth of salad a week with various dressings, marking specific periods of my life like phases of Picasso’s career. There was my red phase when I embraced Catalina and French dressing, and my blue phase when I would use nothing but blue cheese dressing. My Italian phase with vinaigrettes became like a wild discovery for me, and I couldn’t imagine why I, such an evolved palate possessor, would ever eat a cream and store-bought dressing. Then came my white phase, one obsessed with all things RANCH. Now, I’m in my Jackson Pollock phase because I love vegetables and condiments so much that my salads look like one of his paintings.
And condiments, especially Asian ones, like fish sauce, soy sauce, and Hunan sauce can help us open up new realms of flavor in plain old vegetable dishes.
Green beans are an important vegetable, so we need multiple ways to prepare them to keep things exciting and to be those moms who are ever-widening our imaginations and ever-evolving our palates. Otherwise, the vegetables we serve time and time again may start to seem like an overly familiar guest, especially if served plainly.
This recipe gives me what I want in a recipe—a new way to prepare a vegetable dish for families that I know they will love. A recipe that comes together easily and quickly every time, without fail. As a result, you can get those nutritious meals on your table and sit down and enjoy them with your loved ones.
How Do I Store Leftovers?
These Asian green beans can be kept in the refrigerator in an airtight container (or sealed tightly with plastic wrap) for 2-3 days. I don’t recommend freezing this recipe because the beans go too limp after freezing and thawing.
Serving Suggestions
I love serving these Asian green beans at Asian-themed dinners, which I make for my clients and their children often. I like to serve them a whole buffet dinner composed of these dishes: this amazing Slow-Cooker Asian Pork Recipe that is so luscious and full of Asian flavor, and some Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps. I also serve these Asian-inspired Easy Seared Ahi Tuna Steaks with soy and honey sauce, Teriyaki Veggie and Meat Skewers, rice, and lo mein noodles. For dessert—this cooling, sweet rival of P.F. Chang’s famous Pineapple Coconut Ice Cream.
Asian Green Beans
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound green beans trimmed
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the minced garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the green beans to the skillet and stir to coat with the oil and garlic.
- Cook the green beans for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they are tender-crisp.
- In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, water, sugar, and black pepper.
- Pour the soy sauce mixture over the green beans and toss to coat evenly.
- Cook for an additional 3 minutes, allowing the sauce to thicken slightly and coat the beans.
- Serve the green beans hot as a side dish.
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