This easy Chinese green beans recipe makes the perfect side dish to a Szechuan inspired dinner. The blistered green beans are tender, slightly charred, and tossed in a garlic sauce packed with umami and savory flavors. Ready in 15 minutes from start to finish.
My mind goes straight to these Chinese green beans with garlic sauce whenever I crave Szechuan food. There’s something so satisfying about biting into these juicy and blistered green beans – they are so full of flavor and so tender!
I kept this recipe simple so everyone can enjoy making them at home.
Are Chinese Long Beans Like Green Beans?
Chinese long bean, also called long podded cowpea, asparagus bean, or snake bean, have a stronger bean flavor and are less sweet than the regular green bean, which also happens to be a fruit! Though they are slightly different from each other, the are often interchangeable in recipes.
Table of contents
Ingredients
- Green Beans: You’ll want about 1/2 pound of fresh green beans with the ends trimmed. Haricot vert and Chinese long beans can also be used.
- Soy Sauce: Soy sauce is the main source of savory umami in this simple recipe. For a gluten-free recipe, use tamari sauce.
- Broth: I prefer using chicken broth for this recipe because it adds a subtle flavor. But feel free to use beef broth or vegetable broth (for a vegan recipe).
- Sesame Oil: Sesame oil is often used in Asian dishes for its toasty and nutty properties. It’s usually added at the end of the cooking process to preserve the delicate flavor and aroma.
- Garlic: We are using plenty of finely chopped garlic to add a sharp, vegetal flavor to the sauce.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch is a popular ingredient used in Chinese cooking. It’s what gives sauces their thick, gooey and glossy texture.
- Oil: Any neutral oil with a high smoke point, such as vegetable oil, avocado oil, and safflower oil, can be used for this dish. The amount you need will depend on which method you use for cooking the green beans.
Different Ways To Cook Chinese Green Beans
When I first made this recipe, I thought it could only be properly prepared by shallow frying the green beans in oil. Not only is it the traditional Chinese way, it also gives the beans a beautifully tender texture that cannot be beaten.
But if you prefer to go the healthier route, here are two options you can try that use less oil and still yield delicious results.
Broiling
Broiling is Easy, efficient and delicious.
- Throw your green beans on a cooking tray covered in aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Toss the beans in a little oil and place them in the oven on the highest rack, a few inches away from the flame. Broil for 3-6 minutes, until the green beans are slightly charred and looking wrinkled. Keep an eye on them, as they can burn quickly.
Air Fryer
Air frying is virtually mess-free since all cooking is done in a basket.
- Preheat the air fryer to 380ºF.
- Place the green beans in a bowl and drizzle the olive oil on top. Toss the beans using your fingers or tongs to coat them evenly. Season with salt and pepper and toss again.
- Brush the air fryer basket with a little oil and add the green beans.
- Air fry for 6 minutes and take out the basket to toss the green beans.
- Air fry for an additional 4 to 6 minutes, until the green beans are tender.
How to Make This Chinese Green Beans Dish
Scroll all the way down to the recipe card for the full recipe.
- Mise en place. Start by gathering all of your kitchen tools and ingredients.
- Make the sauce. Whisk the soy sauce, broth, sesame oil and minced garlic together in a bowl – and set aside.
- Prep the green beans. Trim the ends of the green beans, rinse them well, and pat them dry with a paper towel. Take the time to properly dry the green beans before frying them to avoid any oil splatters.
- Cook the green beans. Cook the green bean in a wok with some oil, over medium-high heat, and stir fry until the green beans are slightly charred and wrinkled. Or use the other two cooking methods I have mentioned above.
- Put the dish together. Get a wok or a deep pan going over medium heat. Add the sauce and stir until it starts to bubble. Add the green beans and toss everything together.
- Serve. Season with a pinch of salt if needed. Serve these delicious, Chinese green beans as a side dish or as a topping for a warm bowl of rice.
Make it Spicy
If you like your food to have some heat, I recommend drizzling a little chili oil or sprinkling some red pepper flakes on top of the green beans right before serving them. You can also used ichimi togarashi (Japanese red chili pepper powder) or gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes) to add a lovely smokey taste. One last option is to add minced ginger to the sauce (about 1 tablespoon) to give the dish some warmth and a hint of heat.
How To Serve It
The best and easiest way to serve these savory Chinese green beans is with a simple side of cooked white rice. That’s because the grains absorb the sauce so every bite of green beans and rice is just perfect. If you’d like to learn how to cook rice, click here to read the tutorial.
But they would also work well as a side dish to this savory Chinese moo goo gai pan – or this veggie studded Japanese fried rice.
FAQs
How do I store leftover Chinese green beans?
Save the leftovers in an airtight container and leave them in the refrigerator. They should last about 3 days.
Can I freeze this recipe?
I don’t recommend you freeze this recipe as it may affect the texture of the green beans. Eating dry fry green beans fresh is by the best way to enjoy them.
How do I reheat the leftovers?
Simply place the container in the microwave and reheat the green beans for a minute or two.
Other Chinese Recipes You Might Like
If you are planning on serving a Chinese feast, here are some of my favorite and easy Chinese recipes:
- Smacked Cucumber With Chili Oil
- Chinese Eggplant With Garlic Sauce
- Vegan Mapo Tofu
- Chicken Egg Foo Young
- Hot and Sour Soup
- Honey Sriracha Tofu
Did you like this recipe? Are there changes you made that you would like to share? Share your tips and recommendations in the comment section below!
Print
Chinese Green Beans With Garlic Sauce
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 2 people 1x
- Category: Side
- Method: Frying, broiling, air fryer
- Cuisine: Chinese
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This is easy Chinese green beans recipe makes the perfect side dish to a Szechuan inspired dinner. The blistered green beans are tender, slightly charred, and tossed in a garlic sauce packed with umami and savory flavors. Ready in 15 minutes from start to finish.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/4 cup chicken broth, beef broth, or vegetable broth
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
- 1/2 pound green beans (ends trimmed)
- 1/4 cup peanut oil, avocado oil, or safflower oil, for frying
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk the soy sauce, chicken broth, cornstarch, sesame oil and garlic together and set aside.
- Trim and wash the green beans. Next, dry them well with a paper towel and set them aside.
- Add 1/4 cup of oil to a wok or a deep skillet and turn the heat to medium high. When the oil is hot (about 350ºF), slowly add the green beans.
- Fry for 3 to 5 minutes, turning the green beans a couple of times, until they are wrinkled. Turn the heat off and transfer the green beans to a couple of paper towels to remove excess oil.
- Add the sauce to the same wok or deep skillet and turn the heat to medium. When the sauce is bubbling, add the cooked green beans and quickly toss to coat them evenly.
- Turn the heat off, season with salt and serve immediately.
Broiling Method:
- Lay a piece of aluminum foil on a large cooking tray. Add green beans and 1 tbsp peanut oil and toss to coat evenly. Lay the green beans flat on the tray (they should not be piled up) and season with salt. Broil in the oven for 3-6 minutes, until the beans are lightly charred. Transfer beans to a paper towel.
Air Fryer Method:
- Set the air fryer to 360º F and let it preheat for 3-5 minutes before using.
- Toss the green beans with 1 tablespoon peanut oil and add them to the air fryer.
- Close and air fry for 15 minutes. Take the basket out a couple of times and shake the green beans so they cook as evenly as possible. The green beans should be slightly charred, wrinkled and tender. If they are still quite crunchy, put them back in the basket and air fry for an additional 5 minutes.
Notes
Keep the leftover Chinese green beans in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 175
- Sugar: 0.1g
- Sodium: 562.8mg
- Fat: 15.3g
- Saturated Fat: 2.2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 9.4g
- Fiber: 0.1g
- Protein: 1g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
I used the air fryer method and it was great! On a whim, I chopped some fresh ginger and added that in too. While the sauce was cooking, I added a bit more cornstarch because it didn’t seem to thicken enough yet. Green beens can get kind of boring but this recipe is the cure for that. It definitely livens things up.
These green beans are just perfection. They’re exactly like the ones I used to get from a Chinese restaurant years ago. The restaurant is now long closed and I’ve missed them greatly. Thank you so much for giving them back to me, they’re absofreakinglutely delicious.
ps – I made them exactly as directed. I didn’t change a thing!
The broiler method is excellent! So nice to get the char without all the oil!
Delicious! I didn’t have any chicken broth so I just used water instead and it came out really tasty. However, I had to use 3x as much liquid as the recipe called for to cook the green beans to my liking. If you like your green beans just barely cooked but still on the crunchy side, then do the recipe as is. If you like your green beans well done, add 1/4-1/2 a cup of water to the sauce mixture.
I just stir fried these in some oil with the wok and added the sauce for a minute or two at the end. soooo addicting! thank you!
Thank you much Jenni! 🙂
Very tasty recipe! We used our air deep fryer and these green beans were awesome. Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Thank you Robert! 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe. I love Chinese green beans. Sounds like I’m going to have a new go to while saving money. Thanks for sharing.
Received an air fryer for Christmas. This looks like a great recipe to air fry!
This plus your spaghetti squash yakisoba were HUGE hits with my three girls and hubby. Got a “this is better than good!” And couldn’t even broil them because they were picking them out of the bowl and eating them. Will definitely make both again!
That’s so great Robin!! 🙂
I’m going to try these in my new air fryer. If it can do crisp chicken fingers, it can do these!
Just tried this recipe. I oven roasted the green beans (400 degrees for 25 minutes) & they were perfect: texture a little chewier & I like it! Next time, I think I’ll sauté the garlic first to mellow it out a bit before adding the liquid. Also, mixing the cornstarch with the liquid seemed easier: just toss in the beans to reheat at the end.
Made these yesterday hoping they would be similar to a favorite dish I order out. They were very, very good and similar! Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Just a comment on parchment paper, it can ignite at high temps.
This happened to me too! I will either try foil or a lower rack next time. Exciting!
Thank you for letting me know Trudy, I’ll mention it in the steps!
Thank you for this recipe. It is a family favorite. I just wanted to share that I didn’t have any chicken broth when it came time to make it. I was momentarily stumped. I found a package of chicken gravy that worked perfectly, being that it has chicken flavors and cornstarch including. I just omitted the called for cornstarch and added water. Try it. Thanks again!
That’s great Karen, thank you for sharing!
could these be fixed in a air-fryer?
Hi Ruby, I’ve never used an air-fryer so I don’t know how the beans would come out. You could finish them in the oven on broil for a couple of minutes if you don’t get the wrinkled look on the beans.
These were delicious! Thank you for sharing!
I added a pinch of brown sugar and sesame seeds. Very similar to an appetizer served in an Asian-fusion restaurant here.
Yum!
Thank you Karen!
So great! I love the option. Still tastes authentic.
Is the calorie count for the deep fried or the oven broil/fried method?
Hi Kelly! The calorie count is for the deep fried version – since the beans are only briefly fried and drained, they still remain quite low in fat.
How many calories per serving?
Hi Amanda, I no longer post nutritional servings after noticing that the programs available online were unreliable. I’m hoping a good one will come up soon!
Just wanted to let you know I’ve made this twice now and it’s delicious! This was always my go-to order from my Chinese place, but it’s so much better at home with less grease. Thank u!
That’s so great Lisa, I also love these green beans to bits! And you are right, they are less greasy than takeout which is always a good thing 😉