This quick Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans packs a big flavour punch! It’s a fast take on the classic Szechuan dish, Stir Fried Green Beans with Minced Pork. Made with ground pork, this recipe comes together in just over 10 minutes. Don’t skip charring the beans, it’s the defining feature of this stir fry!
Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans
If you’ve ever been to a Chinese Szechuan restaurant, you might be familiar with a green bean and pork stir fry which is a firm favourite among spicy Asian food lovers. Chopped green beans cooked over high heat until blistered, then stir fried with a spicy intense flavoured sauce and pork.
If the full blown Szechuan version is what you’re after, you’ll need a couple of speciality ingredients requiring a trip to the Asian grocery store – Szechuanpicked mustard greens (Sui Mi Ya Cai), Szechuan peppercorns, dried chillies. And here are a couple of recipes from my most trusted Chinese cooking blogs – Woks of Life and Omnivore’s Cookbook.
This Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans recipe is a slightly simplified version of the authentic Szechuan version. It packs a similar flavour punch, and it still has the signature charred green beans, but I pick up everything from the supermarket. In fact, if you have pork mince (that’s ground pork to those of you in Canada and the States!) and beans, there’s every possibility you have everything you need to make this right now.
This pork stir fry is a quick and easy pork mince recipe with big flavours!
Magic 4 ingredient stir fry sauce
The sauce for this Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans only has 4 ingredients in it:
Chinese cooking wine (see recipe notes for subs)
dark soy sauce (for colour)
Chilli Garlic Sauce (for spice / vinegar / general Asian tasty flavour – see notes for subs)
sugar.
The reason this recipe gets away with such a simple sauce is because of this – the charred green beans. Char any vegetable, and you take it from bland to amazing. Steamed beans vs charred green beans is simply no contest!
Best charred in a hot skillet
Unlike most of my stir fries, I like to cook this in a cast iron skillet so you can spread the beans out to char them. It takes a mere 2 ½ – 3 minutes, faster than using a wok.
Because of this extreme high heat cooking – that skillet gets stinking hot – the one tip I have for this stir fry is to chop rather than grate / mince the ginger and garlic. It will stop it from sticking to the skillet and burning in 2 seconds.
Actually, that’s a general stir frying tip. 🙂 Chop instead of grate the ginger and garlic. Never again suffer burnt garlic in your stir fry!
Oh PS That’s the Chilli Garlic Sauce I use. ↑↑↑ Available at supermarket – Woolies, Coles etc. BUT if you can’t find that exact brand or similar, sriracha or even non Asian hot sauces will make a terrific sub. Anything that is spicy but also a bit vinegary – which most hot sauces are. Even Franks Hot Sauce!
You won’t miss sauciness
When it comes to stir fries, I’m usually all about the sauce, the sauce, the sauce. And if you’re in the sauce camp with me, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how you don’t miss sauce with this Pork Stir Fry.
The pork mince sucks up all that sauce and is actually quite intense flavoured – you’d find it rather salty without rice.
So mix it up with the rice, then enjoy the leisure of a stir fry you can eat with a spoon. It’s perfect Couch Food – which I define as food you can eat with a spoon without taking your eyes off the TV. 😂 – Nagi x
PS And because my mother will never forgive me if I don’t mention this – this Beans and Pork Mince Stir Fry is the Japanese version of this stir fry on her website, RecipeTin Japan. Similar flavour, but made using Japanese sauces.
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Pork Stir Fry with Green Beans
Ingredients
- 300g / 10oz green beans (Note 1)
- 220g / 7 oz pork mince (Note 2)
- 1/2 small onion , finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped (Note 3)
- 2 tsp ginger , finely chopped (Note 3)
- 2 1/2 tbsp peanut oil (or vegetable or canola)
Sauce
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce (Note 4)
- 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (shaoxing wine) (Note 5 for subs)
- 1 tsp white sugar (sub any sugar or faux sugar)
- 1 1/2 tsp + Chilli Garlic Sauce (Note 6)
For serving
- Rice of choice
- Sliced red chilli
Instructions
- Sauce – Mix Sauce ingredients in a bowl.
- Trim the stem end of the beans, then chop into 2 – 2.5cm / 4/5 – 1" pieces.
- Char Beans: Heat 1 1/2 tbsp oil in a heavy based skillet over high heat (I use cast iron) until smoking. Add beans, spread out to cover base. Leave for 1 minute. Quick stir, spread out, cook for 30 seconds. Stir, then leave for 30 seconds, then repeat once more (so 2 1/2 minutes in total cook time) until beans are charred but tender crisp (not withered and floppy). Remove into bowl.
- Sauté aromatics – Turn heat down to medium high, add 1 tbsp oil. Add onion, then garlic and ginger. Cook for 1 minute until edges of onion are golden.
- Cook pork – Turn heat back up to high. Add pork and cook, breaking it up as you go. Cook for 2 minutes until the pork is cooked through, then add Sauce. Cook for 30 seconds, then add beans and stir for another 30 seconds.
- Serve over rice. Garnish with slices of large red chilli (it's mild), entirely optional. To eat, mix the pork into the rice then eat it with a spoon – forget chopsticks for this one! (For a low carb, low cal option, try Cauliflower Rice)
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published June 2014, long overdue for an update with fresh new photos and a recipe video!
More quick pork mince recipes (ground pork)
Also, try the popular Quick Asian Beef Ramen Noodles or Asian Beef Bowls using ground pork / mince instead of beef!
Life of Dozer
At the coffee shop, when he spies food on neighbouring tables. He’s been known to make grown men give up huge chunks of their breakfast with just a glance…
I just made this for lunch and it came out really delicious! and so quickly to make. I used sherry instead of chinese wine and replaced the sugar with a little bit of honey. It came out sooo good! This is my new go to for a quick delicious lunch! Thank you.
Another great dish, Nagi! Loved the flavours and a quick and tasty dish for a midweek dinner.
“5. Chilli Garlic Sauce is readily available in large supermarkets…”
Went to Halls Head Cole’s & Meadow Springs Coles– None of any brand/description.
WA is so bad for this.
I couldn’t find it in my local shops either. Amazon has it though and another asian chili garlic sauce that was slightly cheaper for a bigger jar. Free shipping if you are a Prime member. And no, I don’t get anything for this – I only use Amazon (the great Satan) when I absolutely have to 🙂
I cooked the beans tonight, and it was delicious, quick and cheap. I felt like it was missing something, and my daughter sprinkled on some fish floss -perfect! Maybe A little bit of anchovy or fish sauce would be more accessible in average kitchen?
I was worried it would be chilli hot but alas trust the process and it was not. Kids and husband gobbled it all up. Added a fried egg and tomato and cucmber salad. Another winner!!! Also did not realise you can adjust the serving, here I was trying to math! How helpful. Another winner!!!!!
Great recipe! Easy and great flavors. I didn’t have Chili Garlic Sauce so I added Garlic powder and White Pepper to the Pork, and substituted Asian Sweet Chili Sauce. Definitely a keeper! Thanks, Nagi!
Yum! So delicious! I didn’t have Chili-Garlic Sauce so I used Mae Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce, and less sugar in the sauce. I also seasoned the browning pork with garlic powder and white pepper. We added 1/2 sliced red bell pepper, 1 sliced Red Fresno Chili and a few chopped jarred sweet and spicy hot red Cherry Peppers – all for color, texture and an additional flavor element. My husband added a splash of fish sauce to his and we both really enjoyed this dish! Thank you!
It was delicious. Subsitute beef mince instead of pork mince. Mum used to cook this dish. Reminded me of Penang, Malaysia. Will definitely cook it again. Thanks Nagi x
Instead of keeping an eye on the computer so it doesn’t get stolen, Dozer is keeping an ear on it, so he can keep an eye on the food! Multitasking, lol!
Excellent recipe! I cooked the pork before the onions because our local pork is REALLY fatty. Got it nice and crispy, removed the cooked pork and removed most of the fat (saved for another use), then sauted the onion/garlic in the fat left in the pan. Added back the beans and pork and sauce, cooked for a bit and served over rice. Delicious.
This is a staple meal in my house. So delicious, quick and requires what’s usually in the fridge and pantry. Thank you!
This recipe is a regular in our family – tasty, lots of veg and protein and really quick to make.
Absolutely fantastic!
Love this recipe, but also charred garlic shoots with the beans.. Delicious!!
I grew up eating this dish and you have seriously perfected the flavours in this recipe!
Nobody has ever made this better than my mum, and you’ve got her beat.
I chop green onions about the same size as the green beans and char them along with the beans — delicious.
Love this easy and tasty recipe. Thanks again Nagi!
Hello – I’m very excited to try this as I live in an area with no good Chinese food! One thing – I am allergic to peppers. What would you recommend as a sub for chili garlic sauce? Thank you!
This is delicious!! I didn’t expect to like it as much as I do. Store had no pork so I used chicken, and used half shredded yellow squash because it’s coming out my ears! Excuse me, I need another helping …
Had this at a restaurant last night. As I had pork mince I had to use I googled and found this. So quick, so yum. Definitely in the rotation…