Air fryer green beans are a quick and simple recipe to enjoy all year round, made with fresh or frozen green beans. This healthy veggie side dish is easy to prepare and ready in under 15 minutes.
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Green beans are one of our favorite vegetables to air fry. Air frying is very similar to fan-assisted oven baking. However, air fryer green beans are faster to make than oven-baked ones.
They are also crunchier on the outside and tender on the inside.
Ingredients
Green Beans: use fresh or frozen green beans. Air-fried fresh green beans turn out a little drier and crispier. Frozen green beans turn out juicier but less crispy. They are both delicious.
Olive oil: best if extra virgin. Extra virgin olive oil is the healthiest oil to use in an air fryer because its high antioxidant content makes it more stable at high temperatures. We add little oil (1 teaspoon or 2) to help the green beans cook. We tried without oil, but the green beans tend to burn and dry out too much. If you want to eat green beans without oil, we recommend boiling them or microwaving them.
Vinegar: use balsamic vinegar for this recipe. Its sweetness goes well with the beans. You can replace it with apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. Some people like to replace vinegar with soy sauce, but we prefer to stick to vinegar for this one.
Garlic: add a clove of crushed garlic after air frying the green beans. Crushed garlic releases a mild garlic flavor that goes well with the green beans. You can replace garlic with garlic powder.
Mint: this is optional, but we love adding some finely chopped fresh mint leaves to green beans when we have it at hand. If you don't have mint, you can replace it with basil or parsley or just leave it out.
Salt: we add salt to the green beans before air frying them.
Black pepper: the aroma of freshly ground black pepper goes well with air-fried green beans.
Instructions
Preheat the air fryer to 390F or 200C for 3 minutes.
Fresh Green Beans
Trim your green beans if not already trimmed. Trimming green beans means removing the end tips of the bean. You can do so with scissors, a knife, or simply snapping them with your hands.
Rinse the green beans under running water and drain well.
Give them a quick dry with a kitchen towel.
Transfer them to a bowl and season with extra virgin olive oil and salt. Toss till fully coated in oil.
Transfer them into the air fryer basket and air fry at 390F or 200C for about 12 minutes, shaking the basket two or three times. Cooking time might vary based on your air fryer model, so keep an eye on them. You can overlap green beans in the air fryer basket as long as you move them around halfway through cooking.
Taste to check if they are done. If not, keep air frying them in increments of 2 minutes.
Transfer air-fried green beans to a serving bowl, add balsamic vinegar, finely chopped mint or basil, a crushed clove of garlic, and optionally an extra pinch of salt and an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Toss well and serve your easy air fryer green beans.
Frozen Green Beans
Add frozen green beans to a bowl and season with olive oil and salt.
Transfer them to an air fryer basket (no need to use cooking spray) and air fry at 390F or 200C for about 12 to 15 minutes. Cooking time may vary based on the air fryer model, so taste them to check for doneness. Shake the air fryer basket two to three times.
Transfer cooked green beans to a serving bowl, season with freshly chopped mint, a crushed clove of garlic, freshly ground black pepper, an extra pinch of salt, and a drizzle of olive oil.
Variations
Did you know that green beans go extremely well with Italian basil pesto? That's a popular recipe in the north-western region of Liguria. Try tossing your air-fried beans in a store-bought or homemade basil pesto. They are super delicious this way. You can even add boiled potatoes to make a delicious potato salad with green beans and pesto.
Tips
Preheat the air fryer: for best crisping results, always preheat your air fryer for 3 minutes.
Shake often: this is especially true if you layer/pile green beans on top of each other in the air fryer basket. You can also move the beans around with tongues.
Add a little oil: Most of us get an air fryer to reduce oil. But tossing the green beans in as little as 1 teaspoon of oil before air frying them makes a huge difference. The oil heats up and cooks the green beans evenly without burning them. If you don't put oil, your beans will burn before cooking.
Questions
Yes. You can pile green beans in an air fryer, but for best results, you have to shake the air fryer basket or toss the green beans with tongs two or three times to get them as crispy as you like.
The best spices and herbs to add to green beans are basil, mint, mentuccia (Italian mint), parsley, garlic, and black pepper.
To add maximum flavor, toss cooked green beans in basil pesto. It's a delicious combination, very popular in the northern Italian region of Liguria.
Serving suggestions
Air fryer green beans are perfect as a side dish for most meals. You can eat them for lunch with a vegan tuna sandwich or with a vegan egg salad sandwich.
For dinner, try them with our tofu dishes. Among our favorites with green beans on the side are tofu curry, tofu cacciatore, orange tofu, and tofu with mushrooms.
If you are looking for a super easy yet delicious meal, try these air fryer green beans with our marinated tofu on rice. You can put together this meal in 20 minutes; it's healthy, simple, and packed with nutrients and protein.
Storage
Store leftovers in the fridge, directly in the serving bowl, covered with a plate, or in an airtight container for up to 3 days. On the second day, they won't be as crisp. Warm them up in the microwave.
For many more side dishes ideas, check out our sides category page.
Recipe
Air Fryer Green Beans
Ingredients
- 12 ounces green beans fresh or frozen*
- 2 teaspoons olive oil extra virgin
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 6 leaves mint or basil
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer at 390F or 200C for 3 minutes.Trim your green beans, if not already trimmed. Trimming green beans means removing the end tips of the bean. You can do so with scissors, with a knife, or simply snapping them with your hands.
- Rinse the green beans under running water and drain well. Give them a quick dry with a kitchen towel. Transfer them to a bowl and season with extra virgin olive oil and salt. Toss till fully coated in oil.
- Transfer them into the air fryer basket and air fry at 390F or 200C for about 12 minutes, shaking the basket halfway through. Cooking time might vary based on your air fryer model, so keep an eye on them. Tip: You can overlap green beans in the air fryer basket, as long as you move them around two to three times while cooking.
- Taste to check if they are done. If not, keep air frying them in increments of 2 minutes.Transfer air-fried green beans to a serving bowl, add balsamic vinegar, finely chopped mint or basil, a crushed clove of garlic, and optionally an extra pinch of salt and an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Toss well and serve your easy air fryer green beans.
Notes
Nutritional Values
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