Remy, the determined French rat with a passion for cooking makes this classic French casserole famously known by his successful 2007 Disney/Pixar film "Ratatouille").
Ratatouille is a delicious vegetable stew of eggplant, tomatoes, zucchini,onions, and bell peppers. It may be served as the main dish; accompanied by bread or rice, or as a side dish. Anyway you serve it, it is sure to please.
Ingredients
- 1 pound tomatoes cut into 1/4-inch-thick strips
- 1/2 pound eggplant; peeled, thinly sliced into 1/4-inch-thick strips
- 1/2 pound zucchini, thinly sliced into strips
- 2 green bell peppers; thinly sliced into strips
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 6 garlic cloves; finely chopped
- 3 t. fresh parsley
- 4 T. olive oil
- sea salt; to taste
- pepper; to taste
Preparation
- Place both eggplant and zuccini strips into bowl; sprinkle with sea salt. Let sit for 20 min.
- Heat 2 T. olive oil to large skillet over med-heat. In large skillet, saute zucchini and eggplant in med. batches. Saute until lightly golden; about 3 min per side. Transfer lightly golden zucchini and eggplant to plate. Repeat your next batch(s) transferring to plate; reserve.
- Heat 2 T. oil to large skillet over med-heat. Add peppers and onions; saute until tender (about 15 min). Stir in finely chopped garlic. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste.
- Layer tomato strips on top of pepper-onion mixture. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Cover skillet; cook over low heat until tomatoes begin to juice (5-10 min.) Uncover; baste vegetables in skillet with juices. Boil until juices are evaporated.
- Transfer 1/3 of onion-pepper-tomato mixture to large pot; sprinkle with 1 T. fresh chopped parsley. Top with half zucchini/eggplant mixture, then the remaining onion-pepper-tomato mixture; sprinkle with 1 T. fresh chopped parsley. Layer remaining zucchini/eggplant mixture over; sprinkle with 1 T fresh chopped parsley. Cover; simmer over low heat for 10 min. Uncover, tilt pot and baste with accumulated juices until less than 3 T. remain in pot (watching closely to avoid scorching). Season with sea salt and pepper to taste. May be made 8 hours ahead.
Enjoy, bon appetit!
Local Green Circle, November, 2009