Buttery Almond Green Beans

January 2023. Winter in Memphis, 64 years old, and the cold has settled into the house on Deadrick Avenue the way cold settles into old bones — persistently, without malice, just the physics of aging and December. Rosetta has the thermostat set at 74, our eternal compromise, and I cook warming things: stews and soups and slow-braised meats that fill the house with steam and flavor.

Tyrone came over for dominoes, bringing his competitive spirit and his inability to play without cheating, and the evening was full of the brotherly banter that is our love language.

I made smoked chicken this week — a simple cook that belies its depth. Rubbed with salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika, smoked at 275 over hickory for three hours. The skin was mahogany, the meat juicy, and the first bite carried the kind of flavor that makes you close your eyes, which is the highest compliment food can earn: the involuntary closing of the eyes, the body's admission that what it's tasting is too good to see.

Another week in the book. Another seven days of tending fires — the one in the smoker, the one in the marriage, the one in the family, the one in the church. Each fire needs something different: wood, attention, food, faith. But the tending is the same for all of them: show up, add what's needed, wait patiently, trust the process. Low and slow. Always. Low and slow.

The smoked chicken gets all the glory — and it deserves it — but every fire-tender knows the side dish is what makes the plate whole. When Tyrone came over and the domino tiles were flying, I needed something on the table that was fast to pull together but still felt like I meant it, something with a little richness and a little crunch to hold its own next to hickory-smoked skin. These buttery almond green beans have been that dish more times than I can count: ten minutes, one pan, and they carry themselves with the kind of quiet confidence I respect in anything — food or people.

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb fresh green beans, trimmed
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup sliced almonds
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for blanching water
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Blanch the beans. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until bright green and just tender-crisp. Drain and immediately transfer to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Drain again and pat dry.
Toast the almonds. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced almonds and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 to 3 minutes until golden and fragrant. Remove almonds from the pan and set aside.
Saute the garlic. In the same skillet, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds, stirring constantly, until fragrant but not browned.
Finish the beans. Add the blanched green beans to the skillet and toss to coat in the garlic butter. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve. Transfer to a serving dish, squeeze lemon juice over the top, and scatter the toasted almonds over everything. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Buttery Almond Green Beans — The Side Dish That Earns Its Place at a Smoker’s Table