We present a flexible random construction which, for certain graphs $H$, is able to produce $H$-free graphs with edge density strictly larger than that of the $H$-free process, while simultaneously preserving pseudorandom properties and allowing a much easier analysis. As our main application, we use this construction to show that the off-diagonal Ramsey numbers satisfy $R(3,k)\ge \left(\frac12+o(1)\right)\frac{k^2}{\log{k}}$, improving the previously best bound $R(3,k)\ge \left(\frac13+o(1)\right)\frac{k^2}{\log{k}}$. While the best known upper bound is $R(3,k)\le \left(1+o(1)\right)\frac{k^2}{\log{k}}$, the constant of $\frac12$ has been conjectured to be asymptotically tight by multiple groups.