Green Beans Almondine

Green Beans Almondine is a classic Thanksgiving side dish that is always a hit. Buttery green beans, almonds and seasonings come together to create a vegetable side dish that even the pickiest of eaters enjoy. While perfect for holiday dinners, these delicious green beans are easy enough to make any day of the week.

Green Bean Almondine

Green Beans Almondine is one of those classic recipes that many of us remember from the holiday meals of our childhood. There’s a reason this dish has stood the test of time – it’s both easy and delicious and pairs perfectly with air fryer turkey breast and gravy, or spiral ham. It’s always a hit when served with Longhorn Parmesan Crusted Chicken.

While we love this fresh green bean recipe for holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter, it really is a fantastic way to make veggies year round. Even picky eaters agree, it’s irresistibly delicious.

Green Bean Almondine Recipe

Ingredients

Let’s discuss the ingredients you’ll need, and the steps you’ll take, to make what just might be the best green bean recipe you ever have. If you want to skip my discussion, tips and answers to frequently asked questions, just scroll to the bottom for the printable recipe.

• Green beans, trimmed – Fresh green beans are the way to go for this dish. You can buy them pre-trimmed or trim them yourself.
• Butter – Salted or unsalted is fine here, whatever you have on hand. But stick with butter, no margarine!
• Raw sliced almonds – If you can’t find sliced almonds, you could use chopped or slivered almonds.
• Oil – I use olive oil for this recipe, but you can use whichever cooking oil you keep on hand.
• Shallots, minced – If you aren’t familiar with shallots, think of them as mild onions with a bit of a garlic bite. If you can’t find any shallots, you could replace the shallots in this dish with approximately 1/2 cup of minced onion.
• Lemon juice – Fresh squeezed if possible, but if not a product like RealLemon works great.
• Salt – I prefer to use Diamond Kosher or Jacobsen’s Sea Salt. That said, table salt works fine!
• Pepper – Fresh crack is preferred.
• Fresh parsley, chopped – Parsley is used as a garnish, so no worries if you don’t have any on hand.

Directions

1. Begin by blanching green beans: To make green bean almondine, begin by blanching the green beans. If you are asking yourself what is blanching and how to blanch green beans, don’t worry – it’s easy! Blanching is one of those techniques that can sound far more complicated than it is.
   
   Blanching is a simple cooking process where a foods, such as green beans, are scaled in salted, boiling water then quickly removed and placed into ice water to stop the cooking. Blanching helps to preserve the gorgeous green color and tenderizes the green beans.
   
   How long to blanch green beans? For our green beans almondine, blanch the beans for four to five minutes in boiling water that has been well salted. The goal is for the green beans to be crisp, yet tender. Once cooked, immediately transfer them to a bowl of ice water.
   
2. Toast the almonds. After blanching the green beans, it’s time to toast the almonds. This is done by melting butter over medium heat, then adding in the sliced almonds and cooking for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. After toasting, remove from the pan. I recommend placing them on a paper towel to absorb any moisture.
   
3. Cook the shallots. Heat the oil in the pan, add the shallots and cook for two minutes. As you can see from the photos, like other types of onions, they’ll change to a golden hue.
   
4. Add the green beans to the pan. Drain and pat dry the green beans that have been in the ice water, then add them to the pan with the shallots. Add in the lemon juice, salt and pepper to the pan and mix to combine. Cook on medium low heat for two to three minutes. Add in prepared almonds, stir, sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.

Tips For Making The Best Green Beans

• Use fresh green beans. If you can find haricot verts, the longer, slender green beans, they can also be used, but reduce the cooking time by 1-2 minutes as they will cook more quickly.
• Salt the water before blanching. This helps with boiling and helps season the green beans. I typically use 1-2 teaspoons of salt.
• Serve immediately. Green beans almondine really are best when served right after you take them off the stove.

Storing Your Green Beans

As mentioned, these green beans with almond really are best when made and served immediately. If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I skip blanching the green beans? While you can skip this step, I don’t recommend it because you’re going to miss out on an opportunity to season the green beans with the salted water and keep that great texture of the green bean.

Can I make this ahead of time? I know that when cooking a big Thanksgiving meal, you want to help yourself out as much as possible and get things done the day before. You can blanch the green beans the day before, and cook your almonds up ahead of time. When ready to serve, start with cooking the shallots and carry on following the recipe from there.

Can I add garlic? Yes, if you would like garlic green beans, you can add a minced clove or two when you are cooking the shallots.

More Delicious Recipes

If you are looking for more delicious side dishes, here are some of my favorites!

• Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole
• Apple Cranberry Sauce
• Crock Pot Creamed Corn
• Sweet Potato Casserole With Marshmallows
• Crockpot Mashed Potatoes
• Easy Glazed Carrots
• Mashed Butternut Squash
• Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
• Chicken Stuffing Casserole

Need some great Thanksgiving dessert options? Here are my top choices.

• Libby’s Pumpkin Pie
• Pumpkin Roll
• Pecan Pie Brownies
• Caramel Apple Pie
• Air Fryer Pumpkin Pie

Tried this recipe? I love to hear from readers who make my recipes! Please leave a comment and review below. If you have photos, tag me @lovefromtheoven on Instagram and Pinterest.