Sesame Green Bean Salad

At one of my neighborhood Japanese restaurants they serve a green bean salad appetizer that I absolutely love.  It's served cold and tastes savory and a little sweet with toasted sesame seeds.  I was able to recreate the green bean salad at home and I made it to take with us on our camping trip.  It's perfect for picnics as well.  This salad is perfect to eat as an appetizer or along side sushi!

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-1.5 inch pieces

2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tbsp tahini

2 tbsp maple syrup

1/2 tsp brown rice vinegar

3 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Instructions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil.  Once boiling add green beans and cook until crisp/tender, about 8 minutes.  Drain green beans and place in ice water bath to stop the cooking.  Drain and set aside in bowl.
2. In a separate bowl whisk tamari, toasted sesame oil, tahini, maple syrup and brown rice vinegar until combined.  Pour dressing over green beans and toss to coat.
3. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and cover and refrigerate at least an hour.