Try this Greek Green Beans recipe, or contribute your own.
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. dijon mustard
- 1 lb. green beans trimmed if needed (i used the thin french green beans from costco)
- 1/4 c. sliced kalamata olives
- 1/4 c. sliced sun dried tomatoes (i used oil packed)
- 1/4 c. crumbled feta cheese
- 1/4 c. toasted pine nuts
- 1-2 tbls. small diced red onion
- handful of fresh dill roughly chopped
- 1/4 c. white balsamic vinegar
- 1 lg. garlic clove minced
- 1/2 c. olive oil
- Carbohydrate 55.0713559954522 g
- Cholesterol 33.375 mg
- Fat 78.0813309110099 g
- Fiber 19.105741047905 g
- Protein 22.1614511406509 g
- Saturated Fat 12.736817023256 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (676g)
- Sodium 938.65854221385 mg
- Sugar 35.9656149475472 g
- Trans Fat 7.49585071700259 g
- Calories 960 calories
Step-by-step
- Make the vinaigrette: In small bowl, combine dressing ingredients, except olive oil and whisk to combine. Slowly add olive oil while continuing to whisk until vinaigrette is emulsified. Adjust seasonings as necessary and set aside.
- Fill a large bowl with some water and ice and set aside.
- Bring large pot of water to boil, add green beans and blanch a couple minutes until beans are bright green. If you want your beans more cooked and less crisp, just cook them a little longer until they're the texture you prefer. Drain, then add beans to bowl with ice water to stop the cooking. Once cooled, drain beans and return to bowl.
- Add vinaigrette to the beans along with olives and sun dried tomatoes. Set in refrigerator for about an hour to chill. You could continue and eat them without chilling if desired.
- To serve, toss green beans with feta cheese, pine nuts, red onion and dill. Or you can lay the beans on a platter and top the beans with the cheese, pine nuts, onion and dill.
Undercooking the initial blanching water is the error most cooks make with vegetable salads, leaving fibrous pods that refuse to absorb flavor. Traditional Mediterranean preparations often utilize slow-simmered vegetables, but a quick-chill method preserves structural integrity while allowing assertive vinegars and briny elements to penetrate.
- Plunge trimmed pods into rapidly boiling water for precisely two minutes until vibrant green, then transfer immediately to an ice bath to halt cooking and set the chlorophyll.
- Whisk the white balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, Dijon mustard, and dried oregano thoroughly before streaming in the oil to form a stable temporary emulsion.
- Toast raw pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for three to five minutes, stirring constantly until golden brown and fragrant.
- Fold in the crumbled feta cheese and toasted nuts just before serving to prevent the dairy from melting and discoloring the dressing.
Using oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes delivers a softer texture and more pronounced umami than dehydrated varieties. Chilling the dressed pods for one hour allows the cell walls to absorb the acid without turning the vegetables mushy.
