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Milk-Simmered Green Beans

Source of Recipe

Southern Living


Recipe Introduction

"Green beans are a Southern staple. They make appearances in summer salads, holiday casseroles, jars of pickles, and skillets full of bacon. Instead of employing the usual creamy soup base, ham hocks, or lard as the fat agent, these beans benefit from the luxurious texture of a milk and butter bath. But, they are extracted before they become mushy—instead, this recipe delivers tender green beans with just the bits of milk clinging to them and tons of flavor that lets them stand on their own. My great-grandmother taught me this recipe after an afternoon of snapping beans on her front porch, and it's now in regular rotation. This is my most-requested recipe, and I always tell friends it's great when beans are at their freshest in season, but even in the winter, you can buy those bags of pre-snapped beans at the grocery store and the milk, butter, and salt bath transforms them. This recipe is not good for canned green beans though as their texture is already too soft to handle the extra cook time. But if you freeze batches when harvested, just thaw and drain and they work well with this recipe."

Recipe Link: https://tinyurl.com/milksimmeredbeans

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 3 quarts water, plus more for ice bath
â—¦ Ice
â—¦ 2 pounds green beans, trimmed
â—¦ 1 quart whole milk
â—¦ ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
â—¦ 2 tablespoons kosher salt


Recipe

In a large pot (at least 5 quarts), bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Prepare a bowl of ice water to put beans in when finished blanching.

Add beans and cover. Blanch for 2 to 3 minutes (beans will still be a bright green and snap tender). Move them to ice water to stop cooking. Strain them and return to the pot. Add milk, butter, and salt. Be sure the green beans are submerged in the mixture so they can soak in the liquid. Add more milk if necessary.

Allow to simmer on medium-low for 30 minutes. Beans should soak up the milk mixture, and be tender. Don't be alarmed if milk solidifies some on the beans—this is just the milk fat and adds another layer of flavor. Remove from heat and scoop beans out with tongs into the serving dish. Discard remaining milk mixture.

Makes 8 servings