How to cook green beans and potatoes

Cook chopped bacon in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain bacon pieces on a paper towel-lined plate.
Table of Contents Show
Melt butter in a skillet with a lid over medium-low heat. Add onion; cook and stir until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in cooked bacon, green beans, potatoes, garlic, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat until green beans are tender, about 10 minutes.
Sprinkle with vinegar, salt, and pepper; serve.
Kristy H

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Boiled Potatoes and Green Beans

Recipe Summary

prep:

10 mins

total:

35 mins

Servings:

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

1 pound (about 8) baby red potatoes
Coarse Salt
3/4 pound green beans, trimmed
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and ground pepper

Directions

Instructions Checklist

Step 1
Place baby red potatoes in a large saucepan; add enough water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil; add coarse salt, and cook until potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon; slice in half.
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Step 2
Add green beans to boiling water; cover, and cook until crisp-tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Drain; transfer vegetables to a medium bowl. Add butter; season with salt and ground pepper. Toss.

These Southern style green beans and potatoes are a hearty side dish! This recipe is easy to make and great for dinners, holidays, entertaining and more. It is a great comforting and cozy dish for any occasion. This comfort food is full of flavor and a family favorite!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

These green beans and potatoes are tender, hearty and flavorful!
They are a great way to eat more vegetables without realizing it.
This recipe is simple and straightforward.
The bacon adds a savory and delicious flavor.
The beans are just crisp enough and so flavorful.
Soft and tender potatoes are the best part!
The potatoes balance out the healthy green vegetable beautifully.
This recipe is Whole30, Paleo, grain free, gluten free, sugar free, and easily made dairy free.
Check out these Whole30 French Fries for another great side dish with potatoes!

Ingredients & Substitutions

Bacon adds such a great flavor to these green beans and potatoes! Cook until crispy. Traditionally, this dish can be made with ham or sausage. Choose your favorite meat to make this dish!

Finely sliced onion adds a great flavor without being overwhelming. I recommend white or sweet onions, not red onions.

A little minced garlic goes a long way. It adds a pop of flavor.

Season with sea salt and pepper to suit your taste. The more, the merrier in my opinion.

Trim ends off the green beans. They can be left whole or cut in half. Total personal preference. I recommend using fresh green beans instead of frozen. If you only have frozen, thaw them before making this recipe.

Cubed potatoes are my favorite part of this Southern style side dish. Yukon gold, Russet or red potatoes all work well here. I prefer red potatoes so that is what I used. Cut into equal sized pieces.

The broth seeps into the other ingredients while simmering and creates the most amazing flavor. With that said, use your favorite flavor of broth. It will be a strong flavor in this dish. Chicken, beef or vegetable broth all work.

While simmering, the butter melts into the potatoes and green beans. It creates such a great buttery flavor! For dairy free, use Vegan butter. For Whole30, use ghee.

Potatoes

The potatoes are a star in this dish. Use Yukon, Russet or red potatoes for best results. These potatoes tend to get soft while cooking but maintain their shape enough.

Simmer mixture until the potatoes are fork tender. To test this, stick a fork in the potato. If it slides in easily, then the dish is done. If the potatoes are still firm, continue simmering.

Cut potatoes in equal sized cubes for even cooking.

Taste & Texture

These potatoes and green beans have a hearty and savory flavor. The most present flavors are bacon, green beans, potatoes and broth. A hint of garlic rounds things out.

The green beans have the perfect amount of slight crisp. The potatoes become soft and tender.

How to Make

Step 1

First, add sliced bacon to a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook until crispy. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of grease from pan.

Step 2

Then, add in diced onion, minced garlic, sea salt, pepper, and green beans to pan with bacon. Cook on low medium heat until onions have softened slightly, about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

Step 3

Add cubed potatoes, broth and butter to pot. Bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes.

Step 4

Then, reduce heat to low medium. Cover pot with lid. Simmer for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

Step 5

Lastly, serve!

Expert Tips & Tricks

Season with as much sea salt and pepper as desired.

Trim ends off green beans. Slice green beans in half if desired.

Simmer mixture until potatoes are fork tender. To test this, insert fork into one of the larger sized potatoes. If it slides in and out easily, the potatoes are done. If not, continue cooking until potatoes are soft and tender.

How to Serve & Store

Serve immediately after cooking! This dish is best when hot and fresh.

These potatoes and green beans go well with steak, roasted chicken, fried chicken, pork chops, and more.

This hearty side dish is great for Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas. It is savory and so filling! Since this recipe is easy to reheat, feel free to make ahead of time. This comes in handy when serving for holidays and special occasions.

These green beans and potatoes are easy enough for a weeknight, but so flavorful for entertaining and hosting. The green beans pack nutrients and vitamins while the potatoes add a comfort food feeling.

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 4 days.

To reheat, either microwave for 30 seconds to 60 seconds, or bake at 350 degrees for 5 to 7 minutes. Since each microwave and oven is different, watch closely.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to cut the green beans in half?

You can either cut green beans in half or leave them whole. Trim edges off.

Which potatoes should I use?

I used red potatoes for this recipe and highly recommend them.

Can I use frozen veggies?

Sure! Thaw green beans before making this recipe.

Can I use another type of meat?

Yes. Ham or sausage would be great!

Get the Recipe: Green Beans and Potatoes

These Southern style green beans and potatoes are a hearty and flavorful side dish! This recipe is easy to make and great for any occasion. The green beans are slightly crisp while the potatoes are incredibly tender. A little bacon rounds this dish out!

▢ 4 slices bacon, sliced into 1 inch pieces
▢ ½ cup onion, finely diced
▢ 1 tbsp minced garlic
▢ pinch sea salt, to taste
▢ pinch ground pepper, to taste
▢ 1 pound green beans, trimmed
▢ 2 cups potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
▢ 4 cups broth, chicken or beef
▢ 3 tbsp butter

First, add sliced bacon to a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook until bacon is crispy.
Once bacon is crispy, discard all but 2 tablespoons of cooking fat from pan. Add in diced onion, minced garlic, sea salt, pepper, and green beans to pan with bacon. Sauté on low medium heat until onions have softened slightly, about 5 minutes.
Then, add cubed potatoes, broth and butter to pot. Bring mixture to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes.
Then, turn to low medium heat, cover pan with lid and allow mixture to simmer for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Stir occasionally.
Finally, serve! Serve with or without broth.

This recipe can be made with ham or sausage instead of bacon. Follow same steps and cook meat until done before discarding grease and adding other ingredients.
Add sea salt and pepper to suit your taste.
Trim ends off green beans. Chop in half if desired. I did a combination of some chopped and some not chopped.
I used red potatoes for this recipe which I recommend.
Chicken, beef or vegetable broth can be used. I used beef for these photos.
This side dish can be served with or without the broth from the pan. I think it’s more flavorful with the broth!
Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Calories: 223kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 24mg, Sodium: 1031mg, Potassium: 721mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 1548IU, Vitamin C: 37mg, Calcium: 65mg, Iron: 2mg

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

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How long does green beans take to cook?

Cook the green beans, covered, in a small amount of boiling salted water until crisp-tender: 10 to 15 minutes for whole or cut green beans. 5 to 10 minutes for french-cut green beans.