Skillet Green Beans with Gorgonzola

Preparation

1. Step 1

   Rinse and dry the beans and trim off both ends.

   Step 2

   Set a large skillet over medium heat, pour in the oil, and toss in the smashed garlic cloves. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, until the garlic has just lightly colored.

   Step 3

   Put the beans in the pan, shake it a few times to spread them out, pour in 1/4 cup water, and cover the pan. Lower the heat and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes, shaking the pan and checking the green beans occasionally, until they are tender to the bite and lightly caramelized.

   Step 4

   When they’re done as you like, salt lightly (bearing in mind that the gorgonzola will be salty), uncover the pan, raise the heat, and drop bits of crumbled gorgonzola into the beans, all around the skillet.

   Step 5

   Cook—no cover now—tossing and stirring the beans with a spatula or tongs, while the cheese melts, about a minute and a half. When the cheese has melted and coated the beans—but before it coats the bottom of the pan in a thick layer—spoon and scrape the green beans into a deep bowl and serve immediately.

2. Green Beans: Cook to a Soft Snap

   Step 6

   For both recipes here—and anytime I cook green beans in water—I check the doneness of the beans carefully. I don’t like undercooked beans, which are still crunchy and have a raw taste, and I don’t like overcooked beans, which are mushy and a drab olive color. I want them to be cooked all the way through, which brings out their full flavor, be tender to the bite, but still give you something to chew. And I want green beans to be bright green. There are various tests to check the beans (which I do after about 10 minutes of cooking): poke one with a fork, take a bite, slit one open to see the interior, or hold one up to see if it droops. But my favorite test is to fold a bean in the middle: it shouldn’t break sharply, and it shouldn’t just fall apart. It should snap, but softly.