Fresh Green Beans With Shallot Butter Sauce Recipe

Fresh green beans with shallot butter sauce is a fresh and flavorful alternative to the traditional green bean casserole. It takes little time to prepare and your guests will love it.

So Many Way to Use Green Beans

Ah, delicious green beans. Such a versatile vegetable that is used in so many great recipes.

Whether you are making a classic side dish such as steamed string beans or a more elegant side dish such as green beans almondine, the bright green color of cooked green beans provides a beautiful pop of color to your meal. And, the prep time for cooking beans is usually minimal, so even better!

Now, for an easy side dish, I’m all for steaming some regular green beans and seasoning with some salt and black pepper. But, it doesn’t take much effort to dress up those tender beans to make them even better.

Try tossing in balsamic vinegar. Or, melt butter and combine beans in that buttery goodness.

Regular Green Beans Versus French Green Beans

For this easy recipe, I wanted a more elegant side dish, so I wanted to do more than just “melt butter”. I also really love shallots and thought a butter / shallot mixture would be a great combination!

To start with, I use fresh green beans. These are just regular green beans. I like using regular green beans because they are usually cheaper and easier to find than say, french green beans.

For this recipe I would not substitute french green beans (also known as haricot verts). They are longer, skinnier and a bit more tender than regular green beans, so would have a tendency to overcook.

Cooking Your Green Beans

On that note, I also often get asked if there is any difference between regular green beans and string beans. And the answer is, there really isn’t any difference.

Beans used to have a string running along their seam (like a snow pea or sugar snap pea). Over the years, bean growers found a way to eliminate that string. 

However, “string beans” remains in the common vocabulary. So, whether you see string beans or just the ordinary regular green beans, you can use either one for this easy side dish.

For the green bean cooking process, I prefer to steam. You used to have to take out a large pot, fill with water, wait for the boil and then cook your beans.

These days, take a large bowl, put in your beans, cover with plastic wrap and less than 5 minutes later, you have perfectly steamed beans. No large pot to wash later!

Delicious Shallot Butter

As for the shallots recipe, that’s an easy one with little prep time required. The shallot mixture is just shallots, butter, salt and black pepper. 

​You are not looking for caramelized shallots, but rather just have the shallots cook down. Another reason why this is an easy recipe!

From there, you take your steamed fresh green beans, combine beans and shallot butter, and you have a beautiful and easy side dish.

Tips and Tricks

• To save time on the prep work, buy green beans that have already been trimmed.
• If you’re unable to find shallots, thinly sliced red onion can be substituted.
• Use unsalted butter to prevent the dish from becoming too salty.
• The shallot butter sauce can be made up to two days ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use. When ready to use, reheat gently in the microwave.
• My preferred method for cooking the green beans is to steam them in the microwave. To do this, put them in a large bowl (microwave safe) and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 4-5 minutes, until crisp tender.
• An easy method to toast almonds is to use the microwave. To toast the almonds, put them on a microwave safe plate and microwave 15-20 seconds at a time until toasted. 

Ingredients Needed for this Recipe

Full Instructions Can Be Found Below in the Recipe Card

• Butter
• Olive oil
• Fresh green beans
• Shallots
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Fresh Parsley
• Sliced, toasted almonds

How to Make Fresh Green Beans with Shallot Butter Sauce

• In a medium skillet, melt half a stick of butter, along with olive oil over medium heat.
• Reduce heat to low and add sliced shallots.
• Cook for about 7 to 9 minutes until shallots are very tender, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the remaining butter, salt and black pepper.
• Remove from heat.
• At this point, you can refrigerate the sauce for up to 2 days.
• When ready to serve, reheat sauce in the microwave and proceed with the recipe.
• While shallots are cooking, prepare the green beans. I like to steam them in the microwave for about 4 to 5 minutes, until they’re crisp-tender.
• Transfer cooked beans to a serving bowl.
• Toss with the shallot butter and parsley.
• Garnish with toasted sliced almonds.

Some More of My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

Give these a try and maybe they’ll become a tradition on your holiday table, too!

• Pumpkin Cheese Ball
• Bacon Wrapped Hot Brussels Sprouts
• Brown Butter Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes
• Sour Dough Sausage Stuffing
• Broccoli, Rice and Cheese Casserole
• Perfect Dinner Rolls
• Overnight Sour Dough Bread Recipe
• Maple Pumpkin Pie
• Bourbon Pecan Pie
• Rosemary Infused Cranberry Bourbon Martini