This simple Green Beans Almondine recipe is an easy to make, but impressive side dish using only a handful of ingredients. Green beans are elevated with fresh lemon, sauteed shallots and toasted almonds to make a dish perfect for holiday meals or any meal, really!
Green beans are a staple in our house. They are one of my favourite vegetables and so versatile and fun to work with.
While they do occasionally get featured as the star in our meal, such as in dishes like Fasolakia (Greek Green Beans), more often then not they are the perfect side dish. They pair so beautifully with any protein or even vegetarian meal so its no surprise they make it to our table often.
Of all the green bean dishes we have made, this classic Green Beans Almondine recipe is one that makes a frequent appearance in our kitchen. Its simple and fresh, and we usually have everything we need on hand!
It’s also very quick to whip up. Just 20 minutes in total. That makes it perfect for a last minute side dish for a weeknight meal or even a fancy dinner party.
The beauty of this dish is that it is elegant enough to be served at a special meal too. Green Beans Almondine is a favourite for a Thanksgiving or Christmas side dish, though it also has made an appearance for Easter too.
Ingredients in Green Beans Almondine
- Green beans: Fresh haricot vert beans are best when it comes to this dish. If you are in a pinch, you can use frozen but try to use fresh if you can for the best flavour and crisper texture.
- Almond slices: these get toasted up in a pan with butter for a nutty, delicious flavour.
- Butter: Adds so much flavour to this dish. If you want to make this vegan, you can use olive oil instead.
- Shallot: finely chopped shallot is sauteed and added to the green beans for flavour. You can also use regular onion as well.
- Lemon juice: fresh, zingy flavour.
- Seasoning: Salt and pepper, to taste.
Note: Ingredient quantities and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.
How to make Green Beans Almondine
- Cook the beans: Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook for about 5 minutes or until they are tender but still have a bit of crisp to them (or cook to desired preference).
- Toast the almonds: Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon of butter to a pan and heat over medium heat. Add the almond slices and toast them for a few minutes, being careful not to burn them. Remove the almond slices from the pan and set them aside.
- Saute the shallot: Add an additional tablespoon of butter to the pan and saute the shallot until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Toss in the green beans: Using a slotted spoon, drain the green beans and transfer them to the skillet, tossing them with the shallots.
- Season: Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and toss to coat the green beans.
- Serve: Plate the green beans on a serving dish and top with the toasted almonds. Serve.
Tips for making the best Green Beans Almondine
- Use haricot vert if you can find them. These tender, smaller French beans are perfect for this dish. If you can’t find them, though, regular green beans can be used.
- Have your ingredients ready to go before starting cooking. This dish comes together pretty quickly (in just 10 minutes) so it’s helpful to have your lemon juice ready and your shallot minced so you aren’t scrambling.
- Keep an eye on your almonds when toasting so they don’t burn. They toast pretty quickly.
- Use the almonds as a topping before serving. Some recipes toss the almonds together with the green beans in the pan but I personally find this results in almonds sinking to the bottom of your pan. I like to sprinkle them evenly over top of the green beans before serving so they are distributed nicely.
What to serve with Green Beans Almondine
This dish is versatile and can be served with an endless list of main courses.
As mentioned earlier, Green Beans Almondine is perfect to serve as part of your holiday meal, whether it’s featuring turkey, ham or another protein. I love to serve this along with my Cheesy Baked Mashed Potatoes, Classic Stuffing, and Roasted Parmesan Acorn Squash for the perfect side dishes at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Green Beans Almondine is also one of my go to sides to serve alongside my Baked Breaded Pork Chops, Crispy Chicken Cutlets, and Baked Parmesan Chicken Drumsticks for quick and easy weeknight meals.
I hope you enjoy this simple side, elegant side dish as much as I do!
-Cathy
Looking for more green beans recipes? You may also like:
Green Bean Salad with Lemon Herb Vinaigrette
Slow Cooker Greek Green Beans (Fasolakia)
Baked Green Bean Fries
Green Beans Almondine
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh green beans ends trimmed (haricot vert green beans are best)
- 1/3 cup almond slices
- 2 tablespoons butter (can use olive oil for a vegan version)
- 2 tablespoons shallot or onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook for about 5 minutes or until they are tender but still have a bit of crisp to them (or cook to desired preference).
- Meanwhile, add 1 tablespoon of butter to a pan and heat over medium heat. Add the almond slices and toast them for a few minutes, being careful not to burn them. Remove the almond slices from the pan and set them aside.
- Add an additional tablespoon of butter to the pan and saute the shallot until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, drain the green beans and transfer them to the skillet, tossing them with the shallots.
- Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and toss to coat the green beans.
- Plate the green beans on a serving dish and top with the toasted almonds. Serve.
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
