Zeytinyağlı Taze Fasulye (Green Beans in Olive Oil & Tomato)
زیتون یاغلی تازے فاصولیہ (زیتون کے تیل اور ٹماٹر میں سبز پھلیاں)
If you order a vegetable dish in a Turkish home in summer, there's a good chance it's this one. Flat green beans are cooked slowly with plenty of onion, ripe tomatoes and olive oil, with only a little water, until they're soft and sweet and the sauce is thick and glossy. Like all dishes, it's left to cool and served at room temperature with bread to mop up the oil. It's naturally vegan and costs very little to make.
- ⏱ Total: 1 hr 5 min
- Prep: 15 min
- Cook: 50 min
- Easy
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Warm the olive oil in a wide pot and cook the onions and garlic on medium-low heat for 8 minutes until soft but not brown.
Add the beans and stir for 3–4 minutes until they turn bright green.
Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, salt and hot water. Cover and cook on low heat for 35–40 minutes, until the beans are very tender and the sauce is thick. Shake the pot now and then rather than stirring.
Let cool in the pot. Serve at room temperature with crusty bread.
Kitchen notes
Flat beans (runner or Romano beans) are traditional, but round green beans work too; they cook a little faster.
Use little water. The beans should cook mostly in the tomato juices and oil.
In South Asia, flat sem phali or tender lobia pods make a good substitute.
A summer staple
When green beans flood Turkish markets in early summer, almost every household makes this dish. It’s cheap, simple, and keeps for days in the fridge, which matters in hot weather. It’s served as a main dish with bread and yogurt, or as a side to grilled meat.
The olive-oil method
The technique is the heart of Turkish vegetable cooking: vegetables cooked slowly in olive oil with onion and tomato, with very little water, so they braise in their own juices. A pinch of sugar balances the acidity of the tomato. The dish is then cooled in the pot, which lets the beans soak up the sauce.
Beans around the world
Turkish cooks prefer wide, flat beans (ayşe kadın or barbunya types). Romano or runner beans are the closest in Europe and North America. Ordinary round green beans work well too. In South Asia, flat sem phali beans are a natural match.
Serving
Serve with crusty bread, a bowl of yogurt or cacık, and perhaps bulgur pilavı. It’s also a lovely part of a table.
Questions people ask
Can I serve it hot?
You can, but the Turkish way is at room temperature. The flavour is fuller once it has cooled.
Can I add meat?
Yes. Etli taze fasulye adds small pieces of lamb or beef, browned first, and is served hot with rice.
Can I use frozen beans?
Yes. Add them straight from frozen and reduce the water slightly.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 210
- Protein
- 3 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Carbs
- 15 g
