Monday, December 2, 2013

Fresh Green Beans with Ginger Butter


My family is pro green bean casserole -- but my in-laws do not share the same love. Therefore my wife picked out a recipe for a much different application of green beans.  And these are so fresh, crisp, and rich ... I almost didn't miss my beloved French-fried onions.  (Almost)

I started by boiling fresh green beans (or haricots verts, if you want to be really fancy) in salted water until they are just tender, maybe 5-7 minutes.


Then drain them and "shock" them by throwing them into a bowl of ice water.  This will immediately stop the cooking process, keep them crisp, and lock in that great bight green color.


I actually did these in the morning.  The I patted them dry, wrapped them in a paper towel, and put them into the fridge in a sealed plastic bag until I was ready to cook everything later in then afternoon.

Then heat up a few Tbsp of butter in a large pan with a 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into thin matchsticks.  Heat it all through and coat the beans in that great buttery sauce.  The transfer them to a serving dish and top with the zest of 1/2 lemon and a few pinches of salt.

The butter is really rich, but the lemon zest cuts through with a nice acidity.  Then there is a complexity of flavor from the ginger.  It is a really great dish ... much better than some plan old green beans. That's for sure.

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