If you’re curious about that meatloaf pictured on the plate, you can get the recipe for To Die For Meatloaf by clicking here.
My mother in law (of Linda’s Spaghetti fame) insisted that I post how I made these beans the last time all the Jordan’s got together so I am being a good daughter in law today. It’s just a simple recipe, barely a recipe really because it just uses what you have on hand like our Granny did, but in a world where churning out complicating recipes is becoming more and more popular simple things are often the most appreciated.
This is just one of the ways that I make fresh green beans, which are pretty affordable this time of year. In fact, I bought two big bags of them at the grocery store this past weekend and cooked them ahead for supper this week.
Hey! Y’all ready to eat? Food ain’t gonna cook itself so let’s get in the kitchen!
You’ll need: fresh beans, butter, salt, and pepper.
That’s all! If I have some bacon grease handy I like to add a tablespoon or so of that as well, totally optional. You can use frozen green beans in place of fresh if you really can’t get fresh, just promise me you’ll try it with fresh sometime, ok?
Let’s not talk about using canned green beans in this recipe, we just don’t even want to let that thought enter into our minds. 🙂 If you want to make canned green beans taste good, check out this recipe (click here).
Break the ends off of each bean and then break them into bite sized pieces.
Discard the ends or feed ’em to your chickens.
Don’t have chickens? Go get at least three or four hens before proceeding to the next step.
Just kidding.
Place all of these beans in a pot of water along with a stick of butter. Place this over medium high heat and cook until the water cooks down almost completely, stirring from time to time. There will be a little liquid left in the pot but not much at all. This will take anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes or more depending on how hot your pot gets.
Don’t be tempted to call the beans done before the water is cooked down. They will be tender before that but not nearly as flavorful as they will be once they are tender all the way through and cooked down to a nice thin buttery coated sauce.
These are good with just about anything. We have been eating them as our low carb side when the kids are having rice or mashed potatoes so I like to keep a big container of them already cooked in the fridge for us.
Get the recipe for To Die For Meatloaf by clicking here.
Ingredients
- Fresh Green Beans
- 1 stick of butter
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Break ends of green beans off and discard. Break each bean into bite sized pieces.
- Place green beans and butter in a large pot. Cover with water.
- Bring to a boil over medium high heat and continue cooking, stirring often, until water is almost completely cooked out and beans are very tender.
- Salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!
Notes
“Either you run the day or the day runs you.”
~Jim Rohn
Yum 
Thanks Christy!
You weren’t kidding when you said people like to make these big complicated recipes nowadays.
Simple is best, in my book. I cook my green beans the same way, and my kids can hardly get enough of them.
I appreciate this very much. I have grown my own green beans, successfully, for the first time. This recipe was true perfection. Thanks so much!
Man, these are so simple and crazy delicious. I couldn’t believe how tender and tasty they are. I crave them every week. Cooking for one isn’t always easy, especially when you aren’t a big fan of leftovers, but I can eat a batch of these green beans pretty quick. Yum!
Oh, and never be embarrassed or afraid to put the “barely a recipe” recipe’s on here. There are plenty of people reading this, that it never occurs to them to make it that way. Be it the first time they’ve ever made it, oor one of those “why haven’t I made this lately?” times.
Thanks again!
Thank you so much! Please know that you have been a great encouragement to me today!!!!!
I agree with Angie H. Christy, remember that there are always brand new cooks – – of all ages – – and cooks who hate cooking but who must do it. Both groups will love these simple recipes. People who enjoy cooking will love them, too, and those who have precious little time will be your fans, too.
I am an old cook and I still love the simple way the best! Thanks for sharing Christy!
Simple is never a bad thing!
I find the most magic in simple recipes, the fewer the ingredients the more dependent on quality of ingredients and execution.
So very true Marvin!!
How many lb. Of green beans and about how much water
Didn’t matter just cook the water down. I usually cook around three lbs. and it takes around two to three hours
Today is Easter. In the middle of making dinner, I had a big pile of fresh string beans. My husband doesn’t care for string beans or at least mine. I really enjoy fresh string beans. I can across your recipe and thought I would give it a try. WOW. He could not get enough of them. It’s simple recipe with a powerful taste. Thank you.
PS: No string bean left overs here!
Wow, that just made my day!! I am glad they were a hit but am so honored to hear that your husband liked them!!
I love simple recipes! This is a recipe I will try! Love fresh green beans! Thanks!
I remember when I was growing up my mom and other cooks of the era I knew cooked fresh green beans to death. My mom would put them on in the morning and cook them most of the day. I can’t say they tasted bad as they were seasoned with ham or bacon but I now know that probably nary a vitamin survived.
I fall into the ” why haven’t I made these lately” category ! Now I’m craving them and will have to make them. : )
About how many pounds of green beans? Thanks!
I guess I’m more old school although I love your faster recipe too. My green beans usually cook about 2 hours or so. With some country ham, a hot pepper, and onion.
Add a few new taters to this, a hunk of cornbread slathered in butter, and a big slice of sweet onion and boy is that some kinda good eaten! But I know then it’s no longer low carb. But sure is some good ole country grub!
Good ole country grub is right Marsha!!
I hate the green beans served out at dinners/restaurants that are so hard when you try to cut them they literally jump off the plate. I read a piece year’s and years ago by James Beard about cooking green beans until they are very tender.
He said you could tell when they were done because the cooking odor changed when they achieved that .moment of doneness.
My mother said that too and she was just a simple East Texas cook who could make a believer of the most ardent vegetable hater. It works though. Try it.
This is exactly what happens when you cook that whole pot of water down and why I cautioned not to consider them done until the end. 🙂
I agree, So good!
How many pounds of green beans do you use in this recipe?
Thank you very much for posting this simple recipe. I am not an experienced cook, although I am learning, and big, long recipes intimidate me. So, really, thank you so much for this. I like when I feel like I can be part of the cooking gang too! 🙂
Oh my goodness, I have faith in you Ashley!!! I know you are going to turn out to be a fabulous cook!!
How many beans?? In green bean recipe with butter. Thanks
This is just a simple way of cooking that will easily adapt to a pound or five pounds. It just depends on how many you have or want. Cover with water, add a stock of butter. That works for a sliding scale of quantity. 🙂
Fresh green beans are great, if you have them. I have to respectfully disagree about the canned green beans. A lot of it has to do with the brand you buy.
Oh absolutely. That’s purely my personal opinion only and just individual taste. If you like canned ones that’s great!
By the way, folks are gonna eventually come across this and wonder what your favorite brand of canned is so feel free to share if you happen back by!
Instead of just water, I use a half and half immersion with chicken broth…I think it kicks up the flavor a notch…but I’ve done it both ways and it is imperative that you cook it until the liquid is almost gone!
Thank you do much for your simple recipes and your spiritual encouragement!
God bless you,
Sherry
Thank you Sherry!!
Christy, Recipes like this one help me again to find confidence in cooking. Residual effects of chemotherapy have caused me so much brain fog that simple recipes are about all I can manage and I have even mangled a few of the simple ones! I spin like a top in the kitchen but I try my best. At one time I was a good “cheap” cook but not so much now. I’m still cheap, just not good. Your recipes and stories give me inspiration and hope. And I love to read all of the comments as well……such wonderful, friendly, helpful folks. I consider all of them neighbors. Love to all of you, Patricia
Love, blessings and healing to you Patricia!!
I can’t wait to try these. I’ve been making my green beans with ham and onion for years and my family just recently started leaving most of them on their plates. I had no idea there was another way to make them that didn’t taste like they were raw. Maybe they’ll start eating them again if I try it this way.
I hope you get the chance to try them soon Kim, I would love to know what your family thinks!!
Well when I saw the picture I thought no way! Those are so overcooked they must be mushy & nasty! I like my veggies to have a little fight left in ’em. After I read the comment about James Beard cooking them this way & you swearing by it I’m willing to give it a try. Serious doubts but I’ll let you know. Canned green beans? No way now how!
🙂 I can’t wait till you try them Leslie!!!
How well do these freeze? It’s just my husband and me and I’m not a good cook but like to try new, simple recipes and fix extra to freeze for future use.
This is basically the way I cook mine, but I like to cook them in chicken broth…..and I cut up a onion in mine also, and I will fry a couple of pieces of bacon, and add that too the beans, with maybe one teaspoon of the bacon grease…..(watching my fat ) or I would use it all lol….and I just cook them until they are tender and they are delicious..but I only buy WHITE HALF RUNNER beans in the summer at the markets or from the Amish….they are the best beans ever, and if you have heard of the GREASY BEAN… that’s a good one too……but very hard to find……can’t seem to find them here anywhere……
I use chicken broth instead of water to add more flavor.
Christy:
Simple recipes are the best! Neither my daughter nor I like to make these long list ingredient recipes. I’d like to see you write a cookbook of super simple and time tested recipes just like this green bean recipe – if you really need a recipe for that. I make mine exactly the same only we like an onion diced up in the pot. It was so refreshing to see this recipe today. Thank you!
I agree Gale!! I will have to consider that as a cookbook, I think so many people don’t realize just how simple cooking can be.
So amazingly delicious!!! I added some chicken better than bouillon, onion powder, garlic powder, ground mustard!
I a man so glad to hear that you liked them Briana!!
I love green beans. Turkey Craw Beans, Pink Tip Beans and Greasy Cornfield Beans are my favs for fresh eating. For home canning I like Flat Italian Beans, Kentucky Wonder Beans and Blue Lake Beans. For making Leather Britches I like the Pink Tip Beans. Your simple recipe is perfect for cooking all of them. I love your recipes linked for store bought canned beans. The only way I don’t really like green beans is green bean casserole. Heck, I’ll even open a can of store bought green beans and pour off the liquid and eat them out of the can with a fork. Oh and I love your Three Bean Salad recipe.
I just ate a big bowl of green beans with bacon! Yummy! We have a local diner that cooks great simple food! I’ve tried different routes of cooking green beans and haven’t had much luck so I’m off to try yours! And talking of simple recipes? My motto is the name the recipe is the whole ingredient list I don’t try it! Any tips for cooking fresh black eyed peas? Mine turn out like BB’s? Lol
I have to tell you that I absolutely love this, so easy & taste great! I have been trying to find a very simple way to cook soft tasty green beans and I finally found it. Thank you so much!!!
Thank YOU Ann, I appreciate you giving them a try and am so glad to hear you liked them!!
If I want them for Thanksgiving, how far in advance can I cook them? Can I freeze them? Do I have to freeze them? TIA
You don’t have to freeze them and you can make them today and just put them in your fridge to heat up right before your meal. 🙂