This recipe is one of those times I created something on the fly with what I had on hand, haphazardly adding ingredients that made sense to my vision, doing my best to measure and take photos when possible. This particular night I hadn’t made any plans for dinner, it was getting late and I came up with the idea to grill some green beans that we had from our CSA and sugar snap peas I had that also needed to get eaten up. I am pretty sure Mark was a tad apprehensive about having so much green stuff for dinner, but let’s be honest he had no choice really! It was this or cereal. We all know those nights.

I decided to snap photos while I was making this, since some of my most favorite dishes I create are the ones that I don’t stress over, that are inspired by what is fresh from our farmer and what is quick and easy. The sun was literally setting quicker than I could get this served up, so although these may not be the most glamorous or well-styled photos, this dish was far too good not to share with you guys, especially with green beans in season right now.

For the record, Mark absolutely LOVED this green dinner! He couldn’t get over all the flavor and how filling it all was served over a small serving of brown rice. I liked it because for not only the wonderful flavors, but the fact that in less than 30 minutes I went from not knowing what to make us, to this delicious, light and satisfying dinner.

The sugar snap peas are not important to this dish, I just happened to have some from the store that needed to get eaten up and they made perfect sense with this dish. You could leave them out or add in more green beans. You could also try adding in sliced mushrooms or slivered almonds, both would be delicious.

What are some of your favorite meals you’ve created on the fly, without any major planning?

[print_this]Grilled Asian Green Beans – Gluten-free + Vegan
Serves 4-6 as a side dish, 2 as a main dish

• 1 lb fresh green beans {approximately, I never weighed them}
• 12 ounces fresh sugar snap peas (optional, you can add more green beans or just skip this)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sesame oil (olive oil would also work)
• 1 tablespoon gluten-free soy sauce, tamari or coconut aminos (I always choose low-sodium whenever possible)
• 3 teaspoons honey or maple syrup (brown sugar, coconut sugar or any sweetener of your choice)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced)
• pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, for serving

Place your grill basked on the grill and preheat on the hottest setting.

Trim off the stem-end on the green beans. Place them in a colander, rinse under cold water and then pat dry. In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients minus the beans, peas (if you are adding them) and sesame seeds, whisk to combine. Then add the beans and peas, toss gently to evenly coat. Let this sit until your grill is hot.

Using tongs grab the beans and peas and place them into the hot grill basket and immediately reduce the temperature of the grill to a medium-high heat, leaving the remaining sauce in the large bowl. Close the lid to the grill, keeping an eye on it. Toss them around every couple of minutes until the skin starts to blister and char, the beans should be bright green and have a nice subtle crisp to them, still. Probably about 10 to 12 minutes, maximum. Remove when ready and add back to the large bowl and toss again with the remaining sauce, sprinkle toasted sesame seeds over the top and serve immediately. Great as is, as a side or over brown rice for a complete meal. [/print_this]