Cooking Green Beans In Microwave

It's possible to learn how to microwave green beans with delicious results. Why would I ever want to do this, you ask, when sautéing them with shallots, a handful of hazelnuts, and a few tarragon leaves isn't exactly rocket science?

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Microwaving green beans comes in handy because, some nights—especially during those lengthy stretches of hot summer nights during the months of July and August—I want to get dinner on the table without actually cooking. That means many meals are made solely by slicing peak-season tomatoes and drizzling them with olive oil and flaky sea salt. But man cannot live on tomatoes alone (I've tried).

There are countless foods that require a bit of actual, you know, cooking to eat. Green beans are one such vegetable.

How to make my green bean dreams a reality amid the heat of summer?

Enter the microwave. No, the microwave isn't the all-in-one cook-anything device it was once marketed as, but it's surprisingly great at specific tasks. And that includes cooking green beans. All you really need is a bit of garlic, butter, and water. Here's how to cook green beans in the microwave:

1. Trim Your Green Beans

You want to trim the tough, knobby ends of your green beans off—they're difficult to chew through. The skinny tips of the green beans are fine to eat! You can trim the ends by individually pinching off the ends of the beans. (You'll feel them give at the ends naturally when you snap them off.) This can be a relaxing activity while you're watching TV or sitting outside on a lazy afternoon. It's also a great task to give to the kids. But, if you're in a hurry, you can remove the ends of your green beans simply by lining a handful of them up with their stems aligned on a cutting board and slicing the ends off with a chef's knife.

2. Smash some Garlic and Gather Your Other Ingredients

Adding a bit of garlic to your microwaved green beans will give them the lovely aroma and burst of powerful flavor you're looking for. Smash a garlic clove with a chef's knife and remove its peel. Chop the garlic. Then cut a tablespoon of butter into small knobs.

3. Microwave Your Green Beans

Place the trimmed green beans, chopped garlic, and the butter in a microwave-safe dish. Season the green beans with salt and pepper. Then cover your green beans with water, and place a microwave-safe lid on the dish. (No lid? Plastic wrap will work instead.) Set your microwave to high and cook for about 5-6 minutes, until the green beans are bright green and crisp-tender. (Be careful of steam when removing the lid or plastic wrap.) If there's any excess liquid when the beans are done, simply pour it off.

And that's all you really need to know to cook green beans in the microwave. There are no messy pans to clean up. There's no overheated kitchen. You're just left with perfect green beans.