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white bowl with lemon butter green beans and white tongs

Perfect Every Time Lemon Butter Green Beans

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 1 review
  • Author: Erica
  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Blanch
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Description

These lemon butter green beans are crisp, bright, buttery and so easy. A flavorful vegetable side dish perfect for weeknights or holiday dinners.


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1lb green beans, ends snapped off
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon butter
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1/2 lemon, juice of
  • 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • optional topping ideas: shaved parmesan cheese, crumbled bacon, toasted pine nuts, slivered almonds

Instructions

  1. Bring a saucepan of water to a boil over high heat.* (see note) Add the green beans and cook at a low boil/simmer for 5-6 minutes, until the beans are bright green and fork tender. They will still have a little rigidity, that’s okay.
  2. While the beans are cooking, fill a large bowl with ice and cold water.
  3. Using tongs, plunge the green beans into the ice bath to stop the cooking process. When they are fully cooled, use a clean kitchen towel or paper towels to pat them completely dry.
  4. In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1 ½ tablespoons butter over medium heat. Sauté 2 minced garlic cloves for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the green beans, tossing to get them evenly coated with garlic butter, reduce heat to low, and sauté until the beans are warmed through, a few minutes.
  5. Toss the green beans with 1 teaspoon lemon zest, juice of ½ lemon, ¾ teaspoon sea salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper until evenly seasoned. Serve warm with any additional toppings you like!

Notes

I didn’t for the photos here, but you could boil the green beans in your skillet, drain, pat dry and sauté per the recipe so you only dirty one pan. 💯

For haricots verts (French green beans) reduce boiling time to 3-4 minutes.

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Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/6 recipe, about 2/3 cup cooked green beans
  • Calories: 72
  • Sugar: 2.6 g
  • Sodium: 295.9 mg
  • Fat: 5.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 6 g
  • Fiber: 2.2 g
  • Protein: 1.5 g
  • Cholesterol: 7.6 mg