I have always loved green beans and have eaten them most of my life. I know people eat them baked or roasted with almonds or with canned soups and canned fried onions in casseroles. I’ve never been much a fan of canned products often finding anything canned far too salty for my taste. And no matter how many times I have tried to eat or cook beans any other way I always come back to these.
I remember many summers my mom and I would go to the u-pick places and we would be so overcome with the beauty of the vegetables we would pick until we could hardly pick anymore. Some people might suggest we have a hoarding issue and I’m not sure I would argue but how could we help ourselves. Bags and bags of beans! They were so green, so crisp, so fresh and so beautiful. Combined we would pick four to six grocery bags full of just the beans and then we would laugh as we drove home; knowing how much work this was going to be but also knowing what a feast they would be — now — and during the winter when we would pull the bags of blanched beans out of the freezer to enjoy a little bit of summer.
Czechs seem to love their dill what with Creamy Dill Sauce and Dumplings or with Dill Soup and yes of course, Green Beans with Dill Sauce. This is by far my favourite way to eat beans, by themselves, with nothing else, for lunch or dinner. You could easily pair them with a protein and starch but why eat anything else when that would just take away from the room you would have for the beans?! They are enough… by themselves.
Green Beans with Dill Sauce
- 4 Cups of chopped fresh beans
- Water to just cover the beans
- 1 small diced onion
- 3-4 Tablespoons or so of vegetable oil
- 2 Tablespoons of flour
- Salt to taste
- splash of vinegar or some sour salt or a little of both
- 2 – 3 tablespoons sour cream
- Small bunch of fresh dill, chopped
Place the chopped, cleaned beans into a small pot and add just enough water to barely cover them then bring to a boil and simmer 5- 10 minutes or until just cooked. Stir them once in a while to make sure the ones on top get to the bottom so they all cook.
Meanwhile in a frying pan add the oil and chopped onions. Simmer until the onions are translucent then add in the flour and fry on low for about 3-4 minutes. Once the beans are done add the flour and onion mixture into the pot of beans and simmer until it thickens. Add the salt to taste. Add the vinegar and/or sour salt and then turn off the heat and add the sour cream. Lastly stir in the fresh dill and serve.
Some people add paprika to the mix but I’ve never done that so call me a rebel. This is the way I’ve eaten and continue to eat them… Delicious.