Green beans are packed full of fibre and vitamin C, and we love garlic for its natural antibacterial properties. The trick to this crunchy and vibrant green bean salad is a method called “blanching and refreshing”.This simply means cooking your beans in boiling water and then plunging them into cold water to stop the cooking process and keep their wonderful colour and bite.
Crunchy Green Beans
Ingredients
- 200g green beans
- ½ garlic clove, grated
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Bring a pan of water to the boil and place in your green beans.
- Cook for 2-3 minutes until they have lost their rawness but retain a lovely crunch.
- Drain the beans and plunge into a bowl of cold water, or run under a cold tap. Make sure the water stays cold. If the beans sit in warm water they will continue to cook and start to discolour.
- Allow them to drain completely.
- Meanwhile, make up the dressing by whisking together the olive oil, grated garlic, honey and Dijon mustard with a fork.
- Drizzle the dressing over the beans and stir through to coat.
Notes
Crunchy green beans is a great side dish for many of our dinner recipes.
FAQs
Store beans in a veggie crisper or an air-tight plastic container. You can keep them in the plastic bag they came in from the store, but condensation may develop and speed up spoilage. To prevent this, place a paper towel in the bag or container to absorb extra moisture, and replace it as it gets damp.
How to keep green beans from getting soggy? ›
Store beans in a veggie crisper or an air-tight plastic container. You can keep them in the plastic bag they came in from the store, but condensation may develop and speed up spoilage. To prevent this, place a paper towel in the bag or container to absorb extra moisture, and replace it as it gets damp.
How do you can green beans and keep them crisp? ›
Choose freshly picked green beans, rinse clean, snap to bite-size pieces, place in jars and cover with boiling water, then pressure can for just 20 minutes! Easy peasy and no need to pre-cook or blanch your green beans.
Why are my green beans not crispy? ›
Make sure you spread out the green beans. They can overlap some, but you want as much surface area exposed to the heat as possible for crispness. Along the same lines, you can technically double this recipe, but remember that the more you make at once, the less crispy the green beans will be.
How to get green beans softer? ›
Boil with medium heat for 5 minutes first
Use medium heat as a low heat can take too long to cook, while a high heat can result in uneven cooking. After adding green beans to boiling water, boil them with medium heat for 5 minutes and turn off the stove. This is also what the '5' is about in 5-30-7 cooking technique.
How do you keep green beans crispy? ›
The trick to this crunchy and vibrant green bean salad is a method called “blanching and refreshing”. This simply means cooking your beans in boiling water and then plunging them into cold water to stop the cooking process and keep their wonderful colour and bite.
How do you make beans not mushy? ›
Place your beans in your pot and cover them with at least 2 inches of water, and turn the heat to low. Stir them gently and occasionally, never letting them hit a strong boil; this can burst their skins and make them mushy or unevenly cooked.
How do you keep green beans crisp in the fridge? ›
How to Store Green Beans. Green beans should be stored unwashed in the crisper drawer of your fridge. If they came in a bag, keep them in the bag when storing. If they came in a small berry box from the market, transfer them to a reusable storage or plastic bag before storing them in the fridge.
How do you keep green beans from getting slimy? ›
I suggest lining open bags of green beans with a towel to prevent moisture build-up. Stored properly, they can stay fresh for 10 days or up to 2 weeks. If they brown or turn slimy, they've gone bad.
How do you crisp limp green beans? ›
Place the Produce in Ice Water.
For most produce, you can submerge the food in a bucket or large bowl of ice water. Then, put the container with the vegetables in the fridge to keep the water cool. Let the food soak for 15 to 30 minutes. Heartier produce, such as root vegetables, may need longer, or up to one hour.
Blanching green beans before freezing helps them to retain that beautiful green color and crisp texture when you go to enjoy them. Skipping this step might result in your beans having a mushy texture once defrosted.
Why are my green beans always hard? ›
All beans are at their peak when freshly picked with tender young pods. One reason beans are fibrous, tough, and stringy may simply be that they are picked past their prime. Pod diameter, NOT length is the best indicator for harvesting beans, and freshness can be confirmed by an audible snap when the bean is broken.
Are sauteed green beans supposed to be crunchy? ›
Cover the pan and let the green beans cook until fork tender, about 5 minutes. If you want your green beans to still have some crunch to them, you might only want to cover the pan for 3 minutes. I like my green beans to be very tender, without being mushy.
How to make beans soft easily? ›
I usually soak the beans overnight, wash them and then depending on the type of bean simmer for 2 or more hours. One can speed this up by bring the beans in a pot of water to a boil and then let them soak in the hot water. They will hydrate in a few hours then wash and cook until done usually a few hours.
Will microwaving green beans soften them? ›
Steaming green beans in the microwave brings out the best color and nutrients but also ensures the beans remain tender-crisp and never mushy.
How do you keep green beans from wilting? ›
“Store unwashed fresh bean pods in a plastic bag kept in the refrigerator crisper. Whole beans stored this way should keep for about seven days,” she says. If you plan to use them in an upcoming meal, wash them under running water. Remove both ends of the beans by either snapping them off or cutting them with a knife.
