How to Blanch Green Beans for Perfectly Snappy-But-Tender Veg
EpicuriousAH: “If you want green beans that are cooked until tender but still have some snap, then blanching is the five-minute cooking method for your next salad or snack plate.”
Read when you’ve got time to spare.
With great produce comes great responsibility. No one wants to bring home their CSA or farmers market haul only to see that bouquet of fresh basil turn black in the fridge or to let that pile of perfect cherry tomatoes get swarmed by fruit flies.
That’s why we’re sharing some of the smartest tricks from Epicurious for bringing out the freshest summery best in your produce. We have storage tips, hacks for coaxing out the brightest colors and flavors, and recipes that will come together in the blink of an eye.
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AH: “If you want green beans that are cooked until tender but still have some snap, then blanching is the five-minute cooking method for your next salad or snack plate.”
“How should you store basil? It turns out I’ve been doing it wrong my whole life and missing out on loads of green pesto. Thankfully this trick is here to remind me that there are greener pastures ahead.” -Anna Hezel
AH: “This hands-off Yotam Ottolenghi method for confiting cherry tomatoes with chickpeas is so good that Epicurious executive editor Sonia Chopra makes it almost every week. Make a big batch now, and pack it for lunch all week long.”
AH: “Want to skip the cooking altogether? This Thai salad from Arnold Myint uses raw green beans for the ultimate crunch, punched up with lime juice, fish sauce, and coconut sugar.”
The savory-sweet combo will turn any piece of fruit into an elegant dessert, snack, or garnish.
AH: “A dip in an ice bath can keep your vegetables greener and crunchier, it can make scallions curl into beautiful spirals, and it can make your onions taste sweeter and more mild. Here’s a look at the science behind why it works.”
AH: “Do this, and avoid soggy, mushy cucumbers.”
AH: “If you’re getting tired of slathering butter onto those grilled ears of corn, try this technique from Andy Baraghani instead, for juicy, perfectly seasoned cobs.”
AH: “It might sound a little funny to dump hot water across the surface of your peach cobbler, but trust us on this one—it’s the secret to a crunchy, caramelized crust.”
Anna Hezel is a senior editor at Epicurious. Before joining Epicurious in 2022, she was the senior editor at TASTE. Anna has written about food, drinks, and culture for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bon Appétit, Rolling Stone, GQ, Eater, and more. She’s the author of the 2019 cookbook Lasagna (Clarkson Potter) and the 2023 cookbook Tin to Table (Chronicle Books).