It’s funny I actually make them most often for my family here in CA, they’re an appreciative audience and although i have shown mom and dad how to do them several times apparently they just don’t…! Haha, so i need to make them at least once each visit :)) somehow finding great fresh produce here is just a birthright in CA, vs a game of hide and seek like in nyc
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The dish definitely works better with older, tougher beans, but for whatever the reason, the oil also seems to help maintain their integrity. You don’t need to have them actually swimming in oil (though that is my personal preference 
), but you do need more than just a couple of tablespoons… It also freezes quite well, so when I make it, I make extra for weeknight/everyday meals when I wouldn’t want to spend the time to make it from scratch.
Under it’s Greek name, it’s been a staple of my family’s holiday meals for years (and years) and while it usually gets made with fresh beans, circumstances have occasionally resulted in someone making it with cut frozen beans, and even that comes out good, though it does need a somewhat shorter cooking time. On the other hand, I’ve also had it when a family-member-who-shall-not-be-named (and who to be blunt, couldn’t cook their way out of a very large cardboard box, open at both ends 
) has insisted on making a “lite” version, with very little and occasionally even no oil, and it just doesn’t work, even with a brief cooking time. I mean, it’s pleasant enough (to put it charitably), but it’s not the same at all. And if you overcook that, there’s a hard-to-spot point of no return after which it does turn to unpleasant “mush” very quickly…
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Looks so good!
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I snuck in a few fingerling potatoes from the garden! Not on the keto list 
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They got married!
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Working on first batch of the year, strating with roasted tomatoes, sliced onions, and garlic cloves, some of which I will use on this.
Did I skip this dish in '22 
?
ETA some other names for future searches
Fasolakia Lathera
zeytinagli
loobyeh
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Try a pinch of sugar or a dash of vinegar or both.
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It does taste better the next day - gives the flavors a chance to mingle. And I concur with @Saregama that some sugar or a splash of pom molasses or balsamic might ‘tie that dish together.’
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A sprinkle of oregano and/or thyme should help, and a couple of twists of black pepper.
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I’d roast your veggies way more… get a little char/caramelization on them under the broiler with a light drizzle of EVOO.
Not sure what else is in your tomato base, but if you find it sweet enough consider a dash of soy, Worcestershire, and some citrus zest.
Thanks all! There’s already pepper, but I can add more, and add some oregano if it’s not tasty this evening. Some recipes call for basil, and I have some fresh basil.
The veg are not traditionally roasted in this recipe; I started them that way because I didn’t want to boil water to peel the tomatoes, and I was roasting tomatoes anyway . Maybe I should have sautéed onion, garlic, tomato, etc longer before adding the green beans. I’ve been making this for years; maybe I should go back to reading the directions! I think I used tomato paste this time, smoked paprika, and a little sumac. Last time I also added harissa. That might be the answer! Maybe it’s not sweet enough, and I should try a bit of sugar.
Most include a generous amount of olive oil!
"How to Make the best Greek Green Beans- “Fasolakia Lathera”
Start with the sauteing. Add the olive oil in the pan and saute the chopped onion. Just to understand the importance of olive oil in these dishes, the word “lathera” means “the ones with the oil”. Not adding the olive oil will result in watery green beans that will taste bland. Olive oil helps bring out all the flavors and make this dish feel rich. You may be worried about calories, but remember that this is a main course and the rest of the ingredients pretty much have minimal calories so the result is a moderate calorie dish.Add the potatoes (if using). You may soak the potatoes in water for 20 minutes ahead. Continue stirring for 2-3 minutes until the potatoes are coated in olive oil.Add the green beans and stir some more.Now you add the rest of the ingredients: parsley, salt, sugar and pepper. stor until everything is mixed.Now add just enough hot water to cover the beans halfway. Do not cover completely, better to start off with less water and add as needed. You do not want watery green beans. Authentic Greek beans are soft and velvety in their sauce (olive oil and tomato) there should be no water left.Simmer with the lid on for about 40 minutes (do not boil). Check the water levels. The beans are ready once there is no water left and the beans are soft.Turn off the heat and let them sit with the cover on for 10 minutes. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.Accompany with bread and feta. Store i the refrigerator for up to 3 days."
Another version, is this recipe called loobyeh (pronounced LOO-beh),
"…this comforting vegetable stew is a staple in Lebanon. Rita Nakouzi’s recipe is a combination of her mother’s and aunt’s versions; only as an adult was she finally able to add as much garlic as she wanted. After years of making what by her own admission was “a garlic attack,” she says, "Now I’ve gotten better. It finally dawned on me, I don’t think everyone else likes garlic as much
Active Time:
30 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 10 mins
Yield:
8
Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, preferably canola
1 large onion, thinly sliced
12 garlic cloves, 6 minced
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/2 pounds green beans
One 16-ounce can diced tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground black
Directions
In a large, deep skillet, heat the vegetable oil. Add the sliced onion and cook over moderate heat until translucent and softened, about 8 minutes. Add the minced garlic, paprika and cayenne pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the green beans and 6 whole garlic cloves and cook for about 2 minutes, tossing to coat the beans.
Pour the diced tomatoes and their juices into the skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the skillet and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the green beans are very tender, about 40 minutes. Season the braised green beans with salt and pepper. Transfer them to a platter and serve warm or at room temperature.
Make Ahead
The braised green beans can be refrigerated overnight"
Turkish version is called " Zeytinyağlı ( in this case Fasulye), in which vegetables are cooked for a long time in olive oil, then served at room temperature so that the flavors are at their peak."
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Whenever I’ve made this, I just stew everything together long and slow – no staging of the beans later. I think time has a lot to do with how it turns out – silky beans, intensified tomato flavor.
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I always cut down on the olive oil in the Greek and Turkish recipes.
I find I like this dish better if I don’t add water, and let the beans cook slowing in the pot.
I agree with adding some vinegar or lemon. I don’t add sugar.
The Georgian braised green beans are also good, if you want more complex spicing.
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I have an old family recipe for green beans braised in bacon fat that cooks much longer than this, yet never reaches a state of mush.
The beans will go to Army green though. You can delay that camoflage by salt blanching first.
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I love fresh green beans!
My ex-GF’s mom is Sardegnan and she usually prepared green beans fresh from the garden by simmering them whole with just garlic and salt and they were amazingly good for a “simple” dish. But when I tried to replicate the dish it did not come close so there is some "secret sauce’ that I was not aware of.
Her husband was Calabrian and he liked them braised with tomatoes and garlic but I did not see that dish nearly as often. It was good but not as good.
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