Total Time:
1 hour 20 minutes
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Ratatouille with an update- the vegetables are all cooked individually so that they maintain their color and texture.
Ratatouille - do you like it? It's never been a favorite dish here at The Café. Why? The reason was summed up perfectly in a comment from a blogging friend in response to my last post where I shared a photo of both the beautiful raw ingredients used in Ratatouille and my version of the finished dish. I promised to share the recipe today, with a new twist that I learned at my recent French Cooking Boot Camp held at The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York.
The comment went like this- "that is the freshest most colorful ratatouille I have ever seen! I usually shy away from it because it seems like an overcooked mess, but I will definitely try your recipe, Chris"! Sue, my friend from The View From Great Island (if you haven't seen Sue's blog, be sure to check it out, it's one of my favorites!) hit the nail on the head. To me, the ingredients for Ratatouille are fresh and delightful, but the final result usually leaves a lot to be desired. So when I saw Ratatouille as one of my cooking assignments for Boot Camp, I was a bit disappointed.
I was intrigued when Chef Bruno, our Boot Camp instructor said that he felt the same way about Ratatouille, but went on to share a technique to combat the traditional soggy results. He explained that he cooked the vegetables individually to the perfect texture, then waited to combine them till the last minute, keeping them fresh and vibrant. I tried his technique at school and loved it. I made it again when I got home, adding a few ideas of my own.
I made a yummy sauce with olive oil, garlic, shallots, Herbes de Provence and canned tomato puree. I simmered it slowly to thicken while I cooked the veggies and added a shower of fresh basil at the end. Instead of adding the veggies to the sauce (as in Chef Bruno's recipe), I layered them separately on top of angel hair pasta, adding tiny fresh tomatoes and Kalamata olives. A garnish of a few arugula leaves on the top made for a lovely presentation, nothing like the traditional "overcooked mess". I have the feeling that this fresh, delicious Ratatouille will be on the menu quite frequently here at The Café!
Ratatouille - Deconstructed
Prep Time:
20 mins
Cook Time:
1 hr
Total Time:
1 hr 20 mins
Servings: 6
Calories: 190 kcal
Ingredients
Ingredients for the sauce:
- 1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium shallots finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons Herbes de Provence
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup fresh basil
Ingredients for the veggies:
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 3 medium zucchini cut into ¼" dice
- 3 med bell peppers cut into ¼" dice
- 1 medium eggplants aubergine, cut into ¼" dice
- ½ cup pitted Kalamata olives
- 1 cup fresh cherry or grape tomatoes red or yellow, sliced in halves
Instructions
Directions for the sauce:
-
Heat oil in a medium-size pot over medium heat. Add shallots, stir and allow to soften for 3-4 minutes. Add Herbes de Provence and garlic and continue to cook for another minute.
-
Add tomato puree, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer till thick and fragrant, about 45 minutes. Add fresh basil, taste and add more salt and pepper as needed
Directions for the veggies:
-
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large sauté pan and heat over medium high heat till hot but not smoking. Add chopped zucchini, stir and sauté until tender-crisp, about 3-5 minutes. Don't let it get soft and mushy. Remove from pan and set aside.
-
Repeat step 1 with peppers and eggplant in separate batches. Use 2 tablespoons of oil for the eggplant. If it looks too dry while cooking add a bit more. Eggplant tends to soak up a lot of oil so sometimes I add a bit of chicken broth or white wine instead of extra oil to keep the fat level lower.
-
Combine all of the veggies. Add olives and fresh tomatoes. At this point, you can either combine the sauce with the vegetables and serve as a ragout or keep the veggies and sauce separate. Serve over pasta rice or polenta. Another idea is to serve as a sauce over grilled chicken.
Recipe Notes
Note: I love to garnish this Ratatouille with fresh herbs or a few sprigs of arugula. Sometimes I sprinkle a little Feta cheese over the top for a bit of delicious saltiness.
Calories 190kcal
Fat 14g
Saturated fat 1g
Sodium 383mg
Potassium 636mg
Carbohydrates 15g
Fiber 5g
Sugar 9g
Protein 3g
Vitamin A 2395%
Vitamin C 99.9%
Calcium 47%
Iron 1.5%
Sharon Asher says
Loved this receipe and I am not normally a fan of eggplant. I also added the fetta cheese which was a great suggestion. I am not sure if you are aware that the tomato paste is not listed under the ingredients in the print out receipe. I ended up adding a tin of tomatoes and 2tbls tomato paste but when I checked the receipe again after I made it noticed you had mentioned a tin of tomato paste in your earlier comments. Keep these beautiful receipes coming, this is now my favourite site.
Chris Scheuer says
So happy you enjoy this, Sharon. I will check the recipe and correct it.
Aimee Christian says
I'm totally cracking up over the fact that vegetables are all over your floor. One never knows what is in the background;)-we have those same puzzles.
I love that you all are such a great team - "Delicious" and "Beautiful". Thank your for your inspiration.
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
I ordered ratatouille at a restaurant recently and was disappointed - the delicious ingredients were all overcooked, as you mentioned. I much prefer your vibrant recipe!
Eri says
piiiiiined!!!!! 🙂 Thank you Chris and mouse 🙂
Kitchen Riffs says
I really like the deconstructed ratatouille. And great food photo tips. I love playing with light. And I really need to start shooting tethered. Thanks for this.
Cathleen says
Wow, this looks crazy good! Thank you for the tips, I was one of those people who only point and shoot, then wonder why it doesn't look good :p
Amelia says
Hi, thanks for sharing the excellent photography and food styling tips. Very useful information cos I enjoy playing with styling and photography.
I spent lots of time clicking on my end product. LOL
All your pictures are very professional. Excellent!
Your ratatouille look delicious. Yum Yum!
Have a nice week ahead.