Greek Green Beans in tomato sauce-fasolakia ladera is a popular traditional dish, especially in the summer. This is such an easy recipe for the most delicious green beans.
If you love Greek green beans, you will also love Arakas-Greek sweet peas, Greek Fava Dip With Roasted Tomatoes And Caramelized Onions, or Gemista – Stuffed Tomatoes & Peppers!
What cooks say:
“This is the best recipe I’ve found for Greek Green Beans. The ratio of ingredients is perfect. After reading this recipe the first time, I was skeptical about the amount of liquid needed to cook all the vegetables. I admit it was perfect! I have done this dozens of times. However, I’ve been making mine mostly with dried herbs. Fresh herbs make it fantastic for a celebration dinner or to impress friends… Yummy!!”
LISA
Why you will love fasolakia
Here is what you need
- Green beans. You can use fresh or frozen green beans. To use fresh beans, first wash them in plenty of water and drain them well. Then, trim both ends. The frozen green beans can go right into the pot without thawing.
- Baby potatoes. They are optional. You opt out of using potatoes. Instead of baby ones, you can use regular potatoes, any kind.
- Extra virgin olive oil, onion, and garlic.
- Canned tomatoes. I love using authentic San Marzano tomatoes like Gustarosso.
- Dried oregano, freshly ground pepper, and sea salt. The three staples for Greek seasoning.
- Fresh herbs. Usually, I use whatever is in my fridge or garden. It can be parsley, basil, thyme, or oregano. It’s all good. If am out, I use their dried versions.
How to make fasolakia ladera
Step 1: Heat half of the olive oil in a stockpot.
Saute the chopped onion for a few minutes on medium heat until transparent and fragrant. Add the minced garlic and saute for another minute.
Step 2: Add the green beans, potatoes, and tomatoes. Season with sea salt and pepper and a pinch or two of dried oregano. Stir ingredients and mix well.
Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for about forty minutes. Then add the remaining olive oil and fresh herbs. Simmer for another five to ten minutes until most of the liquid has reduced.
How to enjoy these beans
- Greek green beans can be enjoyed warm or at room temperature. Greeks mostly enjoy them as a main dish with lots of crusty warm bread and feta cheese. Swap the cheese with baked bouyourdi dip with tomatoes and peppers.
- Serve the beans as a side dish. They go well with anything roasted or grilled like our beef skewers. Add the beans to our lamb burger bowls or part of a family-style dinner, among other side dishes like keftedes-meatballs, fried crispy zucchini and fried eggplant slices, country fries, and dolmadakia-stuffed grape leaves.
Storage and reheating
- Let the green beans cool to room temperature within 2 hours of cooking, place them in an airtight container or resealable bag, and store in the fridge for up to 4–5 days.
- Store in the freezer and use within 2–3 months for optimal taste and texture.
More traditional Greek recipes
Greek Green Beans In Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 lbs fresh green beans rinsed, drained and trimmed
- ⅔ lb baby potatoes cut in half
- ⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 28 oz San Marzano tomatoes like Gustarosso
- 1 onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh herbs like parsley, basil, or oregano chopped
- dried oregano
- freshly ground pepper
- sea salt
Instructions
- Heat half of the olive oil in a stockpot. Saute the chopped onion for a few minutes on medium heat until transparent and fragrant. Add the minced garlic and saute for another minute.
- Add the green beans, potatoes, and tomatoes. Season with sea salt and pepper and a pinch or two of dried oregano. Stir ingredients and mix well.Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for forty minutes. After forty minutes, add the remaining olive oil and fresh herbs.Simmer for another five to ten minutes until most of the liquid has reduced.
- Serve with crusty warm bread and feta cheese.
Notes
- Feel free to use fresh or frozen beans depending on your preferences and time. With fresh beans, you must first wash them in plenty of water and drain them well. Trim both ends.
- Avoid adding water to the pot. Let beans simmer in their liquid and the tomato juice.
- Always check how much liquid is in the pot during cooking. If needed add a little (like 1/4 cup) warm water or broth.
- If using dried herbs, try these quantities from our reader Lisa: 3 teaspoons oregano, 2 teaspoons parsley, and 1 teaspoon basil, which go into the pot with everything before the 40-minute cook time.
Nutrition
So good. Easy and everyone liked it. I added a little chipotle to mine for some spice.
Though you said this was a popular summer dish, we really enjoyed it on the first day of winter. The green beans and tomato flavor went exceptionally well together.
Ooh, interesting! I’ve never combined green beans with tomato sauce. I’m intrigued and will be trying this tomorrow. Thanks!
Love how Greek and Italian cuisines are similar! These green beans in tomato sauce are simple yet packed with flavor just how we like them!
These green beans are so good. Fresh and simple but fancy at the same time. Thanks for this recipe!
My new favorite way to make green beans! Love the tomato flavors in this. Yum!
I have never had green beans served this way before. I always plant green beans in my garden, so this would be a great recipe to use.
Well, my goodness this recipe was so good, rich and savory flavors. I could eat this as a side or a main dish quite often.
Oh my, this dish looks absolutely delicious and yummy! The color combination it gives makes this so enticing and tempting! Totally love it!
An easy and delicious dish to make. One of the perfect dishes to make in this cold weather.
Seriously easy and delicious. We made this as a side dish to our frittata and it was the perfect choice. Thanks a lot for such a yummy recipe!
This was one of my favourite dish whilst I was on my Greece, so similar to Indian curry. So easy and delicious!!
This is the best recipe I’ve found for Greek Green Beans. The ratio of ingredients is perfect. After reading this recipe the first time, I was skeptical about the amount of liquid needed to cook all the vegetables. I admit it was perfect! I have made this dozens of times. However, I’ve been making mine mostly with dried herbs. Fresh herbs makes it fantastic for a celebration dinner or to impress friends, but can get pricey if you don’t have an herb garden.
My combo of dried herbs is 3 tsp oregano, 2 tsp parsley, and 1 tsp basil that go into the pot with everything before the 40 minutes cook time. That long cooking time allows the dried herbs to bloom and mingle with everything, then I finish with the last 1/3 cup EVOO. Yummy!!
Wow Lisa! Thank you so much! I love the tips for the dried herbs, will add them to the recipe notes. x Jenny