Wonderfully tender-crisp, well-seasoned, and ready in 25 minutes, these Chinese green beans are one of my favorite side dishes.
Green beans are delicious! Even simply boiled green beans, liberally salted, are good. When not overcooked, they are like a salty snack. But these Chinese green beans are especially flavorful, and the secret is to saute them briefly, just until tender-crisp. The sauce, featuring garlic, soy sauce, and honey, is restaurant-level good.
Ingredients
See the recipe card for exact measurements. Here are my comments on some of the ingredients.
- Green beans: I recommend using fresh beans.
- Soy sauce: I use reduced-sodium soy sauce in most of my recipes. You can also use a gluten-free alternative.
- Honey: Just a little to balance out the other flavors.
- Minced garlic: Freshly minced tastes better than jarred minced garlic.
- Red pepper flakes: I use ½ teaspoon, which makes the dish quite spicy. If you don't like spicy food, you can use half that amount.
- Sesame oil: To finish the dish. It adds great flavor!
Variations
- You can use half a teaspoon of garlic powder in the sauce instead of fresh garlic. Freshly minced garlic is much better. But in a pinch, garlic powder is an acceptable substitute.
- You can add a teaspoon of minced fresh ginger to the sauce.
- Toast a tablespoon of sesame seeds and sprinkle them on the finished dish.
- Instead of red pepper flakes, I sometimes use a tablespoon of hot pepper sauce. My favorite is sriracha. Even though it's Thai and is not traditionally used in Chinese cuisine, its flavor profile (chili, garlic, and tangy sweetness) works well in Chinese-style dishes, including this one, so I use it and consider it fusion cuisine. 🙂
Instructions
The detailed instructions and step-by-step photos are included in the recipe card. Here's a quick overview.
Mix the sauce ingredients - soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, cornstarch, garlic, and red pepper flakes.
Sauté the beans in avocado oil until they are tender-crisp and just begin to brown in spots. Reduce the heat to low, add the sauce, and cook briefly, just until the green beans are coated and the sauce has thickened.
Drizzle the beans with sesame oil and serve.
These came out so good! I used a full pound of beans, and there was still plenty of sauce to coat them. I also used sriracha instead of chili flakes - about ½ teaspoon. This isn't overly salty or sweet or spicy. They tasted just like the Asian green beans I've gotten at take-out restaurants. What I love is that I can make them gluten-free. So, so, so good!!!
Jenelle
Read more comments
These came out so good! I used a full pound of beans, and there was still plenty of sauce to coat them. I also used sriracha instead of chili flakes - about ½ teaspoon. This isn't overly salty or sweet or spicy. They tasted just like the Asian green beans I've gotten at take-out restaurants. What I love is that I can make them gluten-free. So, so, so good!!!Recipe Tips
- Cooked green beans should be bright green and tender-crisp. You don't want them brown and limp. So even though we want them to be browned in some spots, we don't want to overcook them. Eight minutes over medium heat works for me (plus a minute after adding the sauce). But keep a close eye on them as you cook. Depending on how hot your stovetop runs, they might be ready faster.
- Don't stir the green beans too often. Letting them sit for a minute between tosses helps them blister and caramelize, giving that deep, smoky flavor you'd get from restaurant-style green beans.
Recipe FAQs
Some recipes instruct you to parboil green beans before sautéing them. Frankly, I lack the patience for that, and I also find it unnecessary. One-step cooking is always better than two-step cooking, and washing one pot is preferable to washing two! So no, I don't parboil the beans, and they turn out beautiful - bright green, crisp, and delicious.
I prefer fresh. You want the green beans to be tender-crisp, which is more challenging to achieve with frozen ones. Having said that, Tricia notes in a comment below that she used frozen beans successfully, so it's up to you whether you'd like to try.
Those are a hard no. They tend to have an unpleasant metallic taste and are also often brownish and limp.
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them in the microwave at 50% power. Sometimes, I snack on them cold - they are surprisingly good that way! I also like to serve the reheated leftovers with a couple of fried eggs, as shown in the photo below, for an easy lunch. 
Serving Suggestions
You don't have to serve Asian green beans with an Asian-style meal. They are quite versatile and go well with any meat or fish.
I often serve them with grilled chicken breast (as shown in the image below), baked pork chops, broiled shrimp, or seared tuna. Still, they obviously pair well with Chinese-style dishes. So, I often serve them with Asian meatballs or Asian salmon.
Recipe Card
Restaurant-Style Chinese Green Beans
Video
Ingredients
Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce - or a gluten-free alternative
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon fresh garlic - minced
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Green Beans:
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 12 ounces green beans - trimmed, long ones halved
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, and cornstarch. Mix in the garlic and red pepper flakes. Set aside.2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce, 1 teaspoon rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, 1 teaspoon cornstarch, 1 teaspoon fresh garlic, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Heat the oil over medium heat in a large 12-inch skillet for about 3 minutes. Add the green beans and sauté them, stirring occasionally, until they are tender-crisp and just begin to brown in spots, about 8 minutes (see notes below).1 tablespoon avocado oil, 12 ounces green beans
- Reduce the heat to low. Give the sauce another whisk, then add it to the skillet. Cook, stirring, until the green beans are coated in the sauce and the sauce has thickened, for about 1 minute.
- Transfer the green beans to a serving plate, drizzle them with sesame oil, and serve.
Notes
- Seasonings are guidelines. Adjust to taste.
- Cooked green beans should be bright green and tender-crisp. You don't want them brown and limp. Even though we want them browned in spots, we don't want to overcook them. Eight minutes over medium heat works for me (plus a minute after adding the sauce). But keep a close eye on them as you cook. Depending on how hot your stovetop runs, they might be ready faster.
- Don't stir the green beans too often. Letting them sit for a minute between tosses helps them blister and caramelize, giving that deep, smoky flavor you'd get from restaurant-style green beans.
- I recommend using fresh green beans.
- You can add a teaspoon of minced fresh ginger to the sauce.
- Instead of red pepper flakes, I sometimes use a tablespoon of hot pepper sauce. The only caveat is that it can produce chili fumes when cooked, so if you're sensitive to that, you might want to stick with red pepper flakes.
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them in the microwave at 50% power or snack on them cold.
Nutrition per Serving
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Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate - please verify it. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
Michelle says
Great recipe. Adding to the rotation!
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm so glad to hear that, Michelle, and really appreciate the review!
Cynthia lyons says
I made these exactly as written and they came out fabulous. It will be a weekly recipe. Thank you.
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm so happy to hear, Cynthia! Thank you so much for trying the recipe and taking the time to leave a review.
Aaron says
This tasted just like a restaurant dish and was easy to make. Thank you!
Vered DeLeeuw says
You're very welcome, Aaron! I'm so glad you enjoyed it and really appreciate the review.
Tracy says
Mine didn't come out the way I wanted. Some were a little tougher. I didn't have rice vinegar and I think I needed to use a darker soy sauce. I had Kikkoman Less Sodium on hand. I had to double my sauce. I could have added more garlic. I love garlic! I stirred mine too often. I missed that detail saying to not stir too often. They were still good, but I'll do an even better job next time.
Vered DeLeeuw says
Hi Tracy,
Thank you for your thoughtful comment!
Stirring less really helps the beans blister and soften properly. Doubling the sauce and adding more garlic are both great ideas if you enjoy bold flavors, and recipes like this are definitely easy to adjust to taste.
I'm glad they were still good, and I hope your next batch turns out even better!