Simple Skillet Garlic Green Beans

Sometimes the simplest things in life are the best, such as these skillet garlic green beans. Only 5 ingredients, and ready in 15 minutes. It’s simple, right? If you have garlic, green beans, oil, salt, and black pepper in your kitchen, you can make this happen and start enjoying these perfectly roasted garlic green beans in 15 minutes.

I said it’s simple. To me, the most time consuming part of preparing green beans is trimming off the ends and cutting the beans at an angle. I know it seems odd. Some of you may line the green beans up and cut off the ends with a knife. Personally, I always use my fingers to snap the ends and remove any stringy stuff (if they are a little bit old, it happens sometimes).

Why cut the beans at an angle? Good question. This was always the way that my mom prepared green beans ever since I can remember. She told me the angled cut gives the bean a larger opening. This helps the beans to absorb the flavors (salt, pepper, etc.) into their inner flesh better. It also makes the cooking go slightly faster. I follow this rule every time I prepare my skillet green bean dish.

Now it’s time to cook the beans. I have two tips to offer you to ensure your green beans taste just as good as mine or maybe even better.

• When cooking the green beans in a skillet, cover the skillet with a lid. Instead of adding water to the pan, let the moisture from the green beans do the job. Although some parts of the beans will turn slightly brown (caramelized), it enhances the flavor.

• Add the garlic last instead of at the beginning of cooking. Hot oil will remove all of the pungent flavor of the garlic. The heat from the cooked green beans is sufficient to taper down some pungency of the garlic (not all), yet leave a nice aroma and a touch of spiciness behind.

Do you sometimes have trouble getting your kids to eat vegetables? With all the healthy and simple ingredients, these perfectly seasoned green beans will be your kids’ new friends.

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Simple Skillet Garlic Green Beans

Prep Time

9 mins

Cook Time

6 mins

Total Time

15 mins

 

Sometimes the simplest things in life are the best, such as these skillet garlic green beans. Only 5 ingredients and ready in 15 minutes. It’s simple, right? Tools: Knife and cutting board, 12-inch skillet with lid, measuring spoons

Course: Vegetables

Cuisine: Chinese

Servings: 2 -4 servings

Author: Joyce @Light Orange Bean

Ingredients

• 12 oz fresh green beans
• ½ tablespoon canola oil
• ¼ teaspoon salt or more to taste
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic minced

Instructions

1. Wash and drain green beans. Trim off the ends and strings, if any. Cut each green bean at an angle (see pictures in the post).
2. Heat a skillet over high heat until it’s smoky hot. Add oil and wait for approximately 15 seconds until the oil is hot. Add green beans and salt. Stir quickly to mix well.
3. Cover the skillet with lid and reduce the heat to medium. Stir every 2 minutes and cook 6 minutes total.
4. Remove the skillet from heat and add black pepper and minced garlic immediately. Stir and mix well. Serve immediately.