Gordon Ramsay’s green beans with mustard dressing are crunchy blanched beans tossed with toasted flaked almonds in a roasted garlic, Dijon and honey dressing. They take about 40 minutes, mostly while the garlic roasts. The recipe is from his Ultimate Cookery Course and serves six to eight.
What sets this apart is the garlic. Ramsay roasts two whole heads in foil until they go “creamy, mellow and divine”, then mashes that into the dressing as its base. Most green bean recipes use raw garlic, or none. That roasted garlic is what makes it taste like a restaurant side, not a sad bowl of beans.
The technique that makes or breaks the texture is the blanch. You drop the beans into boiling salted water for just 90 seconds, then straight into cold water. That quick shock stops the cooking, so they stay bright green and snap when you bite them instead of going soft and grey.
Gordon Ramsay Green Beans With Mustard Dressing
Course: SideCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy6 to 8
15
minutes25
minutes430
kcal40
minutesGordon Ramsay’s green bean salad with mustard dressing from Ultimate Cookery Course, built on sweet roasted garlic, Dijon, honey and toasted almonds. A simple summer side that turns a plain vegetable into something worth serving to guests.
Ingredients
1kg (2 lb 3 oz) green beans, topped and tailed
200g (7 oz) flaked almonds
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the dressing:
2 small heads of garlic
2 to 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp runny honey
150ml (5 fl oz) olive oil
Directions
- Roast the garlic: Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). Wrap the garlic heads in foil and roast for 20 to 25 minutes until soft. Leave to cool.
- Blanch the beans: Plunge the beans into plenty of boiling salted water for 1½ minutes, until the rawness is gone but they still have bite. Refresh straight away under cold running water, then drain.
- Toast the almonds: Toast the flaked almonds in a dry frying pan for 2 to 3 minutes until golden. Tip out and leave to cool.
- Combine: Mix the cooled beans and almonds together with a little salt and pepper.
- Make the dressing: Squeeze the soft flesh from the garlic heads and mash with 1 tbsp of the vinegar into a smooth paste. Stir in the mustard and honey, then pour in the oil in a slow drizzle, stirring to thicken. Taste and season, adding more vinegar if it needs sharpening.
- Dress and serve: Pour the dressing over the beans and almonds, toss well to coat, and serve.
FAQs
Why does Gordon roast the garlic instead of using it raw?
Raw garlic in a dressing is harsh and one-note. Roasting two whole heads in foil for 20 minutes caramelises the sugars and softens the burn, so the garlic turns sweet and creamy. In his video Ramsay calls it “creamy, mellow and divine” once it comes out of the oven.
That’s why it works as the actual base of the dressing, not just a background note. Two whole heads would be aggressive raw, but roasted they melt into something rich and rounded.
How long should you blanch the green beans?
Just 90 seconds in boiling salted water, then straight into cold. The cold water shocks them, which stops the cooking so they stay bright green and crunchy rather than dull and soft. Ramsay is fussy about this because overcooked beans are the quickest way to ruin the dish.
Drain them well before dressing, since water left clinging will thin the dressing. You want the beans cool and dry so the mustard and garlic grip them properly.
Can you use wholegrain mustard instead of Dijon?
Ramsay uses Dijon here, which gives a smoother, sharper dressing that coats the beans evenly. Wholegrain works if it’s what you have, and you get little bursts of mustard seed, but the dressing turns grainier and clings less tidily.
Whichever you use, keep the honey in. It balances the heat of the mustard and the sharpness of the vinegar, so the dressing tastes rounded rather than just sharp.
How does it compare to Ottolenghi’s green bean salad?
Ottolenghi takes his in a Middle Eastern direction, with crispy fried garlic, capers, cumin and coriander seeds and fresh tarragon from his Jerusalem book. Ramsay stays French and simple: roasted garlic, Dijon, honey and toasted almonds.
So Ottolenghi’s has more spice and noisy crunch from the fried bits. Ramsay’s is smoother and sweeter, because the whole dressing leans on that mellow roasted garlic. Different moods, both good.
Does Ramsay have a second green bean salad?
He does, also in Ultimate Cookery Course. His roasted red onion vinaigrette version uses runner beans, French beans and sugar snap peas in a sherry vinegar and charred red onion dressing. It’s earthier and heartier than this one, built around sweet caramelised onion instead of the garlic and honey.
If you like this, that one is worth a go when you want something a bit deeper. This mustard version stays the lighter, fresher of the two.
What do you serve it with, and can you make it ahead?
It’s a summer side, so it suits grilled and barbecued things: roast lamb, barbecued chicken or his grilled salmon all work. For a spread, sit it next to his potato salad and a crunchy coleslaw for three textures that don’t clash.
You can make it a few hours ahead, since the dressed beans hold their crunch better than leafy salads thanks to the oil and honey. Keep the almonds separate and scatter them on just before serving though, or they go soft overnight. For more options that travel well, browse his salad recipes.
