Fresh Green Bean Almondine
Serves 4
15 mins prep
15 mins cook
30 mins total
My green bean almondine recipe is a retro-inspired tribute to Julia Child’s way with vegetables, with a modern update. I use a cheffy-but-simple technique that delivers tender, vibrantly green beans every time. After blanching, they’re quickly sautéed in butter, then piled onto a platter with toasted almonds and a squeeze of lemon.
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Trim off the tops and tails from 1½ pounds fresh green beans. Bring a large saucepan (4-5 quarts) of water to a boil, then season generously with kosher salt - I use about 2 tablespoons. Taste the water to be sure it's pleasantly salty.
Add the green beans and boil 2-3 minutes. They will turn bright green and some of them will start to pop. Taste one to check that it's tender, or almost tender. Drain in a colander.
Place a 12-inch skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, ¾ cup sliced almonds, and a pinch of salt. Toast the almonds until they turn golden and smell nutty, about 2 minutes. Stir them frequently and don't walk away, because they can go from perfect to burned pretty quickly. Transfer the almonds to a plate.
Wipe out the pan and put it back over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons butter. When it's melted, add the green beans, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Sauté the beans about 3 minutes, until some of the them are seared in spots. Lower the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon thinly sliced garlic, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley and ½ cup of the toasted almonds. Remove the pan from the heat and squeeze about a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice over the green beans.
Transfer the beans to a serving platter (or keep them in the pan). Sprinkle the remaining almonds over the top and serve.
