Green beans with mustard butter sauce is a quick and easy side dish with rich, tangy flavor and only 5 ingredients!
T-1 day until Thanksgiving - are you ready?!
My mom and I are doing our big grocery run together this morning, then we'll prep some things ahead today and get our game plan ready for tomorrow.
We're big planners and list makers so we like to talk it out and make sure we know what needs to happen when. 👍
But on to today's recipe!
Green beans with mustard butter sauce is one of those easy go-to side dishes when you need something tasty but don’t want to fuss over another part of your dinner.
Know what I mean? You’ve looked up a recipe for your chicken, you’ve shopped for the ingredients, gotten everything prepped and now you need some sides.
You look in the fridge and think, what am I gonna do with this vegetable?
Happens to me ALL. THE. TIME.
Which is why we eat a lot of microwave baked potatoes. Nothing to do but scrub, poke with a fork and cook in the microwave.
We also eat a lot of simple spinach salads and steamed broccoli. Fuss-free.
And so are these green beans with mustard butter sauce.
You just cook the green beans quickly in boiling water, whisk together your sauce, combine and serve. You just need 10 minutes and an easy, healthy, yummy side dish is ready for dinner any night of the week.
Plus, it’s only 5 ingredients (not counting salt and pepper) so I can always whip this up without a second thought. 👍
Ingredients
- Fresh green beans - The start of the show
- Coarse grain mustard - The texture here is great, but you can substitute extra Dijon mustard if needed
- Dijon mustard - Bring on that tangy goodness
- Lemon - This brightens the whole dish
- Butter - This lends some richness to the sauce
Now, I've got a few quick notes and tips coming up on how to make green beans with mustard butter sauce. Just trying to be helpful.
If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.
Notes on making green beans with mustard butter sauce:
- Green beans texture: I like cooking the green beans for this dish until they are tender, but not mushy. If you want yours completely soft, just add a few more minutes of cooking time. (And check out my sautéed green beans and tomatoes, which are slow cooked until totally soft).
- Tangy vs sweet: I like that these green beans are a bit tangy, but you can certainly add a teaspoon or two of honey if you want to sweeten this up a little.
- Butter vs olive oil: You can substitute olive oil for the butter if you’re vegan or if you want the sauce to be more of a vinaigrette.
- Mustard: I like the texture and flavor of the whole grain mustard, in addition to the creamy Dijon, but if you don’t have any, you can use all Dijon mustard here.
These green beans would make a great addition to your Thanksgiving table tomorrow, especially for how simple they are amid all the other elaborate dishes we all tend to make for the big meal.
And really, who couldn't use another side dish?! They're usually my favorite part!
(Seen here 👆 with my cranberry balsamic pork chops.)
My family and my parents always have some form of green beans as one of our veggies at Thanksgiving. This year my mom requested my green beans gremolata. Though my dad wants our classic green bean casserole. Hmmm.
I’ll have to make them this dish soon cause I bet they’ll be a new favorite. 😉
Enjoy! And to my American friends, I hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving!
XO,
Kathryn
Green beans with mustard butter sauce
Green beans with mustard butter sauce is a quick and easy side dish with only 5 ingredients!
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed
- 1 tablespoon coarse grain mustard
- ½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- juice ½ lemon
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- Cook green beans in boiling, salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.
- In the meantime, combine the remaining ingredients in a medium bowl and stir to combine.
- Drain the green beans, then add to the bowl and toss with the mustard sauce to coat. Serve immediately.
Notes
You can substitute olive oil for the butter if you’re vegan or if you want the sauce to be more of a vinaigrette.
I like the texture and flavor of the whole grain mustard, but if you don’t have any, you can use all Dijon mustard here.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Amount Per Serving: Calories: 125Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 269mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 4gSugar: 11gProtein: 3g
Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine
That sauce sounds wonderful! Bless you for going to the store the day before a major holiday! Madhouse!
Happy Thanksgiving!!
Kathryn
We went early Rebecca, before the crowds 😉 My mom and I split up the list and each filled a cart - in and out and now we're cooking! Happy Thanksgiving!
Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes)
I love green beans! Looks like I found a new way to prepare them. Thanks for sharing!!!
Kathryn
Me too! Thanks Jocelyn - I hope you love this recipe! 😊
Debra C.
What a wonderful twist on an every day veggie, love it! I also love the towel your Grandma made - what a precious treasure!
Kathryn
Aww, thanks so much! It is so special to me!
Carolyn Ingram
This sounds divine!
Kathryn
Thank you!
Tom
Saute raw green beans in browned mustard garlic butter and skip blanching yadda yadda.
Kathryn
Sure Tom, you could certainly make it that way instead.
Klair
Has anyone actually tried to make this recipe before commenting? Sure, it sounds good, but it'd be nice to see at least one actual comment saying "I made these and...."
Rose Steele
I'm not usually a fan of folks who make major changes in a recipe and then review it, pro or con, but now I'm going to be one of those people. I made the sauce and it was a little tangy for me, so I tossed in a dollop of honey and a tablespoon or so of cream sherry (really) and it was soooo good. My boyfriend has been bugging me for more every day since. It will be a regular in my repertoire and I intend to put it on asparagus, broccoli, potatoes and anything else I can think of...maybe pork chops!
Kathryn
I'm so glad you enjoyed it Rose and those sound like delicious additions!
Courtney
This recipe looks delicious! I want to make this with chicken and baked potatoes. What flavors for chicken breast do you think would pair well with this recipe?
Kathryn
Sounds like a yummy dinner! You could do a balsamic flavored chicken (https://www.familyfoodonthetable.com/slow-cooker-balsamic-chicken/) or a creamy or cheesy-style chicken (https://www.familyfoodonthetable.com/healthy-creamy-italian-chicken-skillet/ OR https://www.familyfoodonthetable.com/easy-mozzarella-baked-chicken-2/) Hope that helps!
Courtney
Thank you so much. The Creamy Italian chicken was delicious! Do you think that recipe could be adapted to the instant pot?
Kathryn
I'm so happy you enjoyed it! I'm sure it could be, but I JUST finally bought an Instant Pot myself (I know, I'm so behind), so I don't yet know how to convert recipes.
Robbi
Made this tonight for our Christmas Eve dinner. It was sooooo good! Really elevates the green beans to more than just a “side dish”! And can I just tell you what a compliment it is to beef tenderloin? Seriously, even if you don’t use it with the green beans, try it with beef tenderloin! So many compliments and not a drop of sauce leftover!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you all enjoyed it Robbi!! And love the idea of the sauce with some beef tenderloin - yum! 😊
Nita
Love your recipe. I eat a lot of beans , so this is a perfect addition.
Thank you. X
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear that Nita! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Suzanne Wynn
This is SO good! I've actually made it. Going on 3 times right now. I've never added any sweetener because, honestly, the idea of sweet green beans kinda weirds me out lol. My mom and husband love these too. Thanks, Kathyrn, so much for such a yummy side!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so glad to hear you love it Suzanne! Thanks so much for sharing! 😊
Rob
i did a trial run with can green beans and didn't have the grainy mustard. It tasted ok. I'll be making this Thanksgiving with the correct items and thought I'd roast the green beans in the oven first.
Thank you for this recipe!
Kathryn Doherty
You are so welcome! Hope you enjoy them and happy holidays!
Bonnie
An amazing recipe. Green bean heaven!
Kathryn Doherty
I'm so happy to hear you loved it Bonnie! Thank you so much for sharing! 😊