Greek Green Beans (Fasolakia)! Velvety, tender green beans and potatoes, braised in a tomato and extra virgin olive oil sauce. A simple, flavor-packed, and satisfying entree or side dish. Vegan. Gluten Free.
Fasolakia: Greek Green Beans
Egyptians call it Fasolia. Greeks call it Fasolakia. More accurately, Fasolakia Lathera, or braised green beans. Actually, the word Lathera means, “ones with oil,” and it describes a whole category of Greek dishes where vegetables are meant to literally swim in quality extra virgin olive oil. Nothing better, in my opinion. You can find similar olive oil-heavy dishes in other parts of the Mediterranean as well. For example, in Turkey, they have zeytinyağlı yemekler, which means “olive oil dishes”(like these braised leeks with garlic).
These Greek green beans are braised in tomatoes and extra virgin olive oil with onions, garlic and spices. Then, they are finished with lemon juice, fresh herbs, and more extra virgin olive oil.
So, unlike crunchy steamed or sauteed green beans, these Greek green beans are velvety, tender, but certainly not mushy.
There are as many variations of traditional Greek green beans as you can imagine. Every household has it’s twist–like my version of sautéed green beans, which were inspired by this recipe. Here, I used potatoes to give the beans more substance as a vegan entree.
What to serve with Greek Green Beans
All you really need is some good Greek pita bread or your favorite rustic bread to sop up the sauce. But, to serve these green beans simply as a side, you can add rice and your favorite protein like grilled chicken or lamb. I typically prepare a simple Greek salad or this 3-ingredient Mediterranean salad to start the meal.
More Recipes To Try
Easy Greek White Bean Soup (Fasolada)
Easy Greek Chicken and Potato Dinner
Greek Moussaka: Eggplant Casserole
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Greek Green Beans (Fasolakia)
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Description
All-star recipe for Greek Green Beans. Velvety, tender green beans & potatoes, braised in a tomato-olive oil sauce. Flavor-packed, satisfying, vegan, and gluten-free.
Ingredients
- Greek extra virgin olive oil (I used Private Reserve Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 28-oz can peeled whole tomato
- 1 cup water
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 1/2 lb fresh French green beans, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (frozen green beans work wonderfully in this recipe)
- 3 Yukon Gold potatoes (about 1 lb), cut into small piece (1/2 to 3/4-inch pieces)
- Salt and black pepper
- lemon juice
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
- In a large Dutch Oven, heat 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until tender, stirring occasionally (about 5 mins). Then add the garlic, cumin, and oregano. Cook another 2 mins, stirring regularly, until fragrant.
- Add tomatoes, water, bay leaf, beans, and potatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Raise the heat and bring to a high simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Cover and transfer to the heated oven. Cook until the sauce slightly thickens, and the beans and potatoes can easily be cut with side of your fork; about 35 minutes or so. (It’s a good idea to check once partway through cooking, add a little bit of water if needed.)
- Remove from oven and stir in 2 tbsp lemon juice and chopped fresh parsley. Stir in a generous drizzle of olive oil (at least another 1/4 cup).
- Serve immediately with Greek pita bread or your favorite rustic bread to sop up the sauce!
Notes
- These green beans are also great as a side dish atop Lebanese rice and next to your favorite protein, chicken kabobs, for example. See more suggestions in the post under “what to serve with Greek Green Beans.”
- Recommended for this recipe our Private Reserve or Early Harvest extra virgin olive oil, from organically grown and processed Koroneiki olives. And organic ground cumin!
- SAVE! Try our Ultimate Mediterranean Spice Bundle or create your own 6-pack or 3-pack of our all-natural and organic spices.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 50 mins
- Category: Entree
- Cuisine: Greek
Easy and delicious. What more could you want?
Wonderful, Rob! So glad you enjoyed it!
Delicious, another keeper to add to the rotation. Made it with freshly harvested sunchokes since I didn’t have potatoes.
Wonderful, Jude! So glad to hear you’ll be making this again. We love it!
I have made this fish for dinner tonight and it was an absolute hit. Beautiful flavor, easy to make and very cheap dish. Will definitely make it again.
Awesome, Christina! You’ve made our Greek-Style Cod? That’s one of my favorites too!
All these recipes should great, can’t wait to try all of them. Thanks
Enjoy, Pandie! Welcome to The Mediterranean Dish!
I’ve made this and it is waiting to be eaten tonight x thank you x
Enjoy, Sharon! Hope you love it!
I may try a variation of this with home grown runner beans as my husband likes his beans tender. Perfect with feta to top!
Awesome, Lizzie! enjoy!
Made this last night and it was totally delicious. Thanks for the recipe, I’m sure it’s going to become a regular in our house ?
That’s awesome, Emma! So glad y’all enjoyed it!
I make a dish like this (minus the potatoes) at least twice a month. The lemon juice at the end really takes it to the next level! Love eating it with feta and some good crusty bread to soak up all those delicious juices! I’ll have to try it with potatoes next time!
This is how my mother made this recipe. I love it! Do you have a recipe for Bamias ( Greek Okra)?
If you do I wish you would post it. My aunt used to make it but I don’t have the recipe. 🙁
Oh, that’s wonderful, Mary! We do make Bamias here, but I’m afraid I don’t have a recipe ready to publish. Hope to in the future!
I make these probably once a week! 🙂 I usually sprinkle a little feta on them; love the tang against the tomatoes and lemon splash.
Awesome, Chrissie! Thanks for sharing!!!
My mouth is watering. Yia yia made it with lamb. Delish with home made yogurt
Yes, I love it with lamb as well! Thanks for checking it out, Lois!
This reminds me so much of a dish my grandmother used to make although she didn’t call it a Greek dish. Love the idea!
Oh that’s awesome! Thanks for sharing, Karen
This looks so good! I love all of the flavors in this recipe and I love how healthy this is. I am definitely going to try this one and can’t wait to smell my kitchen as it cooks. Thanks for sharing!
Oh, you’ll definitely love how your kitchen smells as you cook this dish! Amazing!
Our family makes an Italian dish that’s very similar! We don’t use potatoes in ours, but that sounds delicious! I know I’d love this.
Oh sure! I know there are variations of this throughout the Mediterranean. Thanks for sharing!
This looks so good and full of flavor. I could eat this for a main meal, the potatoes would actually make this quite filling.
Yes, Dahn! It’s delicious!
I’ve never heard of this curry till just now – I think I’ll swap up my usually curry for this one next time! Sounds absolutely delicious!