Parboiled green beans are then sauteed with of garlic and finally tossed with raw tomatoes and carrots or cucumbers. If you don’t love garlic, you can skip adding it to the vinagrette.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Prepare a bath of very cold water using ice cubes if necessary.
Trim 1/2 lb. of green beans. Drop in the boiling water, then immediately remove the beans or drain them when the water returns to a boil. Put the beans in the ice water. Once they have cooled completely, drain them and cut in half.
Dice 1 large, ripe tomato or 2 smaller ones. Toss in a bowl with 1/2 t. salt.
Peel 1 clove of garlic and use a garlic press to press it. Add the garlic to the tomatoes.
Peel 2-3 more cloves of garlic and then thinly slice them.
Heat 1 T. olive oil in a large skillet or wok and saute the garlic briefly on low heat, until soft. Add the green beans and raise the temperature to high. Saute for 3-4 minutes, until the garlic adheres to the green beans but is not yet browned. Transfer to the beans to a plate and allow to cool for a few minutes.
Drain the liquid from the salted tomatoes into a Pyrex mixing cup. Pour 1/2 C. of the liquid into another container, then add 3 T. olive oil plus 1 t. dijon mustard and black pepper to taste.
Julienne or finely shred carrots and/or cucumber to make 1 C.
Toss the tomatoes green beans together then add the carrots or cucumbers plus dressing to taste.