Green Beans

Green beans — also called string beans or French beans — are one of the most familiar vegetables in the Australian kitchen. Unlike dried beans, they are harvested young while the pods are still tender and the seeds inside are small and undeveloped. The whole pod is eaten.

They are enormously versatile: steamed and buttered as a simple side, blanched and tossed into salads, stir-fried with garlic and soy, or slow-cooked in casseroles. They pair well with almonds, bacon, lemon, and most herbs. The French tradition of serving them barely cooked and bright green (haricots verts) sits alongside heartier preparations like American-style green bean casserole.

Fresh green beans are available year-round in Australia, with peak season in summer and autumn. They should snap cleanly when bent — a limp bean is past its prime. Frozen green beans are a reliable standby and hold their quality well.

Farmed
photograph to come — from twenty years of markets, farms and kitchens

How it's made

Green beans are harvested from the common bean plant while the pods are still immature and tender, before the seeds inside have fully developed. They are picked by hand or machine, typically every few days during the growing season as new pods reach the right size. After harvest, they are washed, trimmed, and sorted for sale fresh, or blanched and frozen for longer storage.

Nutrition (per 100g)

Energy 25kcal
Protein 1.8g
Carbs 3.3g
Fat 0g
Fibre 2.8g Sugar 2.6g
Mass Distribution

What it costs the planet (per kilo)

Carbon ≈1.8kg
Freshwater ≈400L
Land ≈3.4m²

≈ Estimated — worked out from a category-typical value further up its supply chain. Where this comes from →

Where it comes from

In the kitchen

Used as

sautéed vegetable side

Goes well with
garlic almond tomato butter lemon
Classic dishes
  • Green Bean Almondine
  • Niçoise Salad
  • Green Bean Casserole

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Where this data comes from

Nutrition data from

FSANZ

How it was calculated

Analysed

Full credits, licences, and methods: the sources page →

Where to next

made fromGreen Bean, pods goes well withgarlic goes well withalmond goes well withtomato goes well withbutter goes well withlemon shares a sourceBaby Food (Green Beans) shares a sourceCanned Green Beans shares a sourceFrozen Green Beans
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