Minty Green Beans in Lemon Butter
- Total Time: 15 mins
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Upgrade a basic side salad of green beans with warm, lemony butter and bright mint leaves.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 package of green beans, cleaned
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- 1/4 of a fresh lemon
- Very good butter
- A handful of fresh mint leaves
Instructions
- In a small pot, cook the green beans in salted boiling water, with a bit of olive oil, for about 5 minutes or until tender but still bright green. Drain.
- Add a knob of butter to the pan and turn the heat on medium. Squeeze the lemon juice into the pan. Swirl it around and stir with a spoon until melted.
- Throw the green beans back in and saute for about 8 minutes or so. Turn off the heat, coarsely tear the fresh mint leaves into the pan, season with salt and pepper. Shake everything around in the pan so that the residual heat infuses all of the flavors.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 80
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the mint leaves added off the heat at the very end?
The instructions turn off the heat before adding the torn mint leaves, then shake the pan so the residual heat infuses the flavours. Cooking fresh mint over direct heat quickly destroys its bright volatile oils and turns it dark and bitter — adding it at the end keeps the colour and flavour fresh.
Why boil the beans separately before sautéing them in the butter?
Boiling the green beans first in salted water with a bit of olive oil for about 5 minutes cooks them through while keeping them bright green and tender-crisp. The follow-up sauté in lemon butter for about 8 minutes builds flavour and coats the beans in the sauce without risking overcooking them from raw.
