Spicy Garlic Green Beans

Korean-style green bean side dish, quickly blanched then stir-fried with garlic, soy, sesame oil, gochugaru and honey. Spicy, garlicky and a little bit sweet and ready in 10 minutes.

Blanch technique

The technique is blanch then stir-fry: a brief blanch in salted boiling water par-cooks the beans and locks in their colour, while the high-heat stir-fry step develops some char on the outside while keeping the texture firm. Lard is my preference here because its smoke point is higher than most cooking oils, and it adds a subtle richness that neutral oil doesn’t bring.

For the sauce we're using soy for salt and depth, sesame oil for nuttiness, gochugaru for colour and gentle heat, and honey to balance it. The garlic and sauce go in after reducing the heat to prevent the garlic from burning, then a short simmer lets the sauce thicken and coat the beans. The whole cook is under 10 minutes. Banchan (side dish) is typically served at room temperature, which makes this a practical dish to prep ahead as part of a larger Korean-style meal.

Ingredient Notes

Gochugaru: Korean coarse-ground red pepper. It’s less intensely hot than regular chilli flakes and has a slightly fruity, smoky quality that you can’t quite replicate with standard chilli powder. If you can’t find it, use a smaller quantity of mild chilli powder mixed with a pinch of smoked paprika.

Lard: My preferred fat for high-heat stir-frying because of its high smoke point and the subtle savouriness it adds to the dish. Peanut oil or vegetable oil are the best substitutes.

Sesame oil: Added with the sauce at the end of cooking, not at the start. Sesame oil has a lower smoke point than most fats and loses its characteristic nutty flavour quickly at high heat. Adding it late preserves that toasted sesame flavour in the finished dish.

Equipment

• Chopping board
• Chef’s knife
• Large saucepan
• Colander
• Bowl (for ice bath)
• Large frying pan or wok
• Tongs or wooden spoon