This supremely simple, yet boldly flavorful dish is the perfect accompaniment to a fresh, seasonal meal. For those who aren’t familiar with garlic scapes, they’re the tender stems and buds (or unopened flowers) of the hard-neck varieties of garlic plants. By cutting them, the garlic plant can focus its energy on producing a nice, large bulb of garlic rather than focusing energy on blooming and seeding. This process results in a highly anticipated garlic scape season in the late spring/early summer as well as a better garlic harvest later in the season.
If you’re not growing garlic yourself, you can oftentimes find garlic scapes at your local farmer’s market. When eaten raw, garlic scapes are a little bit tough with a sharp, spicy bite of garlic. When cooked however, they transform into tender, sweet, more mildly garlicky vegetables that bear a striking textural resemblance to green beans. They stand up well on their own, but also can be paired with any flavor that would pair well with garlic.
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Cut the garlic scapes into 4-5″ long pieces (like green beans).
Bring a skillet to medium heat and add the butter and oil and melt. Add about half of the garlic scapes (depending on the size of your skillet) and sauté, turning occasionally, for about 3-4 minutes (or until they just start blistering). Repeat with the remaining garlic scapes.
Transfer them to a serving plate. Sprinkle them with salt and then squeeze the lemon over the top. Serve hot.
Lemon Brown Butter Garlic Scapes
Ingredients
- 1 lb garlic scapes, washed and ends trimmed, as well as the tips of the buds
- 1 tsp avocado oil (or other vegetable oil)
- 1-2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ⅓-½ lemon, ready to squeeze over the scapes
- 1-2 pinches kosher salt, to taste
Instructions
- Cut the garlic scapes into 4-5" long pieces (like green beans). Bring a skillet to medium heat and add the butter and oil and melt.
- Add about half of the garlic scapes (depending on the size of your skillet) and sauté, turning occasionally, for about 3-4 minutes (or until they just start blistering). Repeat with the remaining garlic scapes.
- Transfer them to a serving plate. Sprinkle them with salt and then squeeze the lemon over the top. Serve hot.