Paleo Sichuan Dry-Fried Green Beans
Super flavorful, quick, and easy Paleo Sichuan Dry-Fried Green Beans topped with crispy minced meat in light soy-free spicy chili sauce. Tastes better and healthier than your favorite takeout. Don't miss this simple and everyday one-skillet recipe !
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- ⅓ to ¼ lbs ground pork alt. chicken or turkey
- 1 lb. string beans trimmed, pat-dry, and diced to roughly 2-inch length
- 2 large garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger finely chopped (use 1 ½ tbsp for stronger flavor if preferred)
- 2-3 bulbs scallions finely chopped & separate white and green parts
- 4-5 dry red peppers optional
- Avocado oil 2 tbsp + 1 tbsp
Stir-fry Sauce: (use 1 tbsp a time for stir-fry. Follow instructions below)
- 1 ½ tbsp coconut aminos
- 2 tsp red boat fish sauce
- ½ to 1 tsp Harissa paste sub for tomato paste for a non-spicy version
Instructions
- Preheat a large stainless steel skillet over medium-low heat WITHOUT oil until the skillet is well heated and almost to a smoke point. Add diced green beans. Stir-fry (this is called dry-fry in Chinese cooking) over medium heat for 4-5 mins until the beans are slightly blistered but not burnt.*
- Add 2 tbsp avocado oil to the skillet and keep stir frying the green beans with oil for 2-3 additional minutes. Set green beans aide.
- While the skillet is still hot, add 1 tbsp avocado oil with garlic, ginger, white parts of scallions, and dry red peppers. Season with a small pinch of salt and sauté until fragrant (about 8-10 seconds). Add ground pork. Season with another small pinch to salt. Sauté until the pork is completely cooked through, break up to finer pieces, and no longer watery.
- Add 1 tbsp of stir-fry sauce to the ground pork. Stir-fry for 5-10 seconds then add green beans back to the skillet. Toss to coat everything well. Taste and see if ½ to 1 more tbsp of stir-fry sauce is needed.
- Turn off the heat and stir-in green parts of scallions. Serve hot immediately with cauliflower rice, zoodles, or mixed greens.
Video
Notes
*In the restaurant, the beans are quickly deep-fried to remove water content and thus create a slightly crunchy and blistered texture. Here we use a less oily way to recreate a similar texture. A well heated skillet (preferably stainless steel) is crucial in recreating the slightly blistered texture. Keep scooping and stir-frying the green beans during dry-fry process and make sure each bean has a chance to be in contact with the well heated skillet /hot surface is the key to achieve the right texture.
*Green beans are the main star of this dish. Pork mince depends the flavor and add some protein. To keep this dish not become watery/soggy and instead maintain its crisp texture, pay attention to the meat and green bean ratio. Too much meat will result in more liquid in the sauté pan and thus the texture will change and the dish will be less tasty.
Nutrition
Serving: 179g | Calories: 224kcal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 14.5g | Saturated Fat: 2.1g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 558mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 350IU | Vitamin C: 6.6mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1.8mg
