Green Beans and Potatoes

My green bean crop this year has been prodigious. Well maybe I should say, my green bean plants have been prodigious, taking over several sections of my garden. Even the so-called bush beans have put out tendrils stretching across and over rows of gladioli, kohlrabi, and dill. In fact, it wasn't until I ruthlessly pruned the beans--actually, just started yanking out a fe plants at strategic places--that they really started to bear.

And have they been bearing! I planted two rows, each only about 3 or 4 feet long, and now have been picking over a quart of beans every day. Even after sharing much of this bounty with friends and family, finding ways to use so many beans has been a challenge. I don't own a pressure canner so won't can these low-acid vegetables, and my freezer space is limited due to a very healthy raspberry crop again this year. This means green beans are on the menu several times a week, so finding new ways to prepare them helps avoid too much monotony.

Naturally, just nibbling the tiniest of beans straight from the plant is still one of the joys of having a garden, and my grandsons love wandering through the garden, picking green beans along with cherry tomatoes and raspberries, as they go. But there are many more ways to enjoy the beans, and I've include several of these in earlier blog posts.

Lightly steamed with a few fresh herbs and a little salt, green beans go well with pork chops or chicken. Then there is a family favorite, roasted beans, also is a great match for many kinds of meat dishes. You can find that here:

http://frugalfastfun.blogspot.com/2014/09/roasted-green-beans.html

Another variation, with tofu, has worked well when there are vegetarians at the table. Combine this with rice and a light salad for a thoroughly satisfying meal.

http://frugalfastfun.blogspot.com/2016/08/green-beans-and-tofu.html

Today,  I was looking for something else. Scouring the internet turned up dozens (hundreds?) of green bean and potatoes dishes, so I decided to give the combination a try and came up with a quick dish that would work well for either lunch or dinner.

What makes my version unique, compared to the recipes I did review, is the use of the microwave to speed up the overall preparation. I am not sure why so many people are so resistant to using the microwave for more than just reheating prepared foods. Preparing vegetables in the microwave is very similar to steaming on the stovetop, with nutrients more preserved than the traditional pre-cooking/blanching in recipes like this.

Served with fried eggs and a light salad (or just some carrots as shown in the photo), this makes a complete vegetarian meal at relatively low cost--especially if the beans are fresh from your own garden!

Add a  fried egg with salsa and a few baby carrots, and you have the makings of a balanced, nutritious meal.

 

Green Beans and Potatoes

10 to 12 oz (about 2 c) fresh green beans; leave whole if small or cut into about 1 inch pieces if the beans are larger
1/4 t garlic powder, to taste
1/4 to 1/2 t Italian seasoning
water
cannola oil
1/4 small onion, or more to taste, diced
1/4 red or yellow bell pepper, diced (optional)
2 medium or 1 large all purpose potato, scrubbed and thickly sliced
seasoning salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash the beans, remove stem ends, and cut into 1 inch pieces if desired.

2.  Place the prepared beans in a microwave safe bowl. Sprinkle with garlic powder and Italian seasoning and pour a tablespoon or two of water over the beans. Cover lightly and microwave for 3 minutes.

3.  Meanwhile, heat enough canola oil in a large skillet to barely cover the bottom of the pan. When the oil is hot, add the potatoes, onion, and pepper. Spread evenly over the bottom. Continue to cook over medium high heat for about 4 to 5 minutes, until the potatoes are beginning to turn golden and crisp. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and turn. Continue to cook another few minutes.

4.  When both sides of the potatoes are golden, but not completely cooked through, add the beans and any remaining liquid. Stir in gently, cover the pan, and continue to cook another few minutes until the potatoes are just tender.

Serves 2 to 3.

"Roasted" Green Beans

The green beans in my garden got off to a late start, but now that September has arrived, they are producing beautifully. One of our family's favorite ways to eat green beans is roasting in the oven, but the same results can easily be obtained by grilling and, I have discovered, by using my old standby cast iron skillet. One of the nice things about this method is that it works well for beans of all sizes, from the sweet and tender little pencil-sized ones up to the fat, lumpy ones that get missed under the leaves of the vines. (A friend of mine confided that she only plants the purple beans now, as they are so much easier to find when picking them in the garden.)

Whenever you have fresh green beans available, do try this variation from the steamed or (yikes) boiled kind that many people have come to expect from "string beans." Note that the "recipe" below is once again more method than measurement, scalable to whatever amount of beans you have. Just don't be surprised if your family eats far larger servings of these than you might be accustomed to serving.

I have included the variations for roasting or grilling the beans as well, but I wouldn't start the oven or grill just for the beans; it's just too easy to do these on the stovetop without needing to start another heat source.

Stove Top Roasted Green Beans

cast iron skillet, sized to allow beans to cook in a single layer (if you have a lot of beans, just do them in batches)
olive oil
green beans
salt

1.  Put a small amount of olive oil in the skillet, enough to just put a thin coat of oil across the entire surface. Heat the pan with the oil over medium high to high heat until it begins to "shimmer." (If you are not familiar with this term, just watch the oil and you will see it start to have tiny ripple-like movements across the surface, indicating the oil has reached a good cooking temperature.)





2.  While the oil is heating, rinse and dry the beans and remove the stem ends. No need to take off the pointy "tails" of the beans. If some of the beans are quite large, you may wish to cut them lengthwise into two or three pieces.
3.  When the oil has begun to shimmer, spread the beans in a single layer in the skillet. Do not turn down the heat! Sprinkle the beans lightly with salt and allow them to cook for a few minutes before turning.
4.  Continue cooking until the beans are lightly browned and a little crispy and wrinkled on both sides.

Variations

Roasted Green Beans
1.  Heat the oven to 400 to 450 degrees (depending on what else you might have in the oven at the time).
2.  Cover a cookie sheet with foil (for easier clean up but not absolutely necessary). Spread the prepared beans (see step 2 above) in a single layer in the pan and drizzle with a little olive oil.
3.  Using a silicon spatula or your fingers (which is really the best way), toss the beans so that they are well-coated with the oil. Sprinkle salt over the top.
4.  Roast the beans in the oven about 5 to 8 minutes, until they are beginning to brown in spots. Remove from oven and turn. Return to oven and cook a few minutes more, until the beans are nicely browned, wrinkly and maybe even a little crisp.

Grilled Green Beans
1.  Prepare the beans as in step 2 for Stove Top Beans. Spread on heavy aluminum foil and put on the grill.
2.  Roast on the grill, turning as needed so that the beans are evenly browned.

Stove Top Green Beans and Other Vegetables

Cook the beans as directed above. When completely cooked, remove the beans to a plate. Add a bit more oil to the pan as necessary and then saute onions and peppers, matchstick sized zucchini or yellow squash, and carrot slices as desired. Return the green beans to the pan to warm before serving.