Easy Green Beans Almondine with Garlic

Green Beans Almondine is a classic side dish recipe that can easily be made ahead or quickly thrown together in under 20 minutes!  Fresh green beans are sautéed in a skillet with butter and garlic and topped with lemon juice and toasted almonds.  They’re a great gluten-free, vegetarian, and low-carb side dish the whole family will love.

Want a few other easy side dish recipes?  You might also enjoy this Lemon Roasted Asparagus, Honey Oven Roasted Broccoli, or this Roasted Cauliflower.

Easy Green Beans Almondine

Do you get tired of making the same side dish recipes over and over again?

I know at our house, I tend to always make these roasted sweet potato cubes and this roasted cauliflower and broccoli almost weekly.

Well I am happy to report that there is a new low-carb and gluten-free side dish recipe in town that you might want to add to your recipe rotation… these Green Beans Almondine!

Not only are they super quick and simple to make, but they are FULL of flavor with only a few ingredients.

Almondine or Amandine?

Green Beans Almondine is a recipe made by sautéeing fresh green beans in a bit of butter and garlic and then topping with a squeeze of lemon juice and toasted almonds.

The spelling sometimes varies and is called “green beans amandine.”

Amandine is a French word in the culinary dialect that means “topped or garnished with almonds.”

It can refer to anything from fish and asparagus to green beans or potatoes.

But don’t let the slight difference in spelling confuse you – green beans almondine (the spelling typically used in the US) and amandine are the exact same dish!

So feel free to use either spelling with confidence.

Ingredients

The ingredients you will need for this recipe are relatively easy to find and consists of:

• Green Beans – Fresh, and not canned or frozen, will deliver the most flavor in this dish.
• Butter – Feel free to substitute with a vegan “butter” or use olive oil instead if dairy-free.
• Garlic – Fresh garlic cloves give this dish a wonderful punch of flavor.  I do not recommend substituting with garlic powder.
• Lemons – Once again, fresh lemon juice and zest will take this dish over the top.  If you must, you can use the pre-squeeze lemon juice.
• Almonds – Both slivered or sliced almonds can be used in this recipe.  They’ll be toasted in a skillet to bring out the most flavor in this dish.
  • Learn more about how to toast almonds.

Trimming Green Beans

If you purchased your green beans in bulk at your grocery store, you will first need to trim and prepare them before cooking.

You can skip this step if you purchased the rinsed and trimmed green beans found in plastic bags in the produce section.

There are two ways to trim green beans:

• Snapping:
  • Hold the end of the green bean with both hands.
  • Press into the bean using your thumbs until it snaps.
  • Repeat this process until all green beans are trimmed.
• Cutting:
  • Find the junction of the fibrous end and the bright green part on the green bean.
  • Cut and remove the end of the green bean.
  • Repeat until all beans are trimmed.

How to Make

Once your green beans are trimmed and prepared, it’s time to get to cooking!

Here are the basic step-by-step instructions you will need to follow for this recipe:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook green beans for 4-5 minutes, or until cooked to your desired tenderness.
2. Blanch green beans in an ice water bath immediately after cooking.
3. Drain green beans once brought to room temperature.
4. Combine butter or olive oil, garlic, and almonds in the same large pot or in a separate large skillet over medium heat. Stir for 1-2 minutes or until garlic is browned slightly.
5. Add drained green beans, salt, and lemon juice to the pot. Toss and warm up green beans for 2-3 minutes.

Blanching

There is a step in this recipe that calls for blanching green beans.

Please do not skip this very important step!  Blanching the green beans is crucial in stopping the cooking process.

When you dunk the boiled beans in an ice water bath, it halts the cooking process and keeps your green beans that vibrant green color you see in the pictures!

If you don’t blanch the beans they will continue cooking and turn a darker, less vibrant green and no longer have that delightfully crisp texture.

Blanching green beans takes just a few minutes, and no longer than 5 minutes.

Of course, this will depend on how many green beans you have and how much ice you have in your ice water bath.

I like to blanch my green beans until they have come to room temperature.  Then, I quickly reheat them in a skillet just before serving.

Slivered or Sliced Almond

While some green bean almondine recipes call for slivered almonds, I actually prefer to use thinly sliced almonds.

Sliced almonds toast up a bit more quickly in the skillet and absorb more of the delicious buttery flavor.

However, if you cannot find sliced almonds, feel free to use slivered instead!

Storing and Serving

Green beans almondine taste best when served immediately after cooking.

If storing leftovers for later, they will last for up to 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

The best way to reheat leftover green beans is to heat them up in a skillet with a bit of oil or butter.  Cook over medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes, or until heated through.

While yes, you can freeze green beans, they will lose quite a bit of their crisp texture.  If freezing, store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3-4 months.

Change it Up

While this recipe is already gluten-free, low-carb, whole30, and vegetarian, there are a few things you can change up if needed:

• Use olive oil in place of the butter for a vegan and dairy-free version.
• Allergic to almonds?  You can use pecans or walnuts instead.
• Switch out the green beans for asparagus, or mix them together!

Other Easy Sides

Lemon Garlic Roasted Asparagus

Bacon Wrapped Asparagus Bundles Recipe

15 Minute Green Beans with Vinegar

Parmesan Garlic Roasted Broccoli and Cauliflower

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Easy Green Beans Almondine with Garlic

Green Beans Almondine is a classic side dish recipe that can easily be made ahead or quickly thrown together in under 20 minutes!  

Course Dinner, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword green bean almondine recipe, green beans almondine

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 128 kcal

Author London

Ingredients

• 1 lb. green beans fresh, ends trimmed
• 2 Tbsp. butter or olive oil
• 1 clove garlic crushed
• ¼ cup sliced almonds or slivered almonds
• ½ tsp. salt to taste
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• Lemon zest optional
• See this recipe in Meal Plan #7

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook green beans for 4-5 minutes, or until cooked to your desired tenderness.

2. Once done cooking, immediately blanch green beans in an ice water bath. Drain once beans have cooled to room temperature.

3. While green beans are blanching, combine butter or olive oil, garlic, and almonds in the large pot over medium heat. Stir for 1-2 minutes or until garlic is browned slightly.

4. Add drained green beans, salt, and lemon juice to the pot. Toss and warm up green beans for 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately with additional toasted almonds, if desired.  See this recipe in Meal Plan #7.

Nutrition Facts

Easy Green Beans Almondine with Garlic

Amount Per Serving

Calories 128 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Saturated Fat 4g25%

Cholesterol 16mg5%

Sodium 299mg13%

Potassium 287mg8%

Carbohydrates 10g3%

Fiber 4g17%

Sugar 4g4%

Protein 4g8%

Vitamin A 967IU19%

Vitamin C 15mg18%

Calcium 60mg6%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.