Green Beans Stewed with Tomatoes and Potatoes

I learned this dish in Calabria (the toe of the Italian boot) many years ago. When all the ingredients are at their peak it’s a wonderful, simple dish. Serve with bread and some cheese and you have dinner. And the vegetables need to be cooked until they are quite soft. It’s much more flavorful this way so be patient. 

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil, and a bit more for finishing
• 2 garlic cloves, smashes with the side of a knife and roughly chopped
• 1 lb green beans, tipped and cut into 2-3 inch lengths
• 2 large ripe tomatoes, diced
• 2-3 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cut into about ½ inch cubes
• Salt, freshly ground pepper,
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley (optional)

Directions

Heat the olive oil in large, sauté pan. Add the green beans and sauté for a few minutes on high heat add the potatoes, tomatoes, salt and garlic and cook on med-high to high heat, stirring frequently. When the potatoes and beans are quite tender (about 15 -20 minutes) add the pepper, parsley if using and cook for another minute or two. Serve hot or at room temperature with a generous drizzle of good olive oil.

Green Bean Salad With Creamy Tofu Dressing (Sayaingen no Shira-ae)

From the Oregonian Foodday, Adapted from "The Japanese Kitchen" by Kimiko Barber


Instead of green beans, you can use whatever seasonal vegetable strikes your fancy. Snow peas, spinach, asparagus, fava beans, persimmon, apples, pears or sautéed mushrooms all go well with this simple dressing.

Ingredients

• 10 ounces soft silken tofu
• 14 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed and cut in half (3 to 3 1/2 cups)
• 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted (divided; see note)
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sake (Japanese rice wine)
• 1 pinch salt

Directions 

Wrap the tofu in paper towels, place a plate on top, and allow it to drain for 30 minutes.
Blanch or steam the green beans for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and hold under cool running water until the beans are cool to the touch. Drain and pat dry.
Grind 3 tablespoons of the sesame seeds with a mortar and pestle until finely ground into a paste. Press the tofu through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl. Add the ground sesame seeds, sugar, soy sauce and sake.
Add the blanched beans and stir until beans are well coated. Season to taste with salt and additional soy sauce. Sprinkle with remaining teaspoon of sesame seeds and serve.
Note: To toast seeds, spread on baking sheet and bake in a 350-degree oven for 3 to 5 minutes or until brown. Makes 4 servings.

Salad Nicoise

Absolutely one of Chris and my’s favorite meals- we made it earlier this week with our new potatoes, fresh tomatoes and yellow beans- quite simple to prepare and delicious!

Ingredients

• 5 fingerling potatoes
• 1 cup vinaigrette- (the Joy of Cooking recipe we used called for a dressing with red wine vinegar, olive oil, and Dijon mustard, we added some herbs of choice).
• 1 pound steamed green beans
• 1 head butter or red leaf lettuce, washed, dried, and chilled (any lettuce will do really, but butter lettuce in the best.)
• 3 ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, halved
• 1 cup canned or cooked tuna, chilled
• 6 (approx.) canned anchovy filets
• 1/2 Greek cup olives

Directions

Boil whole potatoes until just tender. Drain; rinse in cold water & slip off skins. While still warm, cut into 1/8-inch slices & gently toss with about 1/3 cup of vinaigrette in a bowl. Place steamed beans in another bowl & toss with enough vinaigrette to coat. Just before serving, toss lettuce leaves with vinaigrette to coat & arrange on a platter or plates. Arrange all ingredients in distinct clusters on the lettuce, drizzling on remaining vinaigrette & garnish with fresh herbs. Serve with French bread. Serves 6. 

Potato, Green Bean and Cherry Tomato Salad

Ingredients

• 1-1/4 pounds slender green beans, trimmed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 2 pounds small red-skinned new potatoes, quartered
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 6 tablespoons drained capers
• 8 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1- 1-pint basket cherry tomatoes, halved 

Directions

Cook beans in pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain. Transfer to medium bowl. Refresh under cold running water. Drain well. Cook potatoes in pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 8 minutes. Drain. Transfer to large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons orange juice and 2 tablespoons vinegar; toss to coat. Cool to room temperature, occasionally stirring gently. Add green beans, tomatoes and parsley to potatoes. Whisk remaining 6 tablespoons orange juice, 1 tablespoon vinegar, oil and capers in small bowl to blend. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper. Add dressing to salad and toss to combine. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) 

Green Beans with Garlic and Basil

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound green beans, trimmed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Bring a large saucepan three-fourths full of water to a boil. Add the beans and boil until tender and still slightly resistant to the bite, 3-5 minutes. Drain, immerse the beans in cold water to stop the cooking and drain well again. In a wok or frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil, swirling to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. When the oil is hot, add the beans and stir and toss every 10-15 seconds until they just begin to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and basil; stir and toss for 30 seconds longer. Remove from the heat, add salt and pepper to taste; toss to combine. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve immediately. Serves 2-4. 

Green Beans

From The Splendid Table

The traditional Greek recipes in which this method is rooted use as much as three quarters of a cup of olive oil -- too much for me. The few tablespoons here give flavor and allow the green beans to caramelize. Pretty they are not, but with one bite that is moot. Back in my restaurant days, I once received a proposal of marriage from a guest on the basis of these green beans. 

Pay careful attention to the details here. Technique is all.

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh green beans, tipped and tailed
• Vegetable oil cooking spray
• 3 tablespoons 
• About 1 tablespoon medium to finely chopped garlic (5 or 6 cloves)
• 1 large fresh tomato, chopped (I go ahead and leave the skin on and seeds in; if you are fussier than me, remove both and use only the chopped pulp of 2 tomatoes)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• A few dashes of cayenne
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried dill

Directions

1. Blanch the green beans: Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. When the water is boiling, add the green beans and cook for 2 minutes. Drain them well, then rinse with cold water, and drain them again.

2. Spray a large, heavy (preferably cast iron) skillet with a tight-fitting cover with oil, and set it over very low heat. Add the olive oil, scatter the garlic over it, and add the blanched green beans (in contrast to most sautes, the green beans are added when neither pan, nor oil, nor garlic, is yet hot). Scatter the tomato over the beans. Don’t stir.

3. Still keeping the heat as low as possible, cover the beans and let them just barely cook, without stirring, for about 40 minutes. I know it’s hard, but keep on not stirring; leave the heat low enough so that nothing burns. If you like, you can push a few beans back to check on the garlic at the bottom of the skillet. It should not be browning, merely cooking very, very slowly. Some of the beans will be browned on oneside, which is good. If this hasn’t happened yet, cover again and cook for 10, even 15, minutes more.

4. When the beans are soft, lift the lid and stir gently. It is unlikely, but if there’s a noticeable amount of liquid in the skillet, turn the heat up and, stirring gently but constantly, evaporate the liquid off. You want soft, barely-holding-together green beans. They should be slightly shriveled-looking and browned lightly here and there, with a bit of the garlic-tomato jam sticking to them.

5. Turn off the heat. Salt and pepper the beans, sprinkle them with the cayenne and dill, stir one more time, and serve. No, no, you don’t have to thank me.

Variation: Crescent’s More-or-Less Greek-style Green Beans with Gigandes: Gigandes are the truly enormous white lima beans that are typically served at room temperature as an hors d’oeuvre, cooked tender and then braised with a little tomato and a lot of olive oil. But if you soak 2 cups of dried gigandes (see page 348), cook them in a nice savory stock by whatever basic method you like, and then gently stir them into the green beans after they have cooked for about 30 minutes—oh my goodness, what a pleasing vegetarian main dish you have. (If you like, double the olive oil, garlic, and tomato so there will be a bit more with which to coat the gigandes.) This is excellent served with a bulgur or another wholegrain pilaf.

Fennel Green Beans

Ingredients:

• 3 cups thin green beans
• 1/2 cup sliced fennel bulb
• 1/2 medium onion, sliced
• 1 fresh tomato, seeds and excess pulp removed, chopped
• 2 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
• salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Slice onion and let sit during step 2.
2. Bring water to a boil in a steamer with a tight fitting lid.
3. Cut ends off beans and cut into 1-2 inch pieces. Slice fennel.
4. Steam beans and onion together for about 3 minutes, then add fennel. Steam for another 2 minutes. Drain well and pat with paper towel so any excess water does not dilute taste.
5. Toss with rest of ingredients.

Classic Minestrone

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Martha Stewart's recipe actually uses quite a bit of fall vegetables- carrots, cabbage, celery.... Substitute the green beans for our dried Jacob's cattle beans (or canned Cannellini's or Great Northern beans) and this is a wonderful fall soup.  

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving (optional)
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 large celery stalk, diced
• 1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
• 1 large potato, peeled and diced
• 1/4 head Savoy or green cabbage (1/2 pound), cored and thinly sliced
• 1 can (15 ounces) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 garlic clove, minced (optional)
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil, plus torn leaves for serving (optional)
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions

In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, carrots, celery, red-pepper flakes, rosemary, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to turn golden, 5 to 8 minutes.

Add tomatoes; cook until some of the liquid evaporates, 1 minute. Add potato, cabbage, cannellini beans, and 7 cups water; bring to a boil. Stir in green beans.

Reduce to a simmer, and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; stir in garlic, if using, and basil. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan and, if using, torn basil. Drizzle with more oil, if desired.