Asian Green Beans – Crispy flavorful green beans better than take out or the Chinese Buffet. It’s a quick and easy side dish.
Occasionally, my husband and I will go to a Chinese buffet. Yes, even dietitians go to a Chinese buffet every once in a while.
One of my absolute favorite things about a Chinese buffet is the crunchy green beans. Just about every Asian restaurant you go to will have some variation of crunchy green beans. Some are heavy on the garlic. Some are covered in sesame seeds. But, the common theme is that they are crisp and very flavorful.
MY LATEST RECIPESMaking Asian-style green beans at home is quick and easy. Mix up a sauce of soy sauce, vegetable oil, and sugar. You could substitute some sesame oil for the vegetable oil if you like that sesame flavor.
Heat a wok, or large skillet. Add some fresh green beans, then the sauce mixture. When you add the sauce to the hot skillet, it will spatter a bit. Adding the green beans to the skillet first will protect you from a lot of the spatter.
Cook the beans over medium high heat for about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add some minced garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring often. Then, remove the skillet from the heat so the garlic doesn’t burn.
Don’t over cook these green beans. They should be crunchy and flavorful, just like the kind that you would find at the Chinese buffet.
Asian Green Beans Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil (or your preferred cooking oil)
- 3 tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 tsp. sugar
- 1 lb. fresh green beans, edges trimmed
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
Instructions
- Pre-heat a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat for 2 minutes.
- In a small bowl, add the oil, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir to combine.
- Add the green beans to the skillet. Then, carefully add the soy sauce mixture to the hot skillet (liquid may spatter a bit). Stir to coat the beans in sauce. Cook for about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Stir the garlic into the green beans. Cook for 1 minute, stirring often. Then, remove the skillet from the heat.
Notes
Nutrition
jason says
One of my favorites too
Jackie says
As a 21 year old learning to cook, I started browsing around for recipes that I like. These green beans have been my favorite thing at a chinese buffet for years! I followed the directions exactly (minus about 1/5 of each ingredient as I only had 12oz of beans) and they were perfect! Thank you so much!
Nelson Bruton says
This recipe is fire! I substituted Bragg Liquid Aminos for the soy sauce. I substituted brown sugar for the sugar. I will be making this each week for my meal prep.
Pam Wolff says
So easy and even better than what you get at an Asian buffet!
Annie says
Randomly googled to find asian green beans and these were GREAT. Super easy and made only with things I already had in my kitchen—oh and I added sriracha to the oil & soy mixture and it added a nice little kick. I made these with some chicken potstickers from Trader Joes and it was all super delicious and crazy easy. Two thumbs up!