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Green Beans · Garlic Butter

Garlic Butter Green Beans

A quick boil keeps green beans bright and snappy, then they get tossed in butter with gently golden garlic. A side that goes with nearly any dinner.

New, no ratings yet0 reviewsby Simmerbee Kitchen

Prep
10 min
Cook
12 min
Total
25 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
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Ingredients

  • 1 lb green beans, stem ends trimmed
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt, for the cooking water
    Swaps for kosher salt

    Instead of salt

    • Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
    • Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.

    More for salt

  • ice, for an ice bath
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
    Swaps for unsalted butter

    Instead of butter

    • Salted butter: The same amount, with about ¼ tsp less salt per stick (½ cup) elsewhere in the recipe. Nothing noticeable once you cut the salt.
    • Plant-based butter sticks: The same amount. The closest swap.
    • Refined coconut oil: The same amount: solid when the butter is soft or cold, melted when it is melted. It is all fat, so bakes are a bit more tender and rich, with no butter flavor.

    All 4 swaps for butter

    Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.

  • 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
    Swaps for garlic

    Instead of garlic

    • Garlic powder: ⅛ tsp for each clove. Mellower and sweeter, with no bite.
    • Jarred minced garlic: ½ tsp for each clove. Milder and slightly sour from the preserving liquid.

    More for garlic

  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
    Swaps for kosher salt

    Instead of salt

    • Table salt or fine sea salt: About half as much as Diamond Crystal kosher, about ¾ as much as Morton kosher. The same saltiness when measured this way.
    • Salt by weight: 1 tsp is about 6 grams of table salt, 5 grams of Morton kosher, 3 grams of Diamond Crystal kosher. The most reliable way to swap, especially in baking and brines.

    More for salt

  • ⅛ tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp lemon juice (optional)
    Swaps for lemon juice

    Instead of lemon juice

    • Lime juice: The same amount. A different, more floral aroma; works almost everywhere.
    • Bottled lemon juice: The same amount. More sour and flatter; fine in cooking and baking, less bright in dressings and drinks.
    • White wine vinegar or white vinegar: Half as much. Sharper, with no citrus aroma.

    More for lemon juice

Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.

Steps

  1. Fill a large pot about two-thirds full of water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and bring it to a rolling
    boil (how to boil) Boil Heat liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. 1. Use a pot big enough that the water fills it no more than three quarters.2. Cover it to boil faster, over high heat.3. Salt pasta or vegetable water once it boils.4. Add the food, stir, and bring it back to a boil before you start timing. Done when: A rolling boil keeps bubbling hard even when you stir. Safety: Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove, and drain pasta into a colander in the sink, pouring away from you. Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to boil water for pasta and vegetables: mistakes to avoid
    over high heat.
  2. While the water heats, fill a large bowl with ice and cold water and set it next to the stove.
  3. Add the green beans to the boiling water and cook until they turn bright green and are just tender with a little snap left.
    ⏱ Boil beans: 3 min
  4. Drain the beans in a colander, then tip them straight into the ice water to stop the cooking.
  5. Once the beans are cold, drain them again and pat them dry with a clean towel. Dry beans won't spatter in the hot butter.
  6. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
  7. Add the garlic and stir until it smells fragrant and just turns pale gold. Don't let it go dark brown or it will taste bitter.
    ⏱ Garlic: 1 min
  8. Add the beans, 1/4 teaspoon salt and the pepper, and toss until the beans are hot and coated in garlic butter.
    ⏱ Toss + heat: 3 min
  9. Take the pan off the heat, add the lemon juice if you like, taste for salt and serve.

Tap an underlined word for how to do it, or see all techniques.

Tips

  • Line up a handful of beans with the stem ends even and trim them all with one cut.
  • Thin French-style beans (haricots verts) need only 2 minutes in the boiling water.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat in a skillet with a small knob of butter.

Make ahead

Boil, chill and dry the beans up to 2 days ahead. Keep them in the fridge and do the garlic butter step right before serving.

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage. In season: green beans (June to September).

Quick answers

Can I make it ahead?

Boil, chill and dry the beans up to 2 days ahead. Keep them in the fridge and do the garlic butter step right before serving.

What can I swap?
  • Instead of butter: Salted butter.
  • Instead of garlic: Garlic powder, ⅛ tsp for each clove.

Answered from this recipe's own storage, make-ahead and swap notes.

Estimated nutrition per serving

Calories
90
Protein
2 g
Carbohydrates
9 g
Fiber
3 g
Sugars
4 g
Fat
6 g
Saturated fat
3.5 g
Sodium
115 mg

Whole recipe, 4 servings: about 360 calories.

Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 5 of 5 ingredients.

How we estimate

We add up USDA FoodData Central values for each measured ingredient as written and divide by the recipe's 4 servings, so changing the servings or units here doesn't change a serving. Brands, swaps, trimming and cooking all change the real numbers.

Not counted: kosher salt (for the cooking water); ice (to taste or as needed); lemon juice (optional).

Estimated cost

About $0.95 a serving

About $3.85 for the recipe as written (4 servings).

Estimate; prices vary by store and region. U.S. average prices for September 2026 from BLS Average Price Data and USDA ERS Purchase to Plate prices updated with the BLS Consumer Price Index. Priced: 3 of 6 ingredients, 97% by weight.

How we estimate

Each measured ingredient is weighed as in the nutrition estimate and priced at the U.S. average: BLS's average price where BLS publishes one, else USDA ERS's Purchase to Plate price for 2017-18 raised to September 2026 with the CPI for that food group. Whole packages, store brands, sales and regions all change the real cost: treat it as a ballpark.

  • green beans $3.50 ERS
  • unsalted butter $0.25 BLS
  • garlic $0.10 ERS

Not priced (no official average price we can match, so not in the total): kosher salt, black pepper.

Not counted: ice, lemon juice (optional, or to taste).

More dishes for less: cheap eats.

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Cleanup score 2/5 (more cleanup): 4 things to wash, stockpot, stainless skillet, mixing bowl, colander.

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