These Mexican style green beans are an easy side dish, and only take 15 minutes to prepare! Made with a few simple and healthy ingredients. They make a great side dish for your Mexican main course, like Carnitas or Barbacoa alongside Mexican Red Rice for the perfect dinner!
Green Beans and Tomatoes
This Mexican green bean side dish is such a quick and easy recipe! It’s a great way to change up your usual veggie side dish.
For more Mexican vegetable side dishes, try Healthy Mexican Street Corn, Fajita Veggies, or Fresh Mexican Avocado Salad.
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Why this recipe works
- Simple ingredients. This easy recipe has only FOUR ingredients, and 2 of those are salt and oil!
- Easy side dish. Only takes 15 minutes to make!
- Vegan
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
Ingredients
Green Beans
It is best to use fresh green beans for this recipe. Canned green beans or frozen green beans won’t stay crispy or char like fresh ones will. To save some time you can buy pre-trimmed fresh green beans. They should be available in the produce section at the grocery store.
- Green beans vs haricot verts - Both types of green beans are fine to use for this recipe. Haricots verts (or French green beans) have a slightly different flavor and are thinner than regular green beans. if using haricot verts, they will probably char quicker since they are thinner.
Chunky Salsa
While a pre-made salsa makes these green beans a quick side dish, you can always make your own salsa! If you love spice, try Spicy Serrao Salsa Verde or Mango Habanero Salsa. You can even use something like Green Enchilada Sauce if you like a more puréed salsa. Make a pico de gallo style salsa by dicing up tomatoes, red onion, jalapeño, and fresh cilantro, and toss in lime juice and salt.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
Equipment Needed
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Do You Need to Trim Green Beans?
When buying fresh green beans, they will usually have a tougher stem end.
You can snap or cut this end off. It is best to do this just before cooking, as trimmed ends may shrivel and dry out
How to trim green beans
- Wash in cold water to remove any dirt.
- Line up green beans on a cutting board so the stems face the same direction.
- Cut off the ends. You can also trim the other ends but you don’t have to!
How to make Mexican green beans
PREP
Cut green beans into 2” pieces. Trim ends if needed.
HEAT
Heat a large skillet with oil. Add in green beans.
CHAR
Leave green beans undisturbed for a few minutes to char.
TOP
Remove from heat and top with salsa. Serve and enjoy!
How to store
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
How to reheat
This easy green beans recipe is best served fresh, but you can reheat green beans in a skillet until warmed through, or microwave. Do not overcook, or green beans can become soggy.
What to Serve with Mexican Green Beans
These green beans will make a great addition to your main course!
- Dutch Oven Barbacoa
- Seared Salmon
- Dutch Oven Carnitas
- Turkey Meatballs
- Lemon Pepper Pork Chops
- Swordfish Tacos
Variations
You can change up this recipe a few different ways to make it your own!
- Add toasted almonds or other nuts for crunch
- To add more veggies, try white onion, chile peppers, and bell peppers
- Make it spicy by topping with red pepper flakes or using a spicy salsa
- Add in extra flavor with ground cumin, cilantro, or green chiles
Expert Tips
Don’t Keep Stirring the Green Beans
To nail a char on any vegetable or protein, don’t continue stirring. Continuing to stir ingredients in a pan will reduce the temperature of the pan and therefore prevent a nice charring and crisping effect. For this recipe, keep the green beans in the pan and leave them undisturbed. Then rotate once to char the second side.
Buy Fresh and Prep Yourself
Green beans tend to dry out really quickly, and can shrivel up causing a less crispy and flavorful side dish. Buy them as close to making this side dish as possible. For the best flavor for a side dish where green beans are the hero, please buy the whole bean and trim them!
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to use a cast iron pan to get charred green beans?
If you have a cast iron pan or dutch oven, this would be a great time to use it! If you don’t have a cast iron pan, any pan (non-stick or aluminum) is fine. If using a non-stick pan, make sure to get your pan nice and hot so that it chars and crisps the green beans.
Can I make this in advance?
While you CAN make green beans in advance, I personally find them to easily become mushy and soft when stored before eating. I suggest making this only up to a few hours ahead of time if you want to make this in advance.
Can you burn green beans?
Yes, if you leave anything on the stove long enough, it will burn! But the charring on these green beans is part of the recipe and gives them extra flavor!
Can you use frozen green beans in this recipe?
I really don’t suggest it. Frozen green beans are great mixed into stir-fry, soup or pasta dishes, but do not get as crispy as a side dish like this recipe. For the best crispy green bean side dish, you must use fresh green beans.
Are green beans and string beans the same thing?
Yes, green beans and string beans are the same vegetable. Green beans used to have a “string” running down the bean pod that needed to be removed before eating. Now green beans have been cultivated to not have this string to make them easier to eat. Snap beans is also another name for green beans.
More Mexican Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Mexican Green Beans with Salsa
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 12 ounces fresh green beans ends trimmed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons chunky mild or medium salsa red or green
Instructions
- Cut green beans into 2” pieces. Trim ends if needed.
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat.
- Add green beans, season with salt and toss to evenly coat in the oil.
- Leave undisturbed over medium heat for 3-4 minutes to encourage charring, then stir and cook.
- Allow the additional side to cook for another 3-4 minutes until most of the beans are slightly charred.
- Turn off heat and transfer charred green beans to a serving platter.
- Drizzle with the salsa and serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- If your salsa is cold from the refrigerator, add it to the pan and heat on medium-low heat for 1-2 minutes until warmed through.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
- This easy green beans recipe is best served fresh, but you can reheat green beans in a skillet until warmed through, or microwave. Do not overcook, or green beans can become soggy.
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