Green Beans Almondine with Pomegranate Seeds

Green Beans Almondine is a traditional French dish of green beans served with a buttery almond topping that makes a perfect holiday side dish. Pomegranate seeds take it over the top!

When it comes to holiday meals, the turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes get all the love. But having a bright green side on the the table next to all the shades of off-white and brown brings it all together.

It’s like that pop of color that takes your outfit of classy neutrals from blah to wow. For years, this Green Beans Almondine dish has been one of my contributions to our family gatherings, and now we wouldn't celebrate without it.

Why Make This Recipe

- This dish is delicious while still being one of the healthier items on the holiday table! Serve it as part of your spread, and you’ll feel better about that second helping of mashers. 

- Served on a platter, Green Beans Almondine is appealing on its own, but adding pomegranate seeds make this stunning!

- Easy to make-ahead and just assemble when it's time to eat. See below for how!

🥗 Ingredients

- Green Beans: I'm using regular green beans in this recipe, but you can also use French-style green beans. These beans are usually much skinnier and sometimes shorter than traditional green beans. You can often find them prepackaged in the produce section of the grocery store, often pre-trimmed as well. They are beautiful in this dish, though they need only 1-2 minutes of cooking time in boiling water. 

- Pomegranate Seeds: These seeds provide a brilliant pop of color, texture, and flavor to the dish, but you can leave them out if you can't find them. Also, prepacked pomegranate seeds are expensive! See my tip below for de-seeding a pomegranate yourself. Much more cost-effective (and fresh!) that way.

🥣 Instructions

First, set a large pot of salted water to boil on the stove. Trim the stems of 1 pound (450g) of green beans. I like to leave the tails intact, though some people prefer to cut those off as well.

When water comes to a boil, add the green beans and boil for 5-6 minutes, until they are bright green and just barely crisp-tender. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Make sure the green beans are well drained (pat dry with a clean kitchen towel if they are not), and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a small skillet and add ½ cup slivered or sliced almonds and minced garlic. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until almonds and garlic are toasted golden brown (2-4 minutes).

Add to bowl with green beans and toss. Garnish with ⅓ cup of pomegranate seeds to serve. 

🧐 FAQs

👩‍🍳 Expert Tips

The Best Way to Trim Green Beans

The fastest way to trim fresh green beans is to stack a large handful of them together, with the stem ends all next to each other on a cutting board. Then use your knife to cut all of them off at once.

If you cut a little more or a little less off of each bean, so be it. You'll find this cuts (pun intended!) your prep time down considerably. I usually leave the tail ends on because I think they look pretty on the plate.

If you prefer to cut them off, just turn the beans the other way, line up the tail ends, and chop. 

The Best Way to De-Seed a Pomegranate

De-seeding a pomegranate can be difficult (and messy!). The best way I have found is to fill a large bowl with water and put it in the sink. Then cut the pomegranate in half and put both halves into the bowl.

Using your fingers, break apart each pomegranate half and delicately separate the seeds from the whitish membrane. The pieces of membrane will float so you can skim those off the water while the seeds float to the bottom.

When you’re done, discard the pomegranate rind and pieces of membrane. Drain the seeds, and there you go! 

How to Keep Green Beans Green after Cooking

The key to keeping green beans green is not overcooking them. Also, not dressing them in advance, especially if you are using something acidic in your dressing, like lemon juice.

To make green beans in advance, see my notes above—stopping the cooking process with an ice bath is key. If you’re making your green bean recipe “à la minute” or just in time for dinner, you won’t need to worry about your green beans turning brown if you have not overcooked them and not dressed them before serving. 

Other Delicious Holiday Sides

If you enjoyed this Green Bean Almondine recipe, you might be looking for some other holiday side dish recipes to go with it. Try this Crockpot Stuffing with cranberries and pecans. You might also like this Roasted Cauliflower with Tahini Yogurt Sauce or these Balsamic Roasted Carrots and Beets. Or check out some of my other favorite holiday side dish recipes:

More Holiday Menu Ideas

To start the meal, might I recommend Baked Brie with Fig Jam, alongside one of the appetizers in this What to Serve with Baked Brie post?

And of course you need a cocktail to go with it. Try this Cranberry Mimosa?

These Pan-Seared Filet Mignon Steaks with Red Wine Sauce, Maryland Crab Cakes, or French Shepherd's Pie would make a delicious main course. You could also use some extra pomegranate seeds to make this Pomegranate Salmon.

And how about some Chocolate Bark with Almonds and Pumpkin Seeds or a Biscoff Cheesecake for dessert? Or, try this Butternut Squash Pie that tastes amazingly like pumpkin pie (and maybe even better)! This streusel-topped sweet potato pie is also on my holiday must-make list.

If you try this recipe, I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below—I read them all, and your feedback is invaluable to me.

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📖 Recipe

Instagram Users: Now that you've made this recipe, tag me @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because I'd love to see your results!