Asian Inspired Green Beans

One of my husband's very favorite dishes that I cook is one for Citrus Ginger Chicken that someone introduced me to from Eat Better America. It's really fantastic - full of flavor, easy to do, and not bad for you! I suggest checking it out.

My birthday was last month, and a friend of mine gave me a gift card to The Fresh Market, which cracks me up because it just shows how much my friends know me if they are going to give me a foodie gift! During my stroll through the store, I picked up some organic green beans and freshly ground peanut butter. I love green beans. I think they have a bad rep, but they are my very favorite green vegetable!

In looking for a healthy side dish to go with my citrus ginger chicken, I decided to do a quick marinade of Asian green beans. These are SO much better when the flavors are left to develop overnight, but if you're looking for something easy, quick and tasty...give this recipe a try.

First, make sure you wash your produce. I won't even go into what sorts of nasty can be on produce, so make sure you always wash stuff before you eat it. Next, I trimmed the ends off the green beans. Most people just trim the stem end, but I trim both. I don't know why, I just always have.


Next you want to combine these things in a bowl:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic,
2 tablespoons sugar or honey
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger, or 1/2 teaspoon ground

Toss green beans into a pot of salted water and leave them on a medium boil for about five minutes. This cooks them enough so that they aren't fibrous, but still have great color and crunch.

After letting them boil, drain them and immediately plunge them into a bath of ice water. This will stop cooking and help retain that gorgeous green and delightful snap.

Leave them there for another five minutes, drain them well and place them into a bowl or a Ziploc bag. Pour marinade over them, toss them well in it, and put them in the fridge until dinner is ready.

When ready to serve, I usually sprinkle mine with sesame seeds but that's optional! Enjoy!