Sautéed Green Beans

Sauteed green beans with garlic are quick and easy to make and super delicious. The fresh green beans (string beans!) are pan-fried until blistered in a few spots then tossed with a little garlic. Yum!

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This green bean recipe is so easy it almost feels unfair that it tastes this good. It’s my go-to sautéed green beans side because it comes together in about 10 minutes and works with just about any dinner I’m making. Simple, fast, and reliably delicious — the kind of recipe I lean on again and again.

The short ingredient list keeps the focus where it should be: on tender green beans with tons of flavor. Cooking them over high heat gives you those irresistible dark, blistered spots, which add so much depth. Plus, it’s the quickest way I know to cook green beans — five minutes of prep, five minutes on the stove, and they’re ready.

These sautéed green beans are endlessly versatile. Pick a protein, make the beans, and dinner’s basically done.

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Close-up of sautéed green beans with visible seasoning and slight char marks, highlighting the vibrant color and texture of these perfectly cooked veggies. - 3

How to prepare green beans

Fresh green beans (also called string beans) are easy to prepare. Most green beans are now stringless, which means that all you have to do to prepare them is cut off the tip.

But if you’ve bought heirloom green beans they likely will have strings. In this case, use a paring knife to snap the end off then pull it back to remove the string.

Or you can buy bags of prepared green beans at most grocery stores to save a little time.

Serving ideas

These green beans are so versatile that they go well with nearly everything. Some of our favorites are:

Honey Garlic Chicken
Juicy Baked Pork Chops
Perfect Baked Chicken Breasts

To complete your dinner, these smoky roast potatoes or these garlic smashed sweet potatoes go really well with this green bean recipe!

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Sauteed Green Beans with Garlic Recipe

Ingredients

▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
▢ 1 lb green beans (trimmed)
▢ 3 cloves garlic (very finely minced)
▢ ½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

Heat a large pan over high heat. When it’s hot, add the oil and green beans. Cook the green beans, tossing occasionally, until soft and starting to blister and turn black in a few spots, about 5 minutes. 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 lb green beans
Add the garlic to the pan and cook the beans for 1 minute more. Remove the pan from the heat and toss with the sea salt. 3 cloves garlic, ½ teaspoon sea salt

Video

Notes

Nutrition

We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here .

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More green bean recipes to try next!

Green Beans with Bacon and Boursin

Green Beans with Garlic Scapes Aioli