Green Beans and Olives and Capers

Green Beans and Olives and Capers in a simple garlic and tomato sauce. This recipe is easy and packed with flavour. It's the solid side dish to meat or fish and comes together in 30 minutes.

We love green beans in tomato sauce it's such a classic Italian side dish, so we wanted to create another version with a bolder pizzaiola-style flavour.

We kept the sauce quick and simple with garlic, tomato and oregano, then added capers and olives for a burst of umami flavour.

The recipe is easy and good. We love to serve this with chicken thighs or fish for dinner, but it's the solid dish to bring along to barbecues or picnics, too.

Ingredient notes

• Canned tomatoes and tomato paste – We highly recommend using good-quality tomatoes (we used Mutti polpa). Good tomatoes make a big difference in the overall flavour of the dish.
• Green beans – wash then trim the tops and bottoms before using.
• Capers – We use capers jarred in brine and always have them in our fridge to add flavour to recipes. If you have capers stored in salt, you'll need to rinse them first.
• Olives – you can use any olives you prefer here. When it comes to black olives, kalamata are our go-to.
• Herbs – As well as dried oregano, you could also add some fresh basil, which we do sometimes, and it's good!

Recipe tips

Make it spicy – for a spicy kick you can add chilli flakes or fresh red chilli to the sauce.

More garlic flavour – for a stronger garlic flavour, you can finely chop or mince the garlic before adding to the sauce.

Can we prepare this in advance?

Yes, this is such a great dish to make in advance. It can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days and reheated on the stove or served at room temperature.

Can we use frozen or canned green beans?

Frozen green beans will work well, but we don't recommend using canned beans as they'll be too soft and turn mushy.

More good side dishes to try

Sides

Patate Apparecchiate (Sicilian Potatoes with Onions and Olives)

Sides

Garlicky Chickpeas and Cavolo Nero

Salads

Insalata Pantesca (Sicilian Potato Salad)

Sides

Peperoni Ammollicati (Peppers and Breadcrumbs)

Ingredients

Makes 6 servings

• 14 oz (400g) green beans (tops and bottoms trimmed)
• 14 oz (400g) chopped tomatoes ((we used Mutti polpa))
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 cloves garlic (peeled but kept whole)
• 2 tablespoons capers (jarred in brine)
• ½ cup (70g) Kalamata olives
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil

Equipment

• large pan with a lid

Method

1. Heat a large pan on a medium-low heat and add around 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the two whole, peeled garlic cloves and fry gently until lightly golden and fragrant.

2. Add the chopped tomatoes, then fill the can halfway with water (about 200ml or 3/4 cup) and add that to the sauce alongside the tomato paste, oregano and a good pinch of salt and pepper.

3. Stir everything until combined, then add the trimmed green beans. Cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes or until the green beans are cooked through.

4. Add the olives and capers and stir them through for a minute, remove the garlic then serve.

Kitchen notes

Storage can be prepped in advance and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.