Breaded green beans are one of those appetizers that are worth going out for. Sometimes you just have a craving for the very specific flavor of these green beans, and nothing else will do. In fact, many people even attempt to re-create the goodness of these apps at home.
Well, PF Chang’s has given us a simple option: the PF Chang’s Home Menu Crispy Green Beans, which we’re reviewing today. Note that there’s also a spicy version of these that’s served at their restaurants, but the version we’re checking out today is a non-spicy variety, which comes in a big ol’ box in the freezer aisle at our local Target store.
These need to be heated in a conventional oven, but the process isn’t difficult. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, spread out some green beans on a baking sheet, and pop the whole mess into the oven for 25 to 30 minutes. (If you want to read the full cooking instructions straight off the box, check out our package scans at the bottom of this review.)
It’s worth pointing out here that these are a far cry from the version you’d order at a PF Chang’s restaurant. These are tempura-battered green beans, not the chili-garlic green beans that people go wild for at PF Chang’s. In fact, we’d dare to say these are closer to the version you’d expect to be served at Applebee’s than the PF Chang’s version.
That said, both the breading and the green beans are great. The breading ends up with a lovely crispiness to it, while the green beans are earthy with just a little bit of sweetness to them. Despite being frozen, these still taste fresh, and they don’t end up soggy at all.
If you’re a dipper, there are a whole lot of topping options you could try. We wanted to dip ours in ranch dressing, but it turns out we were all out at the Freezer Meal Frenzy office (we eat a lot of ranch here, and we ran fresh out of the stuff). However, we were able to try these with honey mustard, mayo, BBQ sauce, ketchup, nacho cheese, and soy sauce to see which one we liked the best.
The soy was definitely the wrong choice, but it did make for an interesting flavor combo. The mayo wasn’t exactly right either, but we kind of liked the way the creamy egginess worked with the flavor of the batter. Both the honey mustard and BBQ sauce enhanced the subtle sweetness of the green beans, but the honey mustard clashed with the earthiness where the BBQ sauce contrasted with it in a way that seemed more pleasant. Ketchup just kept tricking our taste buds into thinking these were french fries, even though they’re clearly not.
Of course, the nacho cheese was probably the true winner in our taste test, as it added a cheesy creaminess that we really enjoy. Plus, our nacho cheese was a little bit spicy, so it contributed a spice factor that was otherwise missing.
The box considers about 14 pieces to be a serving, which seems about right to us. If you stick with this, you’re looking at 140 calories and 260 mg of sodium. Obviously, this doesn’t include any dipping sauce you might add, but even so, those numbers are pretty slim.
The PF Chang’s Home Menu Crispy Green Beans are a great way to eat your veggies. They’re tasty, and they’re pretty good for dipping, especially if you can find yourself a spicy nacho cheese. But even without the dipping sauce, there’s a whole lot to love here.
To learn more about the nutrition content, ingredients, or cooking instructions for these frozen green beans, check out our package scans below.
