Mamma's Green Bean Salad

This is one of many entries, to come in the future, dedicated to my Mamma, whom I also like to call Om-ma (the Korean version). If you have had a chance to read my "About Me" section, you may have caught a glimpse of how important and truly special this person is to me. My Om-ma is the single most influential person in my life for a multitude of different reasons. Because of her I am the woman I am, everything I know is because of the principles and fundamentals of life she has taught me. I couldn't possibly be more blessed and grateful to have spent my formative years around such a spectacular woman. With every passing day of my life, I become more aware of the magnitude of adversities she has overcome in her life and all the vast accomplishments she has achieved. Her physical stature is so little, as she barely measures 5 feet and yet her personality and strength measure that of a giant. In her lifetime she has grieved the death of her father at a tender age of 12, dropped out of middle-school to help her mother raise a family, fought hunger in a post-war, 3rd world South Korea, escaped the claws of an abusive husband and given her own children the kind of opportunities she only dreamed of as a child.

She is my mother, she is my heroine, she is my friend. I miss her dearly every day as she lives thousands of miles away in Germany. It is also she, who inspires me to cook and keep on dreaming. I am honored to share with you one of her German inspired recipes: green bean salad. She made this when she came to visit in Hilton Head and it was a hit! Even SB, who hasn't seen, let alone, eaten a green bean in his life loved it.

Now, if I were to give you the recipe in the words of my mother it would read something like this "cooked green beans, minced garlic, chopped onion, salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, titch of light soy sauce, pinch of sugar, flavor to taste." You see, my mother doesn't believe in measuring anything. All the measures come to her intuitively as she cooks and that is at times hard to replicate. However, I have tried just that, in hopes that it tastes as close to the real thing as possible.


Here it goes:

• 2 lbs fresh green beans
• 1/4 medium sized red onion, finely chopped
  
• 1 1/2 - 2 cloves of finely minced garlic - depending on the size (feel free to use your microplane if you have one)
  
• 2 tablespoons of vegetable or canola oil
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar (white wine or apple cider vinegar should be ok too)
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• a splash of soy sauce
  
• 2 pinches of pepper

In a mixing bowl add the finely chopped onion, minced garlic, veggie oil, vinegar, low sodium soy sauce, and a pinch of salt, pepper and sugar. Set aside. In a pot bring water, seasoned with salt, to a boil. In the meantime wash and trim the ends of the green beans and cut them in half. Add them to the boiling water. Cook until tender. Approximately 10 minutes and drain. DO NOT shock them in ice water. Add the HOT green beans into the bowl containing the onion, garlic and seasonings and toss everything together. This step is important because the temperature of beans will help the seasonings to come together and also to cook the garlic and the onions ever so slightly. Enough to bring out the essential oils. Taste it, make sure it doesn't need another pinch of salt and you are ready to serve and eat!!!

I really hope you try this recipe as it is truly one of my favorite by my Om-ma.

Happy eating!!

J