For the past few weeks, we’ve been receiving absolutely delightful beans in our Growing Washington CSA box. I love fresh beans, in all colors (purple, green, and yellow recently). Usually I’ll just steam them and serve them with a little butter, but John wanted something with a bit more kick the other night and so he found this delightful recipe from The Inquisitive Palate. We were actually able to make this recipe completely local except for the ginger root and the salt and pepper, though we had to adapt it slightly.
Spicy Beans with Crispy Sausage
- 1 pound fresh beans
- 4 ounces pork sausage
- 3 scallions
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 2-3 teaspoons of ginger root
- Hazelnut Oil
- 10 dried chili peppers:
- 1/2 teaspoon peppercorns
- 1/4 cup dry Sherry
- Salt
Trim the tops of the beans and if they are long, cut them in half.
Spicy Yellow Beans with Mangalitsa Sausage
Cut the scallions diagonally in one inch pieces.
Slice the garlic cloves and mince the ginger.
Cut the tops off of the chilies and if you don’t like much heat, remove the seeds. I don’t usually because this dish is really best when it is very spicy.
In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the beans and cook until the beans have started to caramelize and brown in spots. Remove the beans with a slotted spoon and add just a tad bit more oil.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic and ginger root and stir for a good solid minute. You’ll know how long to cook them because the aroma they give off will be amazing. Add the chilies and the peppercorns and cook for another minute.
Now add the ground pork and stir frequently, breaking up the pork into small bits and cooking it until all of the pink is gone.
Turn the heat back up to medium high and add the wax beans back into the mix, along with the Sherry (if you’re using). Cook for a minute or two longer, just to heat up the beans and reduce any liquid in the pan. Season with salt and serve!
Chef’s notes: You can really have this dish as a complete meal. You only need two dishes, a cutting board, a knife, and a cooking spoon. Cook in the wok and have a large serving bowl ready to hold the beans while you are cooking the pork and then use that same dish for serving. If you are using Mangalitsa or Skagit River Ranch pork, you won’t have a lot of fat and the fat you have will be healthier for you than the fat from the pork you get in the grocery store. So even though this dish is a bit greasy, it isn’t at all heavy.
