Brown Butter Green Beans with Pecans
Enjoy the rich flavor of browned butter and pecans with this super simple, 3-ingredient recipe for Green Beans with Pecans.
Growing up, my mother used to make Green Beans Almondine on a pretty regular basis. That’s because it was one of the few vegetables her picky oldest daughter (that would be me, ahem) would eat.
But recently I looked up some official recipes, and I realized that other people were doing a lot more work than she did. And using a lot more ingredients.
Yes, Mom’s green beans, coated in browned butter toasted almonds, had a mere three ingredients. And they were still amazing—way to go, Mom!
Now I actually took Mom’s recipe one step easier (and dare I say tastier?), by using pecans instead of almonds. Pecans are such a versatile nut, I always keep them handy. And that means no trip to the store either!
How Easy Is It?
I actually make Green Beans with Pecans a couple times a week during green bean season. And that’s partly because you can practically ignore it while focusing on the rest of the meal.
All you need to do is steam your beans (aka ignore them since they’re even good a bit overcooked), brown some pecans (or almonds) in butter (I rely on my nose to know they’re ready) and toss everything together.
And since the pecans cook into a beautiful, toasty, buttery richness, they have a flavor profile that belies their simplicity!
Step by Step Overview
On the chance I haven’t convinced you these are easy… here it is with pictures.
Clean and cut green beans to desired size. Place into a saucepan with a scant inch of water and cover pan. Heat until water boils, then lower heat and steam until tender.
Melt half of the butter in a small pan, then stir in the pecans.
Cook over medium heat until butter is browned and bubbly. Remove from heat, wait a minute to cool, then stir in the remaining butter.
When beans are tender, drain, then stir the brown butter pecans into the saucepan.
On Green Beans
You can use any type of green bean to make Green Beans with Pecans. I am using Italian flat beans because one of my CSAs produces bags of the beautiful tender beans. This fall, when my regular, slim, green beans are producing, I’ll just switch over to a more conventional variety.
Try to find green beans that don’t have the seeds prominently showing through the flesh. That’s an indicator that the bean may have been picked past its prime. While sometimes they still work out, other times you may end up with beans that just don’t get tender.
And speaking of tenderness, unlike many vegetables, green beans are quite resilient when it comes to cooking time, and I find them delicious even over cooked. I love that this means the vegetable course is still great if dinner ends up delayed.
In 2025, green beans are ranking just two slots outside of the EWG’s Dirty Dozen list of most contaminated fruits and vegetables. So this is a vegetable that I like to get organic if I can.
Tips & FAQs
I love pecans and they toast beautifully. But if your favorite nut is the pistachio, or you’re out of pecans, or you miss those almonds, go ahead and use whatever you’d like.
I note this in the recipe, but go for the full browned butter effect–with tiny browned bits floating around–for best flavor. Hey, it’s healthier than making brown butter cookies!
In a weak moment, I have been know to calls these Green Beans Pecandine (shhh).
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Green Beans with Pecans
Ingredients
- 12-16 ounces green beans
- ¼ cup salted butter add salt to taste if you use unsalted butter
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Clean and cut green beans to desired size. Place into a saucepan with a scant inch of water and cover pan. Heat until water boils, then lower heat and steam until tender.
- Melt half of the butter in a small pan, then stir in the pecans.
- Cook over medium heat until butter is browned and bubbly. Remove from heat then stir in the remaining butter.
- When beans are tender, drain, then stir the brown butter pecans into the saucepan.
First, I love Romano beans — the best! And this recipe with brown butter sounds amazing. I have two words for you! Thanksgiving. Table.
This recipe is easy to make and it is packed with nutrition! This is an easy side for the holiday meal.
Pecandine! Love it! Nothing better than a side dish that’s super simple yet absolutely delicious.
I love that style of beans (Italian I think?) because they are so flavorful and forgiving. The pecans sound wonderful too.
They’re my favorite. I wish my CSA did more plantings so they extended until winter.
Some of my favorite things in one dish! Cheers to easy vegetable sides!
The browned butter and pecan combo sounds incredible, so simple yet so elegant. I like the idea of calling it Green Beans Pecandine, it gives it a fun twist on the classic almondine!
Perfect recipe….easy, peasy, and delicious!!