Classic Ratatouille Recipe

If you like the natural sweetness of vegetables and the aromatic flavors of garlic and herbs, you will love this Ratatouille.

An animated rat named Remy thrust this dish into primetime. In the movie Ratatouille, a young rat dreams of becoming a professional chef at a famous French restaurant. In the penultimate scene, Remy leads a crew of mostly rats to create ratatouille for a food critic. The (fancy version of this) vegetable stew mix receives a rave review from the critic, who says it reminds him of his mother’s cooking.

It’s not a surprise that nostalgia plays a role in the resurgence of Ratatouille the dish. It’s been a common stew in France since at least the eighteenth century. The name indicates the cooking technique: touiller means to stir up. And that’s the heart of this dish: vegetables stirred up together. A classic ratatouille is more of a stew that simmers for hours over the stove. This recipe brings all the taste with a fraction of the cooking time by calling for oven baking instead of stovetop.

Serving Suggestions

Ratatouille can be enjoyed any time of the year: as a repository for all of your summer vegetables during a cookout with Grilled Pork or Sweet and Spicy Wings or as comfort food for a chilly or rainy day. I also like to serve it over pasta or even use it as a layer in lasagna.

If you want to get really meta, grab a bowl of Ratatouille for a movie night and watch (you guessed it) Ratatouille.

Ingredients

• 1 large eggplant cubed
• 1 onion peeled and chopped
• 8 roma tomatoes chopped
• 1 red or orange pepper
• 2 medium zucchini chopped
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• 2 tsp Italian herbs
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 small bunch of fresh basil

Instructions

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Yields: 4 servings

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. While it heats up, cut the vegetables into chunks. Then, in a small bowl, mix the olive oil together with the crushed garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper.

• Scatter the prepared vegetables over a baking tray and spread them out so that they are in a single layer. Drizzle the olive oil and herb mix over it and give it a little toss.

• Place the tray into the oven and roast for 20-30 minutes, then remove the tray and serve with the fresh basil scattered over it.

Tips and Tricks

• If you’d like to improve the presentation, slice the vegetables in equal sizes (by hand or with a mandolin) and then arrange them in layers in the dish.
• You can try different vegetables as well as herbs and seasonings. I love adding a splash of red wine vinegar.
• If you like cheese, add some parmesan or mozzarella at the end of the baking time.

FAQs

Storage Tips

You can store Ratatouille in the fridge in an airtight container for up to four days. It will also freeze well, lasting for up to three months. To reheat, you can either heat in the oven or the microwave until it’s warmed through. (If the Ratatouille is frozen, let it thaw out overnight first in the fridge).