Caramelizing the onions adds a delicious savory flavor to this green bean recipe, and it's so easy to do.
Begin by slicing the onion into thin crescent shapes or dice if you like your onions smaller. Go ahead and mince the garlic as well, or you can use the jar variety.
In a large pan or wok, add the onions to the dry pan and begin to cook on medium heat. You will need to keep a close eye on this to keep it from burning. I have a video below showing how easy it is to do this.
Once the onions begin to brown a little, add about 3 tablespoons of veggie broth or water to the pan. As they continue to cook, add a little more veggie broth one tablespoon at a time. Scrape any of the caramelized brown parts, and mix into the broth as the pan begins to cook down.
Next, add the clean green beans and 3/4 cup veggie broth. Cover and cook on medium-high heat for approximately 12-15 minutes until the beans become slightly tender, but still somewhat firm.
While the beans are cooking, go ahead and make the sauce.
Asian Sauce
It takes less than 5-minutes to prepare by simply whisking together soy sauce (or tamari if it needs to be GF), water, lemon juice, minced garlic, sweetener of choice, and arrowroot powder (or another thickener such as cornstarch). I prefer arrowroot powder because it doesn't clump and is so easy to use in recipes.
Personally, I use honey to sweeten my sauce, and there is a great vegan-friendly honey option as well. Other sweetener options include maple syrup, agave, or sucanat.
After the ingredients are mixed well, add the sauce to the hot pan of green beans and turn the heat down to low. It will begin to thicken within seconds and will continue to thicken as it heats up.
Stir well to coat the beans and allow to cook uncovered in the broth for another 3-5 minutes. Then, remove from heat and serve warm.
Video
Notes
Detailed instructions, in-process photos, and my personal helpful tips can be found in the article above.The SauceAbout 30 years ago, a Japanese friend taught me how to whip this sauce up for a lot of the dishes he prepared. He mostly used it as a dipping sauce, but I have found so many more uses for it over the years.It takes less than 5-minutes to prepare this Asian-inspired sauce by simply whisking together soy sauce (or tamari if it needs to be GF), water, lemon juice, minced garlic, sweetener of choice, and arrowroot powder (or another thickener such as cornstarch). I prefer arrowroot powder because it doesn’t clump and is so easy to use in recipes.