Simple Garlic French Beans with Taucu
French beans, also known as Haricots Verts, are crunchy and sweet. They go very well with Taucu, which is known as Fermented Yellow Soybeans. This easy and simple vegetarian French Beans with Taucu takes about 10 minutes to prepare and cook for a healthy and umami-filled dish for the family.
Ingredients
French Beans, specifically, the Haricots Verts variety are sweet and easy to prepare. It takes about 2-3 minutes to cook for a crunchy texture; and for a softer texture, another 2-3 minutes over medium-high heat. They can be substituted with other types of green beans if unavailable. Try going for the smaller, thinner green beans, or the ones with a “baby” label as it is often the indicator that they are young and tender.
Taucu, “Bean Sauce” or Yellow Fermented Soybeans brings umami and saltiness to this dish. It is also another great source of protein and flavour, contrasting deliciously with the french beans. In this recipe, I used the chunky (or “minced” type) for additional texture. Smooth or ground bean sauce works too if preferred. However, if unavailable, oyster sauce (or mushroom oyster sauce to keep it vegetarian) can be added for umami flavours, and salt can be added to taste.
Another herb that is often added to French Beans in Chinese cuisine is garlic. With its sweet, herby and garlicky flavoured bits, especially caramelized, it adds more appetite and bursts of intense flavours in between bites.
Sesame oil gives fragrance to the dish, and helps to stir up appetite as well, while sugar is added to help mellow the saltiness of the taucu sauce.
Lastly, to achieve a lovely velvet-like mouthfeel of the sauce, a flour slurry is used to thicken it. This helps it coat the rice very well, making each bite enjoyable. I personally used tapioca flour, but a cornstarch flour slurry works as well.
Steps
Here are the brief steps to make Garlic French Beans with Taucu:
- Make the flour slurry.
- Caramelize minced garlic.
- Cook taucu sauce.
- Cook french beans in taucu sauce.
- Mix in the flour slurry.
- Add some caramelized minced garlic.
- Dish out French beans.
- Garnish with the rest of the garlic.
Tips
- Flour slurry thickens the taucu gravy, giving it a velvet-like texture, as opposed to a runny and slightly chunky consistency. This velvet-like texture also gives the gravy a slight volume and coats the rice perfectly. Other than tapioca flour, 1/4 tbsp of cornstarch can be used as well, or omitted completely if preferred.
- Pre-frying the garlic infuses the cooking oil with its flavour, enhancing the taste of the sauce.
- Cooking the french beans for 2.5 minutes gives them a lovely crunchy texture. For soft french beans, stir fry for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Make sure to watch the full video to see how I made it exactly!
Storage Instructions
- Best consumed immediately after cooking for the lovely texture.
- It can be kept in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 2 days. Reheat for about 2 minutes after the sauce boils. Do note that the texture may be slightly softened.
- It can be frozen as well – however, do note that as it freezes, the ice crystals may affect the texture of the french beans. Let it thaw and reheat over the wok before consuming.
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Simple Garlic French Beans with Taucu
Equipment
- Wok
- Turner
Ingredients
Flour Slurry
- 10 ml water
- 1/2 tbsp tapioca flour
Taucu Sauce
- 25 ml cooking oil
- 45 g garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp taucu, fermented soybean paste
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tbsp sugar
- 75 ml water
French Beans
- 300 g french beans, washed
- 75 ml water, optional
Instructions
- Make the flour slurry. Mix 10ml of water with tapioca flour until fully dissolved and well-combined.
- Heat the cooking oil in a wok for about 30 seconds.
- Add the minced garlic to the wok and fry for 2 minutes, or until crispy and golden brown. Remove 3/4 from the wok and set aside.
- Add taucu, sesame oil, sugar, and water to the wok. Mix for 20 seconds, or until well-combined.
- Add the french beans and mix until well-coated with the sauce. If it is too dry, add 75ml of water. Continue cooking for about 2.5 minutes.
- Taste and adjust as preferred.
- Add tapioca flour slurry and quickly stir until well-combined. Switch off the heat.
- Add 1/2 of the crispy fried garlic to the french beans. Stir to combine.
- Dish it out onto a serving plate. Garnish with the rest of the crispy garlic and serve with white rice.
Video
Notes
- Flour slurry thickens the taucu gravy, giving it a velvet-like texture, as opposed to a runny and slightly chunky consistency. This velvet-like texture also gives the gravy a slight volume and coats the rice perfectly. Other than tapioca flour, 1/4 tbsp of cornstarch can be used as well, or omitted completely if preferred.
- Pre-frying the garlic infuses the cooking oil with its flavour, enhancing the taste of the sauce.
- Cooking the french beans for 2.5 minutes gives them a lovely crunchy texture. For soft french beans, stir fry for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Watch the video to ensure success.
- Best consumed immediately after cooking for the lovely texture.
- It can be kept in the fridge in an air-tight container for up to 2 days. Reheat for about 2 minutes after the sauce boils. Do note that the texture may be slightly softened.
- It can be frozen as well – however, do note that as it freezes, the ice crystals may affect the texture of the french beans. Let it thaw and reheat over the wok before consuming.