Restaurant-style Garlic Green Beans (Din Tai Fung Copycat)

Want a simple yet flavor-packed side dish?

Try this restaurant-style garlic green bean recipe.

These green beans are similar to the side dish served at the popular Taiwanese dim sum restaurant here in the States, Din Tai Fung.

Instead of paying $16.99, lets make it at home to feed the family for much less.

What Makes these Restaurant-style Garlic Green Beans?

To replicate the restaurant version, these green beans are flash-fried at high heat. There’s no need for added flour or batter; this technique is called dry-frying.

After frying, the green beans are tossed in a stir-fry with plenty of sautéed garlic.

Serve these irresistible, aromatic green beans with rice or noodles, and a protein of choice for a complete meal.

What You Need

To make this Din Tai Fung-inspired garlic green beans, you will need the following:

• Green Beans: Green beans are also known as string beans. In Chinese restaurants, you’ll typically find Chinese long beans, which you can use for this recipe as well. These long beans are exactly as the name suggests. They are long, usually 18 inches at harvest. They are cut into shorter pieces before cooking.
• Fresh Garlic: Can’t have a garlic recipe without fresh garlic.
• Vegetable Oil: Perfect for flash frying, vegetable oil ensures crispy perfection as it has a high boiling point. You can also use other neutral oils with high boiling point like peanut or canola oil.
• Don’t use olive oil when cooking Asian food. It has a low burning point and it’s the wrong flavor profile.
• Salt: I’m using fine ground sea salt.
• Mushroom/Chicken Bouillon Powder: You can certainly stop at the salt but lets take it up a notch with a Vietnamese home cooking secret ingredient, bouillon powder. Two popular Vietnamese bouillon powders that are available in the States are chicken and mushroom/vegetable (the go-to for a vegetarian option). Technically, these powders serve as a soup base, but it’s commonly used as a seasoning ingredient in Vietnamese and other Southeast Asian cooking.

How to Make It

Step 1: Prepare the Green Beans and Garlic

Wash the green beans and pat them completely dry with paper towels. Line up the ends of a handful of green beans. Trim off both ends then cut the beans in half again to create 3-inch segments. Repeat this process until all the green beans are trimmed and cut.

Peel and finely mince the garlic cloves. Set aside.

Step 2: Flash Fry the Green Beans

Add about 1½ inch oil to a wide skillet or wok and heat to 400°F. If you don’t have a large enough wok, do this in two batches to prevent the oil from dropping too much, which will result in overcooked and limped green beans.

Flash fry the green beans for 45 seconds until the skins wrinkle.

Take them out immediately and place onto a wire rack or basket to drain off the excess oil.

Step 3: Pan Fry the Garlic and Add Green Beans

In another skillet, add a tablespoon of the garlic-infused oil and minced garlic. Sauté the garlic for 30 seconds until lightly browned and fragrant.

Add the flash fried green beans to the sautéed garlic. Sprinkle with salt and bouillon powder and toss to combine. Immediately turn off heat and transfer the green beans to a serving plate and enjoy.

FAQs

How can I test the oil temperature without a thermometer?

If you don’t have a thermometer, you can test the oil temperature by inserting a wooden chopstick into the oil. If tiny bubbles form rapidly around the chopsticks, the oil is ready.

I don’t have a large enough skillet. What can I use instead?

Fry the green beans in small batches in the widest skillet you have. This keeps the oil hot, which prevents them from cooking too long and consequently, getting soggy and losing that vibrant green color.

Can I reuse the frying oil?

Absolutely. Let the oil cool, strain it through a fine mesh to remove any burnt bits, and store it in a closed container at room temperature.

Can I skip deep frying?

Sure! For a healthier option, blanch the green beans in boiling water for 1-2 minutes or until they turn bright green. Alternatively, you can stir-fry raw green beans directly.

Can I used jarred garlic?

You can but I do not recommend it. Fresh garlic is the way to go.

Pro Tips

• Embrace the garlic. You can certainly add more garlic to this dish if you wish. I even topped my finished dish with deep-fried garlic for added crunch.
• Add a sprinkle of chili flakes for a spicy kick or a drizzle of sesame oil for a nutty aroma.

Related Recipes

Want more side dishes? Check out the following recipes:

• Easy Blanched Bok Choy
• Water Spinach and Garlic Stir Fry
• Grilled Corn with Scallion Oil
• Easy Pan-Fried Tofu and Eggs