Green Beans Almondine
Green Beans Almondine is a simple, delicious way to dress up green beans with buttery, garlicky toasted almonds. It’s an easy side dish that’s perfect for everything from holiday meals to cozy weeknight dinners.
This recipe is the newest addition to my growing collection of simple vegetable side dishes. Green Beans Almondine may sound French and fancy, but I promise, these green beans are super easy to make.
Green Beans Almondine is a classic French-inspired side dish where green beans are briefly blanched and then cooked with buttery-garlicky toasted almonds. This is an elevated version of my simply Sautéed Green Beans. The addition of toasted almonds adds a nutty crunch, and a squeeze of lemon at the end brightens it up.
This recipe is a simple way to do something special with green beans, making them perfect for anything from a special occasion meal to a weeknight dinner.
Ingredient Notes
- Green beans: Look for fresh, slender green beans, referred to as haricots verts in French cuisine. They’re thinner and more tender than regular green beans, and have a delicate flavor and crisp texture that works well in this recipe.
- Almonds: You want sliced almonds for this recipe. They have more surface area than slivered almonds that pick up nice golden flavor as they’re toasted in melted butter.
- For the rest: Butter, minced garlic, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, a lemon, and a little minced fresh parsley. You’ll see Italian (flat-leaf) parsley specified in so many recipes, but regular curly parsley is a fine choice. In fact, I prefer it when minced because it’s fluffier and doesn’t wilt or bruise as easily as Italian parsley.
How to Make Green Beans Almondine
Blanch the Green Beans: Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook at a low boil for about 3 to 5 minutes, or just until they are slightly softened but still crisp-tender. They should be slightly crunchy and undercooked since they’ll cook more later.
- Sauté the sliced almonds in melted butter until they are lightly toasted. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant and the almonds are lightly golden. Remove from the heat.
- Transfer the blanched green beans to a colander and rinse them with cold water. Drain them well, then transfer them to the skillet with the buttery almonds.
- Return the skillet to low heat and cook, tossing the green beans with the butter, garlic and almonds, until the green beans are tender (see tips below).
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and squeeze the juice from half a lemon over the top. Add the minced fresh parsley and toss again.
Tips for the Best Green Beans Almondine
Don’t Overcook: Avoid overcooking the beans during the blanching process since there’s no fixing them if they are mushy, but it’s easy to fix if they are a bit undercooked. If you find the blanched green beans are still a bit too tough after adding them to the skillet with the almonds, you can cover the skillet briefly to speed up the cooking process.
Watch the Heat: Keep the heat low to ensure the butter doesn’t brown and the garlic doesn’t burn.
Serve on a Platter: For pretty presentation, transfer the beans to a platter, scraping all the almonds from the skillet over the top. This ensures each serving will have enough of the buttery almonds.
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Green Beans Almondine
Green Beans Almondine is a simple, delicious way to dress up green beans with buttery, garlicky toasted almonds. It’s an easy side dish that’s perfect for everything from holiday meals to cozy weeknight dinners.
Instructions
Bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook at a low boil for about 3 to 5 minutes, or just until they are slightly softened but still crisp-tender. They should be slightly crunchy and undercooked since they’ll cook more later.
Meanwhile in a large skillet, melt the butter over MEDIUM-LOW heat. Add the sliced almonds and sauté, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes or until they are lightly toasted. Reduce the heat to low and add the garlic. Sauté for 1 minute, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant and the almonds are lightly golden. Remove from the heat.
Transfer the blanched green beans to a colander. Rinse them with cold water to stop the cooking process, drain them well, and transfer them to the skillet with the buttery almonds. Return the skillet to LOW heat and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, tossing the green beans with the buttery almonds. If you find the green beans are still undercooked, you can cover the skillet briefly to speed up the cooking process. Season to taste with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper and squeeze the juice from half a lemon over the top. Add the minced fresh parsley, toss again, and remove from the heat.
Transfer the beans to a platter, scraping all the almonds from the skillet over the top.
Notes
This recipe makes enough to comfortably serve 4 as part of a small menu. If serving with a more substantial menu that includes lots of other items, it would serve up to 6.
Nutrition
Calories: 143 kcal · Carbohydrates: 11 g · Protein: 4 g · Fat: 10 g · Saturated Fat: 4 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 4 g · Trans Fat: 0.2 g · Cholesterol: 15 mg · Sodium: 52 mg · Potassium: 329 mg · Fiber: 5 g · Sugar: 4 g · Vitamin A: 965 IU · Vitamin C: 21 mg · Calcium: 73 mg · Iron: 2 mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.