Caramelized Green Beans

Since I waxed poetic about bacon the other day, I thought it seemed fitting to post another bacon recipe.  And nothing says bacon-lover like adding bacon to otherwise healthy green vegetables.  Green beans with bacon is kind of a classic combination, but these green beans take it a step beyond, adding in some sauteed red onion and sweetened soy sauce mixture that really give some great depth to the beans.  I almost always use frozen green beans, but if you want to use fresh green beans in this recipe, just blanch them for a minute before adding them to the onion and garlic and you'll be good to go.

Caramelized Green Beans

Number of Servings: 6
Time to Prepare: 25 minutes

• 1 lb frozen green beans
• 1/2 lb bacon
• 1/2 medium red onion, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• pepper

Rinse green beans under cool water to thaw and set aside to drain.

Fry the bacon in a large skillet until crisp.  Remove from pan and drain on a paper towel.

If you had fatty bacon, drain out some of the drippings, otherwise just leave all the drippings in the pan (you want 2-3 Tbsp of drippings).  

Add onions and garlic to bacon drippings and cook over medium-high heat for a couple minutes, then add green beans and stir-fry for 2-3 minute.  While the beans cook, mix the sugar, soy sauce, and kosher salt in a small bowl, then pour on top of the beans.  Keep stir-frying until the sauce beings to coat the beans. 

Crumble the bacon and stir into the beans.  Season with pepper to taste and keep stir-frying until the beans are cooked through and everything is glazed with the sauce.  Transfer to a serving dish and allow to stand for a few minutes before serving.

Source: slightly adapted from Our Best Bites

Produce Used: Green beans, red onion, garlic