Recipe: Braised Green Beans with Tomato and Dill by Ella Mittas

There’s no shortage of recipes for big, meaty mains on the internet, but sometimes finding a side that will complement – rather than compete with – your meal can be tricky.

This simple, flavourful braised bean dish is quick to prepare and goes well with a roast, or on its own (maybe with a slice of oven-fresh bread and feta crumbled on top).

It’ll also help you use up your stockpile of canned crushed tomatoes.

“These beans remind me of my lunches at my grandparents’,” says Ella Mittas, a Melbourne chef, cookbook author and cooking instructor with Greek heritage. “Lace tablecloths covered with a sheet of thick plastic for protection. Communal plates of feta and bread straight out of the oven.”

Mittas is known for her creative culinary events and unpretentious, home-style cooking, which has been influenced by stints in Greece, Turkey and Israel.

“[These are] great as a side, or good by themselves too,” she says. “They taste even better the day after they’re made.”

Braised green beans with toamto and dill by Ella Mittas

Serves: 4

Preparation time: 40 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

1 large brown onion
1 clove of garlic, sliced
6 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
Salt
750g green beans, top and tailed
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
A handful of dill, roughly chopped
Feta to serve

Method

Peel and slice the onion. Warm the oil in a frying pan over a medium flame. Gently fry the onion until it is soft and golden brown.

Add the garlic to the pan once the onions are done and stir for around 30 seconds. Then add in the beans.

Sauté the beans through the onion mix until they are coated in oil and have changed colour slightly.

Add the tomato paste into the pan, stirring until all the beans are coated.

Add in the can of tinned tomatoes and stir and then cover the pan. Leave the lid on until the beans have wilted down. Add a splash of water if the pan is looking dry.

Uncover the pan. At a low simmer, cook for around 40 minutes or until the beans are tender, and the sauce has reduced and coats the beans.

Once the beans are cooked through, take off the heat, stir through dill and lemon juice and check for seasoning.

Allow to cool for a couple of hours before serving. Serve with bread and with feta on the side.

ellamittas.com