The Accidental Locavore Recipe for Green Beans Three Ways

The Accidental Locavore thinks there’s a lot you can do with green beans once they’ve been blanched. It’s a good idea to prepare an ice bath for them before you start. Just fill a big bowl with ice cubes and water.

To blanch the beans, either heat a large pot of water until boiling, add the beans and cook for 4 minutes until crisp-tender, or put them in a covered dish in the microwave for 3 minutes on high. Drain the beans in the ice bath to stop the cooking. Remove from the ice bath and pat dry. These are all for 1 pound green beans, trimmed (and cut into 1″ lengths if you want) and blanched:

Indian Style

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon each: cumin seeds, mustard seeds (brown or yellow) and sesame seeds
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Pinch of cayenne pepper

Heat the oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the cumin, mustard and sesame seeds. As soon as the seeds start popping (which will be almost immediately) add the beans, stir and lower the heat to medium-low. Add the salt and cayenne and stir for about a minute. Serve and enjoy.

With Grilled Lime

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 lime cut in half and grilled for 10 minutes, cut side down
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Heat the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the beans and cook until warmed through about 4 minutes. Squeeze the lime over the beans and garnish with the sesame seeds. Serve and enjoy.

With Toasted Pine Nuts

• 2 tablespoons butter
• ¼ cup pine nuts, toasted (toast them in the pan before adding the beans, or on a plate in the microwave for a minute…be careful not to burn them)

Heat the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the beans and pine nuts and cook until warmed through about 4 minutes. Serve and enjoy.