Simply boiled in plenty of salted water, green vegetables become tender without losing their bright green color. My theory about why they retain so much of their delightful green color and flavor has to do with the distribution of particles in water. Since the water is already saturated with salt, I think less of the goodness leaches out from the beans. The quantity of water is critical too; there must be enough so that the beans don’t cool it down to much so they cook quickly instead of slowly stewing in a warm bath.

(Serves 4)

1 pound small green beans (haricots vertes)

2 quarts boiling water

2 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons butter

1.) Trim the green beans to remove the tough stem end but leave the delicate “tails” intact.

2.) Put the water and salt in a large saucepan over high heat and when the water comes to a full, rolling boil, drop in the beans. Cook the green beans until they are dark green and barely tender, about 3 minutes, then lift them out of the boiling water and scatter them over the surface of a baking sheet so they will cool and stop cooking. The vegetables may be prepared ahead up to this point and finished just before serving.

2.) Before serving time, heat another quart of salted water with the butter over high heat. Add the beans and cook just until the beans are heated through; lift the beans out of the water with tongs or a slotted spoon; some of the butter will coat the beans and make them shine. Serve at once.