🥕🇬🇷Greek Green Bean Casserole (Fasolakia)

Fasolakia, which simply means casserole style green beans with lots of extra virgin olive oil, is a simple one pot vegetarian dish cooked in most Greek homes.

You can use both carrot and potato, or just one of them. The zucchini is optional, but if you do add zucchini, cut it into even size chunks. Be mindful that zucchini will add more liquid to your dish, so you may need to monitor the water content. If you like chilli, go ahead an add some. You can go rogue too and use sweet potato and/or cook this dish in the oven rather than stovetop!

I love this dish with lamb cutlets too.

I don't need to tell you how nutritious this is and how great it tastes the next day for lunch too, so don't worry about left overs 😉

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 small size brown onions, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed
• 1 -2 T tomato paste
• 2 x 400 g quality tinned tomatoes, or the equivalent in chopped fresh tomatoes 
• 750 g of green beans, ends trimmed, cut in half
• 2 small to medium sized Desiree or Nicola potatoes, quartered and then halved
• 2 medium sized zucchinis, halved lengthwise and cut into 2-3 cm pieces
• 1 carrot, cut as above
• 1 handful parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 cups water, or more (monitor this)

Method

• Heat approx 4T of the olive oil over a medium heat in a large saucepan
• Add the onion, followed by the garlic, and cook till soft (approx 2-3 mins)
  
• Brown the tomato paste, and then add the potatoes. Stir well and and cook for another 5 mins.
• Stir in the tomatoes and carrots and cover with lid.
• Cook on medium heat for about 10 mins before adding the green beans and zucchini on top, and 2 cups hot water. Stir well. 
• Cook for a further 40 - 50 mins with the lid on, or until the potatoes are just right.
• If the dish looks like it needs more liquid, you can add some during the cooking process
• Add the parsley, remaining oil, salt and pepper to taste, and stir well.
• Serve with feta cheese, olives and plenty of bread

Notes
Keep a watchful eye to make sure that there is enough liquid and you don’t burn your meal. Also, give it a couple of good stirs while it’s cooking and check the water content. You want a little bit if juice at the end to dunk your bread in.
I have also cooked this in the oven at 180C and taken the lid off for the last 10-15 mins. It was delicious!