You can have this impressive green bean side dish on the table in under 30-minutes. It's fancy enough to serve for the holidays and yet it's easy enough to make any night of the week.
Green Beans Almondine is a delicious buttery bourbon update on a classic and will soon become your favorite way to eat green beans.
Jump to:
🎯 Make it a meal:
You may want to serve today's delicious skillet green beans with bacon and bourbon alongside the 5-Ingredient Slow Cooker Root Beer Country Ribs featured in the above video. It would be a very tasty choice, indeed.
🛒The ingredients:
*Please note that the exact measurements along with a new "shop the recipe" feature from Instacart is available in the printable recipe card.
Ingredient information:
The almonds I used were thinly sliced but feel free to use chopped or even slivered almonds depending on your preferences.
Extra virgin olive oil is my preferred oil for this dish because of its fruity flavor. However, feel free to use canola, vegetable, grapeseed, or avocado oil.
The bourbon I used Jack Daniels, and the bacon I used was regular cut smoked bacon. Feel free to use any type of bacon you prefer.
❓ FAQ's
Roughly 20 minutes, if while you're browning the bacon you're also prepping the green beans.
I've written this recipe with the idea of serving 6 people. However, I know that I could eat the entire bowl all by myself (but don't tell)! 🤭
Store these green beans in and airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You bet! Store them in an air-tight freezer container or zip-top bag and freeze them for up to 2 months.
If cooking from frozen, thaw the beans completely in the refrigerator over night.
To reheat, add them to a skillet and cook over medium/low (stirring occasionally) until hot. Or, cover them with plastic wrap and heat them in a microwave safe bowl for 2-3 minutes on 80-90% power, or until hot.
🔑Helpful cooking tips:
After browning the bacon and adding the green beans, deglazing the pan with water (or you can use stock of your choosing) is a sure-fire way to get the most bacon flavor infused into the green beans.
After adding the water to the pan, scrape up the brown bits that have stuck to the bottom of the skillet with a spatula. Viola! A clean pan and a completed dish that's packed with flavor!!
⚠️IMPORTANT - Before adding the bourbon to the skillet make sure to turn the heat under the pan to LOW to prevent a flareup. Once the bourbon has been added, you can increase the heat again as called for in the recipe.
Toasting nuts of any kind will bring out their flavor. To toast the almond slices for this recipe add them to a small skillet (without oil or spray) over medium/low heat and shake or stir the skillet frequently. Do not step away from the skillet at this point as nuts will burn quickly. As soon as you can smell the almonds they're toasted and ready to use.
✎ Substitutions and Variations:
If you prefer not to use bourbon for this recipe feel free to switch it out with a vegetable or meat stock or you can swap it out with a dry white wine.
Frozen or even canned green beans will work for this recipe if desired. If using frozen beans make sure to thaw them completely and dry them well before adding them to the skillet with the bacon.
If using canned green beans, drain and dry them well before adding them to the skillet with the bacon. You may also wish to cut the amount of salt called for in the written recipe as canned vegetables contain a lot of sodium.
Turkey bacon can be used in place of pork bacon if desired, and diced pancetta would be amazing. Of course, you can leave the meat products out if you'd like to make a completely vegetarian dish.
📋The step-by-step instructions:
Cut a half a pound of bacon into 1" pieces.
Brown the bacon in a large skillet, stirring frequently until the bacon is almost crisp.
While the bacon is browning, trim the stem end from the green beans and cut them in half, if desired.
Add the prepared green beans to the skillet with the bacon along with extra virgin olive oil and butter.
Stir the green beans and bacon well and season with salt and pepper.
Add water to the pan to steam the beans, and deglaze the pan (see next step).
After adding the water use a spatula to deglaze the pan by scraping up all the browned bits (fond) from the bottom of the skillet that came from browning the bacon.
Once deglazed cover the skillet and allow the beans to steam for 5-7 minutes.
After steaming, remove the cover and turn the heat to low. Add the bourbon to the pan and stir well to combine. Continue to cook the beans an additional 3-4 minutes.
Spoon the completed beans into a serving bowl and top them with toasted slices almonds before serving.
📌 Related bourbon recipes you'll also enjoy:
What to serve alongside these delicious green beans:
You'll be amazed at how delicious Brown Bag Roast Turkey is! The skin is crispy, and the meat juicy! It’s utter perfection!! This method for roasting a Thanksgiving turkey has it IN THE BAG so don't miss out your chance to serve the best roast turkey you've ever had!
Homemade Honey Orange Crescent Rolls are perfectly delicious! This buttery sweet enriched yeast dough is what dreams are made of. They're swoon-worthy!
Take some of the stress out of serving a big holiday meal to a large group of people (or any meal for that matter) by preparing these Cheesy Horseradish Mashed Potatoes in advance. Then pop it into the oven about an hour before you're ready to eat! Now it's time to relax before dinner. You've earned it!
When you make this recipe, and I hope you do, I'd appreciate it if you'd take a moment to leave a star rating on the recipe card and briefly comment on why you rated it as you did. FYI - Google appreciates recipe ratings and, in turn, will share my recipes with more people. Thank you so much!!
Printable Recipe Card
Green Beans Almondine with Bacon and Bourbon
Equipment
- kitchen timer optional
Ingredients
- 4 cups green beans washed, dried, and trimmed
- ½ pound bacon cut into 1" pieces
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup bourbon
- ¼ cup sliced almonds toasted
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat brown the bacon until almost crisp (about 5 minutes), stirring frequently.
- While the bacon is browning prepare and trim the green beans.
- Add the green beans to the skillet along with the bacon. Add the olive oil and butter to the skillet and stir well to combine the beans with the bacon.
- Season the beans with salt and pepper. Add water to the pan and use a spatula to scrape up all the browned bits stuck on the bottom of the pan from browning the bacon. Stir well to combine.
- Cover the pan and allow the beans to steam for 5-7 minutes.
- Toast the slivered almonds in a small skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently. This will only take 1-2 minutes so pay close attention so they don't burn.
- Remove the cover and reduce the heat to low. Add the bourbon to the beans, stirring well. Bring the heat back to medium and cook the beans, stirring occasionally, for an additional 1-2 minutes.
- Spoon the bacon bourbon green beans into a serving bowl and top with the toasted sliced almonds before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Follow me across my social media platforms and join in on the conversation: FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, PINTEREST, TIKTOK, AND YOUTUBE.
Thank you so much for visiting me today in my Kudos Kitchen. I hope you found something you'll love and that you'll come back and visit me often. There is always room for you around my table!
Should you have any questions or comments regarding anything you've seen here on my blog, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. It is always my distinct pleasure to respond to you just as soon as I possibly can.
Until we eat again, I hope you have a delicious day!!
Leave a Reply