Over the years I’ve come across several different recipes of ratatouille.
Even though the basic ingredients are always the same (onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, and eggplants) there are seasonal and local variations that include many other ingredients, from to mushrooms to Parmesan cheese (!), from potatoes to olives. Since the name ratatouille comes from the French verb “touiller” (to mix together), this dish is supposed to be a blend of vegetables cooked together and therefore there is no wrong or right recipe. As for me, I prefer it as a summer dish because its ingredients are at their best, but I also love it with polenta or couscous for a vegetarian winter meal. Here is the “classic recipe”, followed by summer and winter variation.
Ingredients:
(serves 6) Sr B V Gf Ef Df
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 eggplant
- 2 zucchini
- 6 tomatoes, preferably San Marzano or Roma
- 2 cloves of garlic, cut in half
- 6 Tbsp. of EVOO
- 10 leaves of basil
- Pepper
- Salt
Wash and dry all the vegetables.
Since the different vegetables have different cooking times, they must be added at the right time otherwise some will over-cook while others will under-cook.
Remove all the seeds and the white internal skin of the bell peppers. Cut them into 1-inch squares. Peel the onion, cut it in half, then cut each half in eight sections.
Peel the garlic, cut it in half and remove its green core.
Warm up the Evoo in a big frying pan. Add the onion and garlic to the pan, sauté them until they start to turn golden, stirring often. Add the bell peppers and sauté them – stirring often – for 10 minutes.
Add pepper and salt and cook, covered and at low temperature, for at least 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut the eggplant into 1-inch squares, removing the central part with the seeds, and add it to the bell peppers.
Wash the tomatoes and slice them into four sections. Add them to the pan and cook for 10 minutes.
Cut the zucchini into ½ inch rounds and add them to the ratatouille. Finally, wash the basil leaves and add them too.
Cook – covered – until all the ingredients start to blend together.
Should the ratatouille look too dry while it’s cooking, add some hot water. If, on the contrary, it looks too watery when all the ingredients are almost done, cook uncovered on high heat for the last five minutes.
Serve warm or cold.