I made this recipe last night as a fun side to salmon and rice, and I wanted to hop on and share because it turned out so good!  These green beans are super low maintenance as they are roasted in the oven along with the main protein (which could be fish, chicken, or anything else that takes about 30 minutes of cook time).  They are flavored by tossing in some salt and gojuchang paste as they exit the oven, making them super flavorful with very minimal effort. The added bonus to this dish is that the protein and the sides can be all ready to go at exactly the same time if roasted together, and you only have to dirty one sheet pan for all of dinner. 

This dish is perfect for a week-night sheet pan dinner, which are honestly my favorite kind of dinners.  Roasting the green beans brings out the sweetness and lightly caramelizes them, and eliminates the need to dirty a separate pot for steaming or boiling.  That being said, this will work perfectly with steamed green beans as well, simply toss in the gojuchang paste after cooking. This method would also work great as a way to freshen up any leftover veggies and give them a new flavor profile for the next round of eating. 

Gojuchang is one of my favorite ingredients that I have discovered this year, and I’ve been using it almost weekly as a condiment for various dishes, ranging from fried rice to soups.  It is a Korean fermented chili paste that also includes fermented glutinous rice and soybeans, so it is an awesome combination of sweet, funky, savory, and spicy that works so well on its own but also pairs nicely with other flavors.  I’m not an expert in the traditional uses for gojuchang in Korean cooking, so please note that my recipes that include it are generally non-traditional, and are mainly ways that I’ve enjoyed experimenting with this as an ingredient.

With that being said, recipe down below, photo up top for this great side dish!  This makes enough for 2 people to enjoy for dinner, so feel free to scale up for a bigger sheet pan dinner or for meal-prep purposes!

Roasted Green Beans with Gojuchang

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (about 1 big handful) of raw green beans
• 1 tsp oil
• 1 tsp gojuchang paste
• ¼ tsp salt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Using a knife or kitchen scissors, remove the stem ends and any blemished ends of the green beans.  Place cleaned green beans on a foil-lined baking tray. Toss green beans in oil and salt. 
3. Place green beans in the oven and roast until slightly browned and fully tender, about 30 minutes.
4. Once roasted, remove from the oven and transfer the green beans to a bowl.  Add goguchang paste and toss to fully coat all of the green beans (tongs work well for this step!).
5. Once fully coated, serve while warm as a delicious side to your dinner!  Enjoy!