For a seasonal, veggie-forward main, make these stir-fried long beans with pork

The Abridged version:

• Long beans are like green beans’ extended cousins, with rougher and thicker skins for a snappier texture.
• Lisa Lin’s Cooking in Season recipe stir-fries them with ground pork, oyster and soy sauces, sesame oil and Thai chilis.
• To avoid overcrowding the pan, Lin recommends par-cooking the pork, removing it from the pan, cooking the long beans some, then adding the pork back in to finish the stir-fry.

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This is Cooking in Season, a biweekly recipe series using seasonal produce available at Sacramento-area farmers markets. 

Green beans get a lot of love during the summer months, but have you ever cooked with long beans? Also known as yardlong beans or snake beans, long beans are commonly used in Asian cooking in dishes such as stir-fries, curries or salads.

As the name suggests, these beans are long — generally about 1 or 2 feet in length. They are similar to green beans but with rougher and thicker skins, giving these beans a snappier texture when you bite into them. 

At the farmers market, you can find long beans of various colors sold in bunches of about a pound. The jade green and forest green varieties are more tender, while the dark purple variety has thicker skins and an earthier flavor. 

When selecting bunches of long beans, pay attention to their overall color and thickness. Avoid bunches that have lots of brown spots over the beans, signs that the beans are not fresh. Next, choose slender beans with seeds that are not bulging, because their texture will be more tender. Very mature pods are thicker and have drier, looser skin around bulging seeds, which are tougher to eat. 

My favorite way to prepare long beans is to stir-fry them with a bit of ground pork for umami. For some spice, I like to add thinly sliced Thai chilis (also known as bird’s-eye chilis). Thai chilis are quite spicy, so make sure you wash your hands as soon as you are done handling them. Everyone’s spice tolerance is different, so feel free to use only one chili or leave them out entirely. 

Stir-fried long beans with pork

Yield: 2-4 servings
Time: 30 minutes

When cooking stir-fries, you do not want to overcrowd the wok (or sauté pan) because the food will not cook evenly. That is why in the recipe below, I par-cook the meat, remove it from the wok and then cook the beans. Once the beans are partially cooked, I will add the meat back into the wok and finish cooking the dish.

Although I use ground pork in this recipe, you can substitute ground chicken or turkey. If using a fattier ground pork (such as 80% or 85% lean pork), brown the meat with 1 tablespoon of oil first. After you par-cook the meat and transfer it to a plate, see how much oil or fat is left inside the wok. If there is a good layer of grease, skip the additional oil or add a smaller amount.

To cook the stir-fry, you will need a wok or a deep sauté pan with a lid. A vegetable stir-frying technique that I learned from my mom is to add a small splash of water into the wok and then cover with a lid. The additional water and lid generate steam inside the cooking vessel so that the vegetables cook evenly and quickly without using more oil. 

Serve these stir-fried long beans with a bowl of rice or your favorite grains for a complete meal!

Ingredients

• 1 pound long beans (1 bunch)
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons neutral oil (such as canola, sunflower or avocado oil), divided
• 8 ounces ground pork (90% lean preferred)
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt (preferably Diamond Crystal)
• ½ cup thinly sliced onions (about ½ small onion)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Thai chilis, thinly sliced (optional)
• 2 tablespoons water

Instructions

Step 1

Trim the tough base of the long beans and slice beans into 2-inch segments. Rinse and set aside.

Step 2

In a small bowl, whisk together the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil and sugar. Set aside.

Step 3

Heat a wok (or deep sauté pan) over high heat and add 1½ tablespoons of neutral oil. Add the ground pork and use a spatula to break the meat into smaller chunks. Season the meat with ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Sauté the meat for about 1 to 2 minutes, until most of the meat has started to turn white and has broken down into crumbles. It’s OK if some of the meat is still pink at this stage. Turn off the heat and transfer the meat to a plate. 

Step 4

Add the remaining 1½ tablespoons of oil to the wok over high heat. Add the onions and cook until they start to soften, about 1 minute. Add the garlic and chilis and sauté until fragrant, about 10 to 15 seconds. Make sure your extractor fan is on because the aroma from the chilis will make you want to sneeze.

Step 5

Add the long beans to the wok and give everything a stir. Drizzle the water into the wok and cover it with a lid. Cook the beans for about 90 seconds to 2 minutes, until the water has evaporated. 

Step 6

Sprinkle the remaining ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt over the beans and give them a quick toss.

Step 7

Add the par-cooked pork back to the wok. Continue cooking the beans and meat for an additional 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour the oyster sauce mixture into the wok and toss to coat the beans and meat with the sauce. Turn off the heat. Taste the beans and pork, and add more salt or oyster sauce if needed.

Step 8

Serve the stir fry with your favorite grains or noodles!