Buttery garlic sauteed green beans are a deliciously easy side dish that you can cook up, ready to eat, in as little as ten minutes!
This side dish is ridiculously easy to prepare, but the subtle mix of butter, garlic, salt, and pepper results in a fantastically tasty seasoned green beans recipe that can accompany so many different main meals.
Grab your fresh green beans, and learn how to saute green beans in your cast iron skillet!
Sauteed green beans FAQ
It's really that easy!
Take your green beans, and sautee them with garlic, butter, and oil, before drizzling over the lemon juice.
But just in case you had any further questions, we put together this quick FAQ to answer the most common queries we have when it comes to sauteed green beans.
How long to cook fresh green beans?
If you're using fresh green beans for this side dish, then the entire process won't take longer than 10 min, from start to finish.
Don't boil your fresh beans for longer than 3 min, and don't sautee them for longer than 2 min. Any longer, and you start to lose the fresh flavor held by the beans.
The great thing is, you can cook this side dish up easily while you're preparing your main dishes for the meal at the same time.
Can I sautee other vegetables in the same pan?
Green beans are a fantastic vegetable to eat on their own, but you could also make the side dish more interesting by sauteeing other vegetables at the same time.
Make the most of the garlic and butter mixture, and use the same skillet to sautee your other vegetables of choice alongside the green beans.
We'd recommend using veggies that take a similar cooking time. You could sautee small chunks of broccoli, snap pea pods, or crunchy green bell peppers. You could also sautee mushrooms, cauliflower, or corn kernels!
What do sauteed green beans go well with?
The wonderful thing about our buttery garlic sauteed green beans recipe is that the side dish goes so well with so many different mains!
Sauteed green beans are the perfect, healthy accompaniment for different red meats and different white meats. They work well with steaks, or with rotisserie chicken, or you could cook up a huge batch to have as a side at your summer barbecue parties.
You could also use the sauteed green beans recipe to add an extra dimension to other dishes, such as pasta or even a casserole!
Do I need to blanch the green beans?
It's not necessary to blanch your green beans before sauteeing them, but it is easy to do and helps to keep in more of the goodness.
To blanch your green beans:
- You first boil them as per the recipe above for 3 min.
- When they have cooked, you immediately drain them before running cold water over them for a few minutes.
After blanching, you can sautee the green beans in the garlic and butter.
Can I use frozen green beans?
Many people will keep their green beans frozen, to make them last longer than if they were kept in the fridge. The recipe also works really well with frozen green beans, although the longer they have been in the freezer, the more taste and the more nutrients they will have lost.
You don't need to thaw the green beans before cooking them, simply throw them into the boiling water, and allow them to soften up before sauteing them in the pan.
Can I freeze sauteed green beans?
We wouldn't really recommend trying to freeze your sauteed green beans after they've been cooked - especially if you've already frozen the green beans once already.
You will lose most of the flavor, and much of the goodness of the beans. You are much better off buying your green beans fresh, then freezing them before you sautee them.
Are sauteed green beans healthy?
Sauteed green beans are deliciously healthy, as long as you don't overdo it on the butter or the oil.
Sauteed green beans are carb-free, and if you skip on the melted butter and just use oil, they will be dairy-free and entirely vegan-friendly too.
Choose your oil carefully, though, to keep them as healthy as they can be. We'd suggest using extra virgin oil to avoid any unwanted saturated fats.
Of course, the side dish is only as healthy as your mean meal too, so choose carefully what your sauteed green beans are accompanying, or you might just undo the healthy side of the meal!
Add sauteed green beans to you next dinner!
Learning how to cook fresh green beans, and turning this wonderful vegetable into a delicious side dish really doesn't take long to master!
It's an easy to cook, healthy, and tasty side dish that complements so many different meals. It goes perfect with pan fried chicken thighs or salmon piccata. Why not bookmark our buttery garlic sauteed green bean recipe to prepare later?
Enjoyed this recipe? Check out more cast iron skillet recipes you can try at home!
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