These Green Beans are Anything But Boring.
When I made the Adobo-Inspired Chicken Braised in Dark Soy Sauce, I wanted a vegetable that would stand up to the strong flavor of the chicken, but not try to compete. I decided that mild unsweetened coconut flakes would probably be good with the flavors in the chicken, would work well with green beans, and began putting this together.

After toasting the unsweetened coconut flakes in a dry skillet, I par cooked my green beans. I like to do this by piling the green beans on a plate, covering them and then microwaving them on high for 3 minutes. This only cooks off the rawness and leaves the green beans perfect for finishing in the skillet. I heated a little coconut oil in a large skillet, added brown and black mustard seeds and after they’d popped I tossed in a little minced garlic.
The green beans then went into the skillet and were stirred around until they just started to brown. I added black salt (kala namak), one of my favorite flavors, a sliced Fresno chili and some black pepper. I then drizzled on a little more coconut oil, topped them with the toasted coconut and served them up. The verdict? We loved them. These are now on repeat.
Coconut Green Beans with Mustard Seeds
4
servingsGreen Beans Cooked with Black and Brown Mustard Seeds and Topped with Toasted Coconut.
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Ingredients
1/3 cup 1/3 unsweetened coconut flakes
1 pound 1 fresh green beans, trimmed
2 tablespoons 2 unrefined coconut oil, divided
1 tablespoon 1 black mustard seeds
1 tablespoon 1 brown mustard seeds
1 medium 1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon 1/2 black salt (kala namak)
1 1 Fresno chili, seeded and sliced thinly
black pepper, freshly ground
Directions
- In a large dry skillet, toast the coconut flakes over medium heat until golden. Remove from the skillet and reserve.
- Pile the green beans on a plate, cover, and microwave on high for 3 minutes. Remove the cover.
- In the same skillet, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil over medium high heat. Add black and brown mustard seeds. As soon as they begin to pop add the minced garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds and add the green beans. Cook and toss the green beans for about 5 minutes until they’re crisp tender and starting to brown at the edges. Sprinkle with the black salt, add the chili and cook for 1 more minute. Remove the skillet from the heat. Drizzle on 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil. Add a few good grinds of black pepper, place in a serving dish and scatter the toasted coconut over the top. Enjoy!