Sautéed Green Beans made with butter, garlic, and fresh green beans are the perfect side dish for almost any meal and are ready in under 15 minutes!
Our dinner table wouldn’t be the same without all of the work we put into perfecting our side dish recipes, and this week, we’re loving Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Baked Mac and Cheese, and Green Bean Casserole.
Sautéed Green Beans are hot and buttery, with a savory garlic flavor and a fresh, crisp-tender texture. I usually make a double batch of these beans because they always manage to disappear before dinner is over. You can use butter or olive oil to sauté them; both add a nice flavor to the garlic.
A close second to this recipe is my Roasted Green Bean and Spicy Chinese Sichuan Green Beans. String beans are very versatile, so you can add a lot of different flavors to them!
CAN I MAKE GARLIC GREEN BEANS WITH VEGETABLE OIL?
You can use any oil you have in your kitchen for garlic green beans, including vegetable oil, coconut oil, or olive oil. Personally, I like to go with butter because my family likes the flavor, and it has the highest cooking temperature of all the oils.
A restaurant trick is to mix butter and extra virgin olive oil together to combine the oil’s flavor with the butter’s cooking temperature. This makes it easier to sauté garlic before adding the beans without burning.
CAN I Sauté GREEN BEANS WITHOUT BLANCHING?
Technically, you can avoid blanching the green beans before throwing them in the sauté pan. But I always like to blanch them first because it helps preserve the fresh green beans’ texture and bright green color, making for a better overall side dish.
CAN I BLANCH GREEN BEANS AHEAD OF TIME?
You can blanch green beans ahead of time. Dip them in ice water right after blanching (to stop the cooking), then dry them as well as you can with paper towels. Store them refrigerated in an airtight container until you’re ready to sauté. They’ll last in the refrigerator for 1-2 days before they start to get too soft to be sautéed.
CAN YOU TRIM GREEN BEANS IN ADVANCE?
You can trim green beans in advance if you will use them within 1-2 days. Keep the green beans refrigerated and tightly sealed. Pull them out when you’re ready to make any green bean recipe.

Create a free account to Save Recipes

WHAT TO SERVE WITH Sautéed GREEN BEANS
- Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken
- Easy Mashed Potatoes
- Turkey Meatloaf
- Fried Green Tomatoes
- Green Bean Casserole
TIPS FOR SAUTEEING
- For more flavor, add other spices, such as oregano, cayenne, or thyme, to the beans with the garlic.
- Garlic green beans also work well with sautéed onions, mushrooms, sliced toasted almonds, white wine, lemon juice, or a tablespoon of parmesan cheese.
- Trim the ends of your string beans to avoid a fibrous woody texture.
- Sauté the beans in a skillet over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes at a maximum so they don’t overcook. You want to maintain that tender-crisp texture in your bean recipes.
- If you don’t have fresh garlic, sub in 1 teaspoon of garlic powder instead.
- If you use frozen green beans for this dish, you can skip the blanching step and go straight to the sauté pan.
- If you’re cooking for someone with allergies, this dish is naturally gluten-free!


Ingredients
- 1 pound green beans
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- In a large skillet add ¼ cup water and the green beans on high heat and bring to a boil, cooking for 3 minutes.
- Remove green beans and water, wiping dry with paper towels and add in the butter and garlic, stirring and cooking until fragrant before adding in the green beans, salt and pepper and tossing to combine.
One of my favorite side dishes of all time was sauteed green beans from a local Chinese buffet. No matter what I tried, I couldn’t duplicate their recipe… until now! This is so quick and easy and the beans come out PERFECT! THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Yay!! Thanks for the 5 stars, Jayda.
Delicious!! I added white wine and green onion
Perfect!
The BEST green bean recipe I have ever made.
One of my favorite recipes!
Yay!! Such an easy side dish, right?!
Is the cooking time about the same with frozen green beans as fresh and also if I were to add in onions could I add the onions and green beans in at the same time?
Yes 🙂
I’m really looking forward to making this recipe, I’ll add some oregano to them.
Sounds delicious! Enjoy!
I make these all the time and they are delicious!
So glad you enjoy them, Allyson!
Green beans are one of my favorite veggies. This recipe looks very tasty!
It’s so good!! I hope you enjoy it!
Green beans have never been my favorite, but cooking them this way, makes them so much better!! They have become a favorite!
Yay!!! Glad to have converted you, haha!
Yes! Agreed! This is about the only way I like green beans, other than in a casserole. The all that butter and fresh garlic makes them taste amazing! ?
Thanks!! In my humble opinion, butter and garlic are the keys to amazing 😀
I love a simple, easy, delicious side dish like this one!
Me too, no need to get complicated!
Such a lovely and delicious simple green bean recipe!
Thank you, Tara!