Green Beans Almondine with Bacon
Green beans are always better with bacon, and this Green Beans Almondine with Bacon dish is delicious! Perfectly sauteed greens beans tossed with crunchy almonds and crisp bacon crumbles—a quick and easy holiday side dish.
Are you looking for a no-fuss side dish loaded with flavor to add to your holiday table? This green beans almondine with bacon recipe yields a restaurant-quality side dish in a matter of minutes.
The key to delicious sauteed green beans is layering on the flavor. I made these green beans with chicken stock, bacon, garlic, toasted slivered almonds, and fresh herbs and they turned out next-level delicious.
I always use frozen organic green beans because they cook much quicker and have a great taste and texture. My trick is to let the green beans thaw in the pan for an hour and drain before adding the chicken stock and cooking them through.
Sauteeing the green beans enhances the caramelized flavor in this dish. This is one of those green bean dishes everyone will want seconds. Enjoy!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Just five ingredients plus salt and pepper and 20 minutes to make
- Rich, savory flavor made with fresh, healthy ingredients
- It is a quick and easy side dish great for weeknights and special occasions.
- It can be adapted to be gluten-free, paleo and Whole30.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Frozen Whole Green Beans (thawed): I like using frozen green beans because they’re picked at their prime and always delicious. I’ve also included tips for fresh beans below.
- Concentrated Liquid Chicken Stock (dissolved in water) or regular Chicken Stock: is the cooking liquid for the green beans. Cooking them in chicken stock instead of water adds rich flavor.
- Garlic (minced) & optional fresh herbs(dill and/or parsley chopped): enhances the savory tastes and aromas.
- Silvered Almonds: This recipe wouldn’t be green beans almondine without them!
- Bacon (cooked, crumbled and rendered of fat): Cook your bacon and reserve the bacon grease to sautee the green beans. Crumble the bacon strips.
- Sea Salt & Pepper (to taste): enhances and balances all of the yummy flavors.
How To Make Green Beans Almondine With Bacon
You’re going to love how easy it is to make these tasty beans!
Step 1: Cook the bacon and green beans:
In a large saute pan, over medium heat, cook the bacon until golden and crisp.
Set bacon aside and add the thawed green beans and garlic to the pan and toss to coat. Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer and cook until it evaporates and the beans begin to soften.
Step 2: Add flavor:
Add the almonds and fresh dill to the pan, if using. Stir well to combine and continue to saute until the green beans begin to caramelize.
Step 3: Toss with bacon and serve:
Remove the pan from the heat and gently toss the green beans with the cooked, crumbled bacon—season to taste with salt and pepper and serve hot. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
Recipe Tips
- To enhance the vibrancy of the green beans, blanch the frozen beans before cooking them in chicken stock.
- If the bacon fat cooks out before the green beans are caramelized, add a tablespoon of butter or olive oil to the pan for more moisture.
- Don’t overcook the green beans, or they may become rubbery.
- Serve green beans almondine immediately -when they’re perfectly tender with lightly caramelized edges.
What To Serve With Green Beans Almondine
This classic French side dish is light, flavorful, and pairs well with a variety of dishes. Make it a meal and serve these beans with one of these recipe combos:
Variations & Add-Ins
- Make green beans almondine with fresh green beans: Frozen green beans are great for convenience and flavor. However, if fresh green beans are in season, you can use them. I recommend trimming the end connected to each bean’s stem and blanching them for 2 minutes before gently simmering in the chicken stock.
- Add more veggies: Add thinly sliced shallot, red bell pepper or blanched carrot slices and cook with the rest of the ingredients.
- Finish with lemon juice/zest: to enhance all of the flavors, toss hot green beans, bacon and almonds with freshly squeezed lemon juice and a sprinkle of lemon zest before serving.
- Paleo & Whole30 Green Beans Almondine: Most of the ingredients are naturally paleo & Whole30. To make it 100% diet-friendly, make sure to use compliant chicken stock and sugar-free uncured bacon.
Storing & Freezing
Storing Leftover green beans with almonds and bacon are best kept in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 5 days.
Reheating: You can quickly reheat leftovers in a warm skillet or the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes.
Freezing: Green beans almondine can be frozen and reheated on the stove, but the texture of the beans will not be quite the same. This recipe is best made fresh.
Recipe FAQ
This dish is best made fresh. However, you can cook the bacon and prep the garlic the day before to speed things up.
To make greens beans almondine suitable for the Whole30 diet, be sure to use compliant chicken stock and bacon. The remaining ingredients are naturally ok on Whole30.
You’re more than welcome to omit the bacon and replace the rendered fat with olive or butter. For an entirely plant-based version, use your favorite plant-based cooking oil and vegetable stock instead of chicken.
More Green Bean Recipes
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Green Beans Almondine with Bacon
Ingredients
- 5 cups frozen whole green beans thawed in pan for 1 hour, or you can blanch them straight from frozen. Be sure to drain well.
- 2 slices bacon chopped
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 packet concentrated liquid chicken stock dissolved into 1/4 cup water or a teaspoon of Better than Bouillon concentrated paste dissolved in 1/4 cup of water, you can also use 1/4 cup regular chicken stock
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tsp fresh dill or parsley chopped fine, optional
Instructions
- Cook until golden and crisp. Remove the cooked bacon from the pan and drain on a paper towel lined plate.
- Add the green beans and garlic to the rendered bacon fat in the pan and stir to coat.
- Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until it evaporates and the beans begin to soften, stirring occasionally about 8-10 minutes.
- Add almonds and dill, if using, and stir well coating the beans.
- Sauté until beans begin to carmelize, 3-5 minutes, and serve immediately.
- Garnish with fresh chopped parsley, if desired.
Notes
- To enhance the vibrancy of the green beans, blanch the frozen beans before cooking them in chicken stock.
- If the bacon fat cooks out before the green beans are caramelized, add a tablespoon of butter or olive oil to the pan for more moisture.
- Don’t overcook the green beans, or they may become rubbery.
- Serve green beans almondine immediately -when they’re perfectly tender with lightly caramelized edges.
Nutrition
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What a simple and healthful way to cook green beans. I love the addition of almonds. Thank you for sharing this dish!
Yummy! Simple but delicious… I love the addition of the almonds 🙂
That looks delicious Amee!
I love this green bean dish. Wouldn’t have thought of dill but the slivered almonds is my fave with green beans.
Thank You.