Before working in restaurants, I would often wonder why things tasted so much better. I mean, I cooked with the same ingredients, yet they never tasted quite as good. Through working in restaurants, I realized it isn’t like there was one big secret as to why things were better. It is usually the little things that make restaurant food so much better. Like adding a little crunch to a dish to make a more interesting texture, or salting meats the day before to really flavor them, or even charring lemons to caramelize them and add richness to a dish.

I first saw the technique of charring lemons at this farm-to-table restaurant I used to work for. We would grill them off to add both char and a beautiful presentation. It isn’t groundbreaking in changing the flavors, but it adds a little something that will elevate it slightly.

In this recipe, I char the lemons in butter, which then browns and flavors the baby broccoli. The lemons help flavor the butter, which then infuses the baby broccoli and really brightens up the whole dish. It is a simpl

• Baby Broccoli – Also known as broccolini. It is basically a longer broccoli! You can also use broccoli, asparagus or green beans here.
• Butter – This is used as the cooking fat and browns and caramelizes. You can also use avocado or olive oil here.
• Lemon – You can use any citrus of choice here in place of lemon.
• Garlic – Freshly minced garlic is best here! You can use a pinch of garlic powder if needed.
• Red pepper flakes – These are optional, if you don’t like spice, omit!