Garlic Butter Green Beans

Why This Recipe Works

• You can’t go wrong with garlic butter! We are an advocate for garlic butter anything. It’s the combination that takes Pan Seared Ribeye Steak and Pan Seared Pork Chops over the top! Garlic Butter makes foods taste better, whether they are vegetables or meats. Facts.
• Bright green color: We eat with our eyes first, right? This recipe teaches you how to make vibrant, green-looking, tender green beans. No sad-looking brown green beans here!
• Super tasty: Again, it’s the garlic butter. It’s heavy on garlickyness and butteriness, and that’s not a bad thing!

Ingredients Needed

With just a few ingredients, you have notable Garlic Butter Green Beans. Here is what you need for this simple side dish:

• Fresh green beans: Start with green beans that are at their peak of freshness. It is important to start with fresh vegetables when making recipes like this.
• Baking soda: Not included in the ingredients picture above but baking soda is an important ingredient here which ensures that the green beans maintain a vibrant green picture as they cook.
• Salt and pepper: String beans with adequate salt and black pepper taste way better than green beans that are not adequately seasoned. So your good ole S and P make such a difference.
• Butter: Because this is garlic butter green beans. The butter adds so much flavor which you won’t get from just using oil.
• Minced garlic: This is where most of the flavor comes from. We use enough garlic here to take the green beans over the top. We prefer fresh minced garlic for this recipe but you could use garlic powder as well.

See the recipe card below for quantities of each ingredient.

Pantry notes

Consider this recipe a guide for making a green bean side dish that is uniquely yours. Here are some substitutions and variations you could try.

• Shallots: Not a fan of garlic? Dice some shallots and saute them in place of the garlic. You could also use shallots in addition to the garlic.
• Mushrooms: Saute some mushrooms just before adding the green beans for more vegetables and texture.
• Bacon: Add some cooked and crumbled bacon to the garlic butter green beans for some crunch and flavor.
• Fried onions: Consider topping the green beans with some fried onions before serving.
• Oil: Instead of butter consider using a neutral-tasting oil like olive oil. This is particularly useful if you are taking the green beans to a potluck as the butter could coagulate when the beans are cold.
• Red pepper flakes: Love some heat? Add some red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.

Love green beans? Also, check out our phenomenal Bacon With Green Beans.

How it comes together

The cooking process for these sautéed green beans is so easy. Here are process shots showing you how to make this easy side dish from start to finish.

1. Cut the stem ends of whole green beans.

2. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add salt and baking soda, then add the green beans and let them cook for 5 minutes.

3. Drain the green beans using a colander.

4. Melt butter in a large skillet and saute some garlic.

5. Add the green beans to the skillet and toss to combine. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Turn off the heat, then sprinkle a little lemon juice over the green beans.

Hint: You could cut the green beans in half before cooking if you prefer that.

Cook notes

Adding baking soda to boiling water before adding the green beans prevents the beans from turning brown as they cook. The baking soda also helps soften the beans so they are not stringy.

Consider grating some parmesan cheese over the green beans just before serving. The nuttiness of parmesan cheese compliments green beans well.

Recipe FAQs

• Yield: 6 servings
• Prep: 10 minutes
• Cook: 10 minutes
• Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound green beans
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
• Salt and pepper
• ½ Tablespoon lemon juice

Method

1. Prepare green beans. Place the green beans on a chopping board with both ends aligned. Use a knife to chop both stem ends of the green beans. Check the beans for any ones that still have the stem ends on then chop those as well.
2. Blanche green beans: In a medium pot, bring 8 cups of water to a rolling boil. Add in two teaspoons of salt and 1 teaspoon of baking soda. Add the prepared green beans to the boiling water and let it cook for 5 minutes.
3. Drain green beans : Immediately drain the green beans through a colander.
4. Make garlic butter green beans: Add the butter to a large skillet on medium heat. Let it melt. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add the green beans to the pan and toss ensuring that the garlic butter coats the green beans. Let the green beans cook together with the garlic butter for 2 minutes while tossing from time to time. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
5. Add lemon juice: Sprinkle the lemon juice over the green beans.
6. Serve: Serve warm, garnished with some lemon zest if desired.