obsessed with sichuan

after living in lovely Japan for a good chunk of my childhood, i have {obviously} developed quite a taste for asian inspired foods.  if you saw my pinterest boards, you would understand.  anywho, remember that lovely bbq we went to where i made boozy sangria?  well, i decided to triple stamp a double stamp and make an amazing pinspired recipe from kalyn's kitchen, and try out her spicy sichuan style green beans.

keeping true to form, i did modify and tweak this recipe based on ingredients i had at home; therefore, i present to you:

recipe necessities {yields: 4 large servings}:
1 lb. fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into halves
1 tbl. soy sauce
1 tbl. unseasoned rice vinegar
4 Splenda packets
1/3 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tbl. canola oil
2 tbl. minced garlic

you'll want to steam the beans in a pan on the stove, and I added about 1/3 cup of water to speed the process along.  i let them cook for about 4-5 minutes on medium-high heat, until they were slightly tender and a bright green.  then, add the garlic and oil into the pot and stir until the beans are well coated; cook another 2-3 minutes.


in a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and adjust to taste {i ended up adding a bit more soy sauce and vinegar to the sauce}. add the sauce into the beans {most of the water should be evaporated by now}, and stir until well coated.  let simmer for another 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens.  serve!

these bad boys were gone PDQ, and they were simply amazing and delicious... hope you enjoy!