Classic Ratatouille

Yes, this is the dish made famous by the movie of the same name by the cook of the same name! I first cooked it in honour of the trip we were about to make to France in December 2007. But mind you this is the traditional recipe and NOT exactly the one that "Remy" prepared for his gourmet critic in the movie. That version is called "Confit Byaldi".

The name "ratatouille" comes from the French "touiller", meaning "to stir." The dish is French Provençal in origin and traditionally contains eggplant, zucchini, onions, bell peppers, garlic and tomatoes in roughly equal amounts. Its basically a vegetable stew and hearty enough to stand on its own, accompanied by a good baguette for dipping into the savoury juices, and bold enough to be an excellent foil to roasted meats. It can be prepared fairly quickly by cooking everything together at the same time, but that needs to be done in the correct sequence to not miss out the art and the flavour of the dish.

Both methods are explained below – but go here if you want my “quick and dirty” ratatouille for everyday cooking!

"Too much" doesn’t apply to ratatouille. Cook it the first time, and eat it hot as the main course; then have it again later as a cold hors-d’oeuvre. In the summer time, it’s great as a cold main-course dish. It keeps for several days in the refrigerator. Ratatouille is also good served with couscous or rice.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 8

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Per serving: 179 calories; 9.6 grams fat; 4.2 grams protein; 23.1 grams carbohydrates; 7.1 grams fibre

1/3 cup olive oil
2 medium onions
4 cloves garlic
2 large eggplants (2 pounds)
4 to 5 medium zucchini (2 pounds)
3 yellow or red bell peppers
2 -3 large tomatoes or 1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
Herbes de Provence (basil, thyme, parsley)
salt and pepper to taste

The Classical Method

This is the "old fashioned" method. Ratatouille enthusiasts should try preparing it this way at least once just for the experience. It is said however, that this method fills the kitchen surfaces with pots and pans, takes a bit longer, but doesn’t really add to the flavour. But you have to try it to decide if you will ever do it this way again!

Prepare the vegetables and keep them separate:

Cut the eggplant into rondelles.
Peel the zucchini and cut into rondelles.
Rib and seed the bell peppers, cut into strips.
Peel and cube the onions.
Peel and mince the garlic.
Peel, de-seed or drain the canned tomatoes.

Using four separate cooking pots, put some olive oil in the bottom then put in the eggplant, zucchini, pepper, and onion into their own pots. Sprinkle some flour onto the eggplant and onto the zucchini. Put the four pots on to cook slowly. Each cooks for about 30 minutes, but test and cook each until correctly soft.

In another large cooking pot with a heavy base, put in some olive oil, the chopped garlic and herbes de Provence. Squeeze the tomatoes in by hand. Cook slowly until you have a thick tomato sauce.

Add the four separately cooked vegetables to the tomato sauce, mix thoroughly and heat.

Pour off the excess oil from the top and serve!

The Common Method

This method uses fewer pots and is somewhat faster yet it keeps the flavours well and is commonly used. About 65 minutes cooking.

Peel the tomatoes: cut out the stem cores and drop them whole into boiling water for 2 minutes. Remove into a colander. The skin should split for easy removal; otherwise, make an X cut in the top, then peel off the skin.

Mince the garlic. Peel and cube the onions. Rib and de-seed the bell peppers, cut into cubes.

In a large and heavy cooking pot with thick bottom, put in the olive oil, onions and chopped garlic. Add in the bell pepper. Mix well and cover to keep in the moisture.

Cook for 20 minutes, stirring frequently, and add olive oil as necessary to prevent sticking.

Add the peeled tomatoes and herbs de Provence. If you don’t have good garden tomatoes with flavour, add a small can of tomato paste. Stir well and cook for another 15 minutes.

Cut the eggplant into rondelles. Lay the cut eggplant on some paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Leave them to drain of their bitter juices for 30 minutes then pat dry with paper towels.

Cut the eggplant and zucchini into rondelles. Add to the pot and cook for about 30 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste.