Air Fryer Green Beans

The air fryer has become the latest indispensable appliance and is now a staple in many home kitchens. Besides making your favorite foods perfectly crisp without using much oil, air fryers are also incredibly handy for quickly roasting vegetables in a matter of minutes. It is a great tool for when the stovetop and oven are occupied with other dishes, or for those times when you just don’t want to heat up the kitchen. Plus, cleanup is a breeze!

This recipe for air fryer green beans can be easily halved for a small dinner or doubled to serve a crowd. Here’s how to make the best-ever green beans in your air fryer.

• It’s quick and easy. You’ll have perfectly crisp-tender green beans in under 10 minutes.
• You can add your favorite seasonings. This side dish can be personalized with your favorite spices and seasonings that you already have on hand in the pantry.

• Green beans: When shopping for green beans, look for green beans that are bright green and unblemished. They shouldn’t be flimsy or limp. Fresh green beans should snap when broken in half.
• Olive oil: You’ll toss the green beans in a tablespoon of olive oil, plus kosher salt and black pepper before air frying.

1. Trim and dry the green beans. Trim the stem end from the green beans, but you can leave the tail ends on. Pat dry with paper towels or a kitchen towel.
2. Season the green beans. Toss the green beans with a little bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
3. Air fry (in batches if needed). Add enough green beans to a preheated air fryer to sit in a single layer, you may need to cook them in batches. Air fry for 8 to 10 minutes.

• There’s no need to soak the green beans before cooking. When preparing fresh green beans in the air fryer, there’s no need to soak them before cooking. Simply washing the beans, drying them, and tossing them with a light coating of olive oil is all you need for perfectly cooked green beans.
• Cook them to the doneness you prefer. If you find the green beans are still hard after cooking, they’re not cooked enough. Feel free to continue to air fry in two-minute increments until the desired tenderness is achieved. You can also toss the beans in the air fryer basket periodically throughout the cooking time to redistribute them and make sure the heat circulates around the surface of all the beans.

There are two ways to approach air frying frozen green beans:

• Method 1: Rinse the beans in a colander under cool water until they’re almost thawed. Thoroughly dry them with paper towels before tossing with oil and seasonings, then follow recipe as instructed. You may need to air fry an additional two minutes.
• Method 2: Start with placing the frozen green beans directly in the air fryer basket without any oil or seasoning. Cook in five-minute increments, tossing the basket each time to distribute the beans. (Check for any accumulated water from the frozen beans each time you stop to toss the basket and drain if necessary.) Once the desired tenderness is achieved, remove the green beans from the basket and toss with oil or butter and your desired seasonings.

Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

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