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Blanched Green Beans

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on August 22, 2007

Time

15 minutes

Yield

Serves 4 (Makes about 1 pound)

Blanched Green Beans

Ingredients

1 pound green beans, stem ends snapped off

Before You Begin

To blanch, dress, and serve the beans without holding them first in the refrigerator, increase the blanching time to 5 to 6 minutes and don’t bother shocking them in ice water. Instead, quickly arrange the warm beans on a serving platter and top with the sauce you’ve prepared as the beans blanch.

Instructions

  1. Bring 2 1/2 quarts water to boil in large saucepan over high heat; add 1 teaspoon of salt and green beans, return to boil, and cook until beans are bright green and crisp-tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, fill large bowl with ice water. Drain beans in colander and transfer beans immediately to ice water. When beans no longer feel warm to touch, drain in colander again and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Transfer beans to gallon-sized zipper-lock bag, seal, and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 3 days.

Blanched Green Beans

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Time

15 minutes

Yield

Serves 4 (Makes about 1 pound)

Ingredients

1 pound green beans, stem ends snapped off

Ingredients

1 pound green beans, stem ends snapped off

Ingredients

1 pound green beans, stem ends snapped off

Why This Recipe Works

For a green bean recipe that would require no last-minute preparation, we blanched the beans to ensure a crisp texture, then refrigerated them for up to three days. When the rest of our meal was ready, we could toss the beans in a hot skillet with a simple butter sauce just before serving.

Before You Begin

To blanch, dress, and serve the beans without holding them first in the refrigerator, increase the blanching time to 5 to 6 minutes and don’t bother shocking them in ice water. Instead, quickly arrange the warm beans on a serving platter and top with the sauce you’ve prepared as the beans blanch.

Instructions

  1. Bring 2 1/2 quarts water to boil in large saucepan over high heat; add 1 teaspoon of salt and green beans, return to boil, and cook until beans are bright green and crisp-tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Meanwhile, fill large bowl with ice water. Drain beans in colander and transfer beans immediately to ice water. When beans no longer feel warm to touch, drain in colander again and dry thoroughly with paper towels. Transfer beans to gallon-sized zipper-lock bag, seal, and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 3 days.

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