Do you have a go-to method or recipe for cooking green beans? My mom did. She always boiled them in a pot of water on the stove top. It was easy and fairly quick. Just cook, season with salt, pepper, and butter and you have a side dish ready in no time.
While boiled green beans are tasty, there is a drawback – cooking in a lot of water causes many of the nutrients to leach out into the water. And most people dump that water, and the leached nutrients, down the drain. However, there are other ways to prepare vegetables that do a better job at preserving the nutrients found in them – like grilling, roasting, or sautéing. These methods use far less water, so more nutrients stay in the food rather than seeping out into the cooking water.
Today’s recipe for Lemon Pepper Green Beans is cooked in a skillet on the stove top – also called sauteeing. All you need are a few ingredients, a large skillet with a lid, and a stove top. The first ingredient is green beans, preferably fresh. If you can get them with the stems already removed, all you have to do to prep the green beans is wash them. The only other ingredients are a little olive oil, kosher salt, fresh ground black pepper, and a fresh lemon…oh and just a little water.
It’s super simple to put together for a quick, nourishing side dish that’s deliciously seasoned with a little kosher salt, fresh lemon, and fresh ground black pepper.
How to make Lemon Pepper Green Beans
Start by sautéing the green beans in the olive oil in a large skillet for a few minutes till they start to brown just slightly, stirring every couple minutes. I like to use a large set of tongs to do this. After that, finish them off by steaming in fresh lemon juice and water, and then season with salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Add a squirt or two of lemon juice just before serving and you’re ready to go. So easy. So good. So tasty. Why not try them today?
Lemon Pepper Green Beans
Equipment
- Large skillet with lid
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh green beans cleaned and stems removed
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice about 1/2 lemon
- 1 tbsp water
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4-1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Heat two teaspoons olive oil in large skillet. Add green beans and cook for 8 minutes on medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Beans will start to char slightly.
- Add 2 Tbsp. lemon juice and 1 Tbsp. water to the beans, cover, and turn heat to low. Cook 2 more minutes. Remove lid and continue to simmer until water has evaporated.
- Add salt, pepper, and another drizzle of fresh lemon juice. Serve immediately.
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