Lovely green beans, juicy tomatoes, and almonds spiced with our favorite -the deep red sumac. A dish full of flavor and crunch.
This recipe came together on a whim; my inspiration was the fresh beans and the new bag of sumac I got. A very spontaneous recipe, not too many ingredients – but it did result in a full burst of flavors with the sesame, olive oil and of course sumac. This makes a perfect healthy and quick weeknight side dish, but I am sure you will like it enough for a backyard party or a nice side for a potluck.
Here are some –
SUMAC: a very intriguing spice…
We love sumac! Bright, tart and lemony is how I would describe it. Sumac is used extensively in the Middle Eastern, Central Asia and Arabic Cuisine, to be sprinkled on the rice, kebabs, hummus and salads and also sometimes on lentils and vegetables. Sumac is also one of the main spices in Zahtar. The spice is derived from the berry of a plant called Rhus coriaria (not to be confused with Rhus toxicodendron/Poison Ivy). This tree grows wild in the Middle East and in certain parts of Italy. The spice is also known as “Sicilian sumac,” “sumaq” or “sumach,” and other similar variations.
The dark red powdered berries have a light lemony flavor and are is sour in taste. Sumac has the effect of astringent on food and can be used as a substitute for lemon or vinegar. Apart from the taste and flavor it also adds a lovely red tinge to a dish.
Warning! The sumac that grows in America is an ornamental shrub and is inedible: in fact it is highly toxic!
Buying and storing
- It’s best to buy whole seeds to preserve the flavor longer;
- whole or ground, sumac seeds should be kept in a tightly closed container away from light and heat.(SOURCE)
and some GREEN BEANS
I have not chopped the beans. My kids love the beans long like a “stick” ! The cut ones will taste the same. If you ever make this, use the beans the way you prefer.
Green Beans Tomatoes and Almonds with Sumac
Ingredients:
- 40-50 whole green beans, trimmed, washed
- 15 cherry tomatoes, or whatever kind you want to use
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
- a pinch of red chili pepper flakes
- a good lug of olive oil
- a big fistful of almonds, lightly toasted
- salt
- 2 teaspoons sumac (or adjust amount to your taste)
Preparation:Toast the almonds in a large skillet over medium heat in a splash of olive oil. Add some salt and allow them to turn golden, remove from heat, and set aside.
In a pan add oil and the pepper flakes. After a few seconds add the garlic and the sesame seeds.
When the garlic is light golden and fragrant, add the beans, tomatoes and salt; toss well, cover and cook till the beans are cooked but crunchy.
Uncover and mush the tomatoes with the back of the spoon to release the juice. Increase the heat and and add the almonds and sumac. Give everything in the pan a good toss and switch off the heat.
Serve warm as a side dish.
Spontaneous it was, but I was floored by the flavor and the texture of this dish. We all love sumac; however this is the first time I have used sumac in a vegetarian dish, with some apprehension. But my fears were calmed by the beauty of it all.
WHB#232 hosted by Lynne of Cafe Lynnylu.
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Never heard about Sumac.. nice to learn about it! Cheers!
A great combination! Surely very yummy!
Cheers,
Rosa
me too never heard of Sumac !!! what a great info !!
Looks divine. And sumac!
The green beans photo is great. No idea though how sumac tastes. Will look out for it in the Iranian stores here.
Love kebabs, hummus perhaps I ate them with sumac but really I don’t know nothing about this spice.
So interesting sumac facts and scrumptious recipe 😉
Cheers,
Gera
Such a beautiful dish. I really need to get using my sumac that I bought from my last trip.
Lovely! I like sumac a lot… It has such a tangy and delicious flavour!
Totally new spice to me and in fact I have never heard of that. Based on how you describe the flavor seems very appealing. Will keep that in mind.
dish looks so tempti,.
Never heard about this new spice sumac. It was interesting to know the facts abt it. The dish looks divine.
Hamaree Rasoi
I always love the way you use nuts in your stir fries and salads. I will chop the beans … am not as good as your kiddos are. 🙂
Any substitute for sumac that I can use?
Sharmila, really can’t think of any substitute for sumac … indian version amchur to make it tart, maybe, but it does not have the same flavor or texture. Maybe lemon zest?
I have a lot of sumac with me and I’m planning to call a friend over to lunch – I’m definitely making this.
Try it out. It is not a very usual use of sumac, but does come out pretty good.
I am cooking green beans myself today. Your recipe looks delicious.
I have got to get me some sumac! I’ve seen it in many recipes but it is not easy to find around there parts. Although since I am going to Italy in a month I might for sure find it there. lovely dish!
I have not tried sumac before though I have read about it over some food blogs. I am trying to imagine the taste of this dish. Hmmmm…..
I have seen a turkish stand in the market here, should see if they have this sumac there.
This dish sounds wonderful with sumac! I’ve tasted dishes with it before but have not had a chance to use it in my cooking yet.
Look delicious!! I love sumac too – I get mine from Panzey’s!!
This salad is awesome!! Great combination & delicious flavors!
I have never used sumac in my cooking… your recipe looks really delicious, will try n find sumac in my grocery shop):
It is always great to learn about new spices. I have heard of sumac, but never used it before. I’ll look for it next time I go the Mediterranean store I just discovered a couple of months ago. That dish looks so vibrant and delicious!
Love sumac. First had it in zahtar that I used to make fatoush. Love your recipe, too, Soma. My eyes popped right away when I saw your Tweet. : )
This is a really nice dish.
Thanks Soma. Gorgeous dish, never tasted Sumac ever, must look for it.
Good to blog once again, never thought my blogs wouldn’t work for any reason but glad they fixed it even though they took 7-8 weeks!:P
I love this beautiful green bean dish. I have been seeing a lot of recipes using sumac. I have never cooked with sumac, however, I love zahtar. What a wonderful flavorful veggie dish! And I love the photo of the beans tied with string, it’s lovely.
Sumac is a very understated spice. I absolutely love it, and i always have a large bottle stashed in my store. I love the use of the spice here. Cannot wait to try it out.
It’s gorgeous Soma… really nice and fresh! I have sumac though don’t use it too often. This is a very Ottolenghi sort of recipe… vibrant and earthy! I’d love to try it soon!
Love your green bean dish, especially for this heat wave! Love sumac of course, especially in salads like fattoush!
I never used in veg dish sumac, but the color of sumac is indeed very attractive !
I really like green beans and tomatoes together, so you dish appeals to me. The addition of almonds add a nice crunch. Sumac sounds good as I like lemony flavors, so will have to try it. Thanks for joining in WHB#232.
Soma,
Forgetful me. I have tasted Sumac on the kebobs at the Iranian place we sometimes get our shawarma and sandwiches from. They even have extra little packets to take. I am gonna get some from there and try this recipe of yours. I am bored making green beans with garlic or pecan. 🙁
Goodness, I would love to taste this!
Great article! We really learned something from your article. May we say that we have been a big fan of using eco bags. These green bags are really awesome. So, easy to carry and they are quite strong to hold around 20lbs. We do advise everyone to buy a few of these reusable bags and give them to your love ones. They will really appreciate.
[…] up, Soma from Texas who blogs at ecurry prepares for us a green bean tomato and almond vegetable dish using her favorite spice, sumac,a red […]
Am in the middle of making red sumac jelly along with some other wild berry things my daughter and I picked this morning and have way more sumac than I need. Found your site on an internet search for recipes. I have to get back to my stove, but just wanted to make a correction: not all sumac in the United States is bad. Red sumac, sometimes called staghorn sumac, is different from white/poison sumac. Red sumac looks very similar to your pics, and has been used by native americans around these parts (north east) to make a nice beverage loaded with vitamin c…sorta’ like red zinger tea or a red lemonade. We make jelly and iced “tea” out of it. I am wondering if I can dry it and create this very intriguing spice you are using….hmmmm…need to research it. Your site looks like it has many great thing…will come back when my jars are cooling…
Back in the early 1960s, up in VT, I learned to make a drink with the red dust shaken from the fruit of sumac trees (the kind you see along highways and RR tracks), cold water, and maple syrup. It’s something like lemonade. As a disclaimer, though, I don’t advise doing this unless you are absolutely sure you’ve got the right variety of sumac!
I do hear you about the drink. Very intriguing because when we were in New Mexico in the White Sands Nat. Mon, there were some trees with red berries which reminded me of Sumac, and we were told that very early one people would make lemonade like drink with them. I have heard that some Sumac like trees could be poisonous, so I would not try the roadside kind. But I would def. LOVE to try out sumac and maple syrup in a drink. what a lovely combination!!
This was at a “summer camp” where we would always make at least one complete meal during the summer made from ingredients found in the forest. It was always a fun occasion, and quite a learning experience.
The sumac here in wisconsin is not toxic if you know what kind to pick and I use it to make jelly, and tea all the time.
I made this last night with beans from my garden…we all loved it. Great combination of flavors and very different from the way we regularly eat beans!
[…] eCurry – Green Beans, Tomatoes, and Almonds with Sumac […]
I just bought sumac for the first time and saw your recipe today and made it for my dinner. Oh my gosh….really good. I wasn’t sure how sumac tasted…but very good with this combination. This is a keeper. Thanks for sharing.