These miso sesame green beans are simple and utterly delicious!
I have Mary from One Perfect Bite and her 50 Women Game Changers in Food Group to thank for this recipe. I happened upon the group a couple of weeks ago and immediately wanted to join, which is kind of unusual for me (I'm usually not much of a joiner.)
Miso Sesame Green Beans
The group is cooking their way through the Gourmet Live list of 50 Most Important Women in Food. I'm arriving at the party a little late, since they are already up to #41 - Elizabeth Andoh, who is considered to be the foremost English speaking expert on Japanese Home Cooking.
An American, Andoh traveled to Japan for graduate studies, fell in love with the country, met her Japanese husband, and essentially never left.
She began A Taste of Culture culinary arts programs in the 1970's shortly after completing a course of formal culinary training at the Yanagihara Kinsaryu School of Traditional Japanese Cuisine, in Tokyo and was Gourmet Magazine's correspondent in Japan for more than 30 years.
I had never heard of Andoh and know absolutely nothing about Japanese Home Cooking, but with the internet anything is possible.
I came across a 2005 NPR column by Heidi Swanson, of 101 Cookbooks, entitled "Cookbooks to Give and Get," which spoke highly of one of Andoh's books. In the article, Swanson said, "Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen (affiliate link) is a wonderful book by Elizabeth Andoh focused on Japanese home-style cooking... Be sure to try the Green Beans Tossed in Creamy Miso-Sesame Dressing."
A few more clicks led me to the recipe for these miso sesame green beans, which seemed completely doable, with a few modifications and adaptions.
I used tahini in place of the Asian white sesame paste and picked up a container of sweet white miso at Whole Foods to make the simple sauce.
Creamy Miso Sesame Sauce
And the recipe works perfectly within the Weight Watchers guidelines too. I'm always on the lookout for ways to make vegetables more delectable and what better way than to toss them with an interesting healthy sauce?
How Many Calories and WW Points in these Green Beans?
Each serving of these delightful miso sesame green beans has about 68 calories and:
1 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
1 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
1 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
2 *PointsPlus (Old plan)
To see your WW PersonalPoints for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, Click here!
Recipe Notes
**Look for white sesame paste and seafood stock in Asian grocery stores. The white sesame paste is called shiro neri goma, or smooth white sesame paste.
I used tahini (Middle Eastern sesame paste) in place of the Asian white sesame paste, since it's what I had in the pantry and water in place of the seafood stock with great results. The next time I'm at an Asian market, I will check out the real thing.
You can keep the sauce in a tightly closed glass jar in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
You can also make the sesame paste from scratch by grinding toasted sesame seeds. For more complete details you will want to check out Elizabeth's book.
Are You Ready To Firmly Plant Yourself
On The Path To Lasting Weight Loss Success?
In this brief video, Elizabeth Andoh explains the principles of Washoku...
If you've made this Sesame Green Beans, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Miso Sesame Green Beans Recipe
Ingredients
- 1-½ tablespoons white sesame paste**
- 1-½ tablespoons sweet white miso
- Salt, to taste
- 1-½ tablespoons seafood stock** or water
- 16 ounces green beans
- 1-½ tablespoons white sesame seeds (optional)
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the sesame paste and miso until creamy and blended.
- Taste, and if the mixture seems too sweet, stir in salt to taste.
- To thin the mixture to a saucy consistency, stir in stock or water, one spoonful at a time. Set aside.
- Clean the green beans and then snap or cut off their stem ends.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, add the beans and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until bright green. Drain the beans then let cool at room temperature.
- Just before serving, toss the green beans in the sesame-miso sauce and garnish with sesame seeds, if desired.
Recipe Notes
Source: Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen (affiliate link) by Elizabeth Andoh
*Points® calculated by WW. *PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.
If you like miso sesame green beans you might also like:
- Brussels Sprouts Salad with Maple Mustard Dressing
- Curried Sweet Potatoes with Green Peas
- Asian Baked Kabocha Squash
- Mary @ One Perfect Bite
- Val @ More Than Burnt Toast
- Taryn @ Have Kitchen Will Feed
- Susan @ The Spice Garden
- Heather @ All Roads Lead to the Kitchen
- Miranda @ Mangoes and Chutney
- Amrita @ Beetles Kitchen Escapades
- Sue @ The View from Great Island
- Barbara @ Movable Feasts
- Linda @ A Sunflower Life
- Nancy @ Picadillo
- Mireya @ My Healthy Eating Habits
- Veronica @ My Catholic Kitchen
- Annie @ Most Lovely Things
- Jeanette @ Jeanette's Healthy Living
- Claudia @ Journey of an Italian Cook
- Alyce @ More Time at the Table
- Kathy @ Bakeaway with Me
- Jill @ Saucy Cooks
- Sarah @ Everything In the Kitchen Sink
Martha is the founder and main content writer for Simple-Nourished-Living.
A longtime lifetime WW at goal, she is committed to balancing her love of food and desire to stay slim while savoring life and helping others do the same.
She is the author of the Smart Start 28-Day Weight Loss Challenge.
A huge fan of the slow cooker and confessed cookbook addict, when she's not experimenting in the kitchen, you're likely to find Martha on her yoga mat.
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bellini
Japanese food is truly nourishing food so this is the perfect accompaniment to any meal.
Mireya @myhealthyeatinghabits
Good recipe to post. I'm always looking for ways to use up my tube of miso. How does Asian sesame paste differ from tahini?
Martha
Hi Mireya,
Asian sesame past is made from ground toasted sesame seeds, miso and sea stock, so I am assuming it would be saltier than tahini.
Mary
I love the simplicity of this recipe. It really captures Andoh's essence and illustrates her message and technique. I'm so glad you have joined us. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.Blessings...Mary
Jill Mant~a SaucyCook
Martha, I just joined this group recently too and I also love the exposure to chefs like Elizabeth who I was not familiar with before this endeavor. Your post is just wonderful; incredibly informative and your recipe looks and sounds delicious. I too will be exploring her recipes more in the future. Thanks!
Kathy
These beans looks delicious…love the miso sauce! A lovely dish to represent Elizabeth! Nice post!
Jeanette
I did find Elizabeth Andoh's explanation of Washoku cooking so fascinating. Beautiful dish to celebrate her by.