Tinned tomatoes - Try to use the best quality tomatoes you can, as you really will be able to taste the difference. Cheap tinned tomatoes tend to be really water.

Cook the onion and peppers: In a large heavy pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Cook, stirring regularly, until they’re translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the bell peppers and cook until softened, about 4 minutes more. Fresh tomatoes - Although tinned tomatoes make up most of the tomatoes in this dish, we like to add some fresh for some extra flavour and texture. When choosing tomatoes, I say anything goes. If it’s growing in your garden, toss it in there; you’ll have a nicer flavor overall. When I use smaller tomatoes, like cherry or pear, I rarely slice them, preferring to let them pop on their own as they cook. We’ll be making a bouquet garni for our ratatouille. Fresh is best! Plus bouquet garni are so pretty. And depending on your garden, you may have all the ingredients on hand. I can’t tell you how satisfying it is to make a recipe like this and have everything come out of your garden. A few notes about my version of ratatouille Fresh tomatoes are key for making ratatouille that tastes fresh and lively, not dull and heavy. We’ll grate the tomatoes (or blitz the in the food processor) and cook them with onion and garlic to make an irresistible tomato sauce.Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in the pot. Once the oil is good and hot, add the eggplant and sweet peppers and give them a good stir around the pan. We’re cooking these two vegetables first to give the dish some smoky, browned goodness and because they need the most attention for the biggest flavor payoff. Sauté zucchini – Repeat for the zucchini, about 3 minutes of sautéing. As with the capsicum, you won’t get much colour on them in the time it takesto cook the exterior but that’s fine;

The single most important thing that differentiates meh Ratatouille from holy-cow-this-amazing Ratatouille? Pan-searing each vegetable separately before bringing them together in a pot to braise. Most recipes will have you (attempt to) sauté everything in one pot at the same time but you will achieve a far better outcome by cooking them separately. This way offers much better control over how much each vegetable gets cooked so you don’t end up with a pot of overcooked mush (the #1 Ratatouille offence, right there!). You also get some browning on the vegetables, and as we know, colour = flavour!! What is ratatouille? Traditionally, all of the vegetables would be cooked individually in olive oil (so that they are all cooked properly) and then combined together and simmered in the sauce. However, we love that this ratatouille recipe can all be done in one pot. You could also roast all the vegetables and then finish them in the sauce. Variations Ok, one more reason to love ratatouille—you can serve it so many different ways! Here are a few ideas: Ratatouille recipes traditionally call for a long, slow simmer. In this weeknight-friendly version, I’ve adapted the classic recipe using a very simple technique. Fresh thyme - a delightful earthy, minty, woodsy, punchy flavor component of this rustic vegetable stew.As an adult living in the modern world, I continue to draw on the skills I learned as a kid. I love my Wi-Fi, and knowing pizza is only a phone call away. But I’m okay with never revisiting the adventure that is using an outhouse in the middle of January. The movie showcases a version of the dish known as confit byaldi, invented by chef Michel Guérard. It’s a lighter take on the classic, using thinly sliced vegetables artfully arranged instead of a hearty stew. Unlike many who saw the movie, I was drawn to the humbler classic version. Unlike when making like eggplant “sheets” for things like Moussaka, there’s no need to pat the water off before cooking. It will just evaporate when we start sautéing. Also, we want to keep the salt for flavour; Ratatouille is like a relationship: you have to let things cool down a bit to really appreciate how good it is! The simple stew is rather muted when it’s served too hot or too cold. Allow the stew to rest if you have the time, and serve at room temperature to appreciate all the delicate, nuanced flavor. Ratatouille represents the essence of the Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes fresh, seasonal ingredients and the joy of communal dining. Whether served as a main course or a side dish, ratatouille stands as a testament to the beauty of simplicity, the celebration of seasonal ingredients, and the ability of food to bring people from all walks of life together around a table! Ratatouille Recipe Ingredients

Toss the eggplant with olive oil and salt on one baking sheet, and the squash and bell pepper on another baking sheet. Arrange the vegetables in an even layer. (Using two pans gives the vegetables room to breathe and lets us split the veggies by cook times.) Salt the eggplant: Peel 1 pound of eggplant, removing the peel entirely or in a striped pattern for a more rustic look. Cut into 1-inch pieces and place in a large colander in your sink. When ready, sprinkle generously with salt and leave for 20 minutes as you prep the remaining ingredients. When the eggplant has sweated out its bitterness, pat dry with paper towels. Fresh thyme and basil– Thyme is for the braising, and basil for a fresh finish. Plenty of alternatives exist here so don’t fret if you don’t have these two exact herbs. A sprinkle of dried oregano instead would be totally at home, or even mixed herbs for that matter. To finish, fresh parsley would go down a treat;

Wash the eggplant and zucchini and trim off the ends but leave the skin on. Cut them into 1-inch cubes. There should be about nine cups of eggplant cubes and six cups of zucchini. (For directions on how to slice eggplant into cubes, refer to photos in the post)

Wondering what to serve with ratatouille? The options are endless! We love serving it over our Easy Vegan Polenta or Easy Gluten-Free Pasta, but it’s also delicious served alongside The Best Vegan Grilled Cheese or with a hearty piece of Easy Homemade Wheat Bread.It could also be served over cauliflower rice, rice, quinoa, millet, or your favorite grains! More 1-Pot Summer Recipes Two large, rimmed baking sheets for roasting your vegetables. These pans (called “half-sheet pans”) are the perfect size for roasting one pound of diced eggplant without overlap. They are what all professional recipe developers use, they’re inexpensive, and I swear by them.

Ratatouille Serving Suggestions

And lastly, we like to finish it off with additional basil for freshness and a swirl of good-quality olive oil for richness. Because ratatouille contains non-acidic vegetables, it has to be pressure canned. I’ve seen recipes out there that claim you can use the water bath method for ratatouille. It’s downright dangerous; there isn’t enough acid in ratatouille to make water bath canning safe. This method yields amazing ratatouille. My husband says it’s the best he’s ever had. It’s also easier to make than proper stovetop ratatouille, since it requires less time standing over the stove. Hooray! Onions and garlic - these aromatic vegetables are essential flavor-building ingredients of ratatouille. As a french person as cannot allow wine in the ratatouille! In fact no liquid, the juice of the vegetables is enough.