Garlic Green Beans (Easy Frozen Green Beans Recipe)

Learn how to cook frozen green beans so that they taste delicious and fresh! This frozen green beans recipe is a cheap and easy side dish that is easy enough for weeknight dinners and tasty enough for a holiday meal. Ingredients: frozen green beans, olive oil, fresh garlic, lemon juice, salt and black pepper.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through one of my links, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

Why frozen green beans?

People may snub frozen produce claiming they don't taste very good, but they are my jam. Truthfully they can taste like poo if cooked improperly, but if given a little love and some fresh ingredients, they can taste delicious!

I love using frozen vegetables because they are less likely to go bad. How many times have you had good intentions of buying and eating a ton of produce, but it died a slow death in your crisper drawer? No one likes to throw away moldy uneaten food. It's such a waste! I get it though. Even if you originally had a plan for those fresh green beans, plans change in the week. By using a mix of frozen and fresh produce, you can use your fresh stuff earlier in the week and save your frozen for emergencies or later in the week. This gives flexibility and saves money.

Are frozen green beans as nutritious as fresh?

This is a good question as we are all about eating well on this site. Produce contains the most nutrients when its is first picked. For this reason, nothing will beat freshly picked produce from your farmer's market or backyard as far as nutrient retention. According to an article from The Kitchn though, frozen vegetables may contain even more nutrients than the fresh produce in the store. This is because of the time it takes fresh produce to arrive in your store, sit on the shelf, and then sit in your fridge. Frozen vegetables are picked at the peak of freshness and frozen right away retaining a lot of nutrients. It's an interesting concept for sure. For this reason, I think frozen green beans are a great option.

Ingredients Needed

Now let's talk about the best way to cook frozen green beans so that you actually want to eat them. As most great tasting food, it requires proper seasoning, some fat, and a little acid.

• frozen thin green beans: You want a thin variety of green beans, not cut or thick, or anything of that sorts. I'm an Aldi shopper and I buy my haricots verts from there.
• olive oil: The fat helps give the green beans a little color when they sauté in the pan. You could also substitute a couple of tablespoons butter if you don't like olive oil. I have also been known to use bacon grease for a more southern flavor. Leave out the lemon juice if you go that route.
• garlic: This really helps flavor the dish. It makes it taste like garlic green beans from your favorite steakhouse. I use three cloves, but if you love garlic, feel free to add more. If you would like to use garlic powder instead, substitute about ¼ tsp.
• salt and black pepper: We want well seasoned green beans here. Bland vegetables do not taste good. I use a high quality sea salt like Redmond. If you use another kind of salt, you may want to start out with less, as other salts may have a saltier taste.
• lemon juice: Fresh lemon juice adds an acid element and freshness that just makes the green beans pop. Give it a try. I think you will like it, but if you don't, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese might be nice for a bit of acid too.

The Cooking Process

These sauteed green beans are a really a simple recipe. You just have to get the cooking method down and you are well on your way to a tasty side dish.

1. In a large skillet add a bag of frozen thin green beans (haricots verts) and water.
2. Bring to a boil and simmer for about five minutes. Drain excess water in the pan after boiling. The green beans should have a tender-crisp texture (not mushy) and will have a nice green color.
3. In the same skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and add back in the drained green beans, salt, black pepper, and three cloves of minced garlic.
4. Sauté the green beans for another 3-5 minutes until the green beans have gotten a little color and have softened. For more crisp green beans cook for less time. For softer green beans cook a little longer.
5. Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice from half of a lemon and give it another toss.
6. Serve green beans while they are hot.

Give these yummy sautéed green beans a try. It's a great way to use frozen green beans and such a simple side dish on busy weeknights. Tag me @eatwellspendsmart and use the hashtag #eatwellspendsmart on Instagram if you try one of my recipes and love it. I'd love to see what you are cooking!

 

More delicious side dish recipes

honey roasted carrots and beets

green bean casserole from scratch

southern style boiled cabbage

oven roasted asparagus