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Green Beans with Sesame-Miso Dressing

Green beans (or almost any other vegetable for that matter) gain an exciting twist from this miso-based dressing. You can find miso (see page 123) at well-stocked supermarkets and Asian markets; red miso (which is actually brown) is most often used in this dressing, but you can also use white. If you cannot find miso, see the variation, which is worth trying in any case.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes 4 servings

Ingredients

Salt to taste
1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch
lengths
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
1 tablespoon mirin, sweet sake, or other sweet wine
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds (page 596)
3 tablespoons miso, preferably red

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Cook the green beans just until tender, about 3 minutes, drain, and rinse under cold water (better still, plunge them into a bowl of ice water) to stop the cooking. Drain again and set aside.

    Step 2

    Whisk the sugar into the mirin until it is dissolved; stir in the sesame seeds and miso until well combined. Toss with the green beans until well coated, then serve or let stand for up to an hour before serving.

  2. Green Beans with Sweet Sesame Dressing

    Step 3

    Substitute 1 tablespoon soy sauce and 1 teaspoon honey for the miso.

The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved. MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.
TagsGreen BeanBean and LegumeVegetableMisoSideDinnerVegetarianDairy Free5 Ingredients or FewerEasyCookbooks
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