Regardless of what you may have heard from your kids, Ratatouille is not the conveniently-named food star of a Disney cartoon movie. The dish known as Ratatouille is actually an ancient Mediterranean stew traditionally known as “Peasant’s Food,” since it is essentially comprised of any veggie leftovers you can find, thrown into a pot and cooked down together. Farmer’s food: fresh local vegetables, stewed in regional herbs, it can change with particular influences of the chef preparing it, and can vary every time you make it as well.
Ratatouille was most likely born in the French Provençal region around Nice on the Mediterranean (“touiller,” after all, does mean to “toss or stir” in French!). That’s probably one reason it’s so often served with a crusty baguette … yum.
Since its origin, it has enjoyed a rebirth in fancy restaurants all over the world, but is just as easily prepared in your kitchen with whatever veggies you have on hand (oh yeah, and a gluten-free baguette!).
Another neat thing about this dish is that it can be made using an oven and stovetop method, or entirely over a grill. This fact comes in handy when you’re without power (thanks a lot, Hurricane Irene), trust me! And leftover Ratatouille itself can be used over rice or quinoa, as filling for ravioli or over grilled fish or chicken. It’s an amazingly yummy, healthy and versatile recipe that you’ll want to keep around whether you have lots of mouths to feed, a fridge full of leftovers, an overactive imagination while hitting the Farmer’s Market, or an extended power outage (or all of the above, as the case may be!).
During our recent many days without power, I put this recipe to good use. I had lots of great eggplant, squash and okra from the Farmer’s Market just taking up space in my warming refrigerator, and although the squirrels ate all my home-grown tomatoes, I had several cans of Muir Glen Organic Tomatoes and a hand-crank can opener, so I was set!
I especially enjoyed the flavor from the Muir Glen Fire Roasted Petite Diced Tomatoes with Chipotle Peppers and the Meridian Ruby Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes. They really made a huge difference in the flavor of this dish, and I would highly recommend that you try them in your own tomato concoctions!
Ratatouille
Ratatouille is an amazingly yummy, healthy and versatile dish that you’ll want to keep around when you have lots of guests, or a fridge full of leftovers!
Ingredients
Note: use whatever vegetables you have on hand and prefer – there is no “right” or “wrong” way to make Ratatouille
- 3 bell peppers (orange, yellow &/or red) seeded & cut into quarters
- 1 large eggplant, cut into 3/4-inch slices (approximately 1 1/2 lbs)
- 1 medium yellow squash, cut lengthwise into thirds
- 3 medium zucchini squash, cut lengthwise into thirds
- 2 cups chopped okra
- 1 cup vegetable broth (I used Savory Choice™ Liquid Broth Concentrate)
- 5 large tomatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds), seeded and chopped OR 3 cans (14.5 oz each – Muir Glen Organic)
- 1 red onion, diced
- 1 ear corn, cooked and cut off the cob
- 3 Tbs. chopped fresh basil (or 1 Tbs. dried)
- 2 Tbs. chopped fresh oregano (or 1 Tbs. dried)
- 2 Tbs. chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, or to taste
- Olive oil for brushing on veggies and sautéing
Instructions
With Power (Oven) Method:
Preheat oven to 425°F. Prepare two cookie sheets by lining with aluminum foil, then lightly oil the foil. Place cut peppers, eggplant, squash and okra on prepared sheets. Roast vegetables for 40 minutes, flipping them after 20 minutes and switching trays from the top of the oven to the bottom. Watch to be sure they do not burn; each side should be lightly browned and fork tender when roasted.
Once the vegetables are cool enough to handle, cut into 1/2 – 1 inch pieces. Boil the corn on the stove or in the microwave and set aside to cool, then cut off the cob.
Barely cover the bottom of a large pot with oil and heat to medium-high. Add the diced onion and cook until translucent. Reduce to medium heat then add tomatoes and corn (if using fresh tomatoes, cook at medium heat for approximately 15 minutes, or until tender). Stir occasionally to prevent burning.
Add roasted vegetables and herbs; simmer for 5-10 minutes (the fresh herbs should be wilted at this point). Stir in vinegar and serve warm. If you prefer thicker ratatouille, cook longer, uncovered, to allow the stew to reduce.
Without Power (Grilled) Method:
Brush cut peppers, eggplant, squash, cleaned corn and okra with oil. Place okra and any small pieces of peppers onto a lightly oiled piece of aluminum foil over medium grill flame; lay remaining vegetables directly onto the grill grate. Turn the vegetables when lightly browned and fork tender (vegetables touching the grill grate directly will have char marks). Remove to a plate when cooked; when cool enough to handle, cut all grilled veggies into 1/2 – 1 inch pieces and remove corn from the cob.
Place a large flat-bottomed pot onto the hot grill over medium flame. Barely cover the bottom with oil and add the diced onion. Cook while stirring until the onion is translucent. Add tomatoes (if using fresh tomatoes, cook over medium flame for approximately 10 minutes, or until tender). Stir occasionally to prevent burning.
Add grilled vegetables and herbs; simmer for 5-10 minutes (the fresh herbs should be wilted at this point). Stir in vinegar and serve warm. If you prefer thicker ratatouille, cook longer over low flame and uncovered, to allow the stew to reduce.
Hard choice, they all look so delicious! I would like to try the Vegetarian Chili first.
The Fire Roasted Tomato Basil Crab Bisque sounds heavenly! Thank you so much for the link!
Thai Seared Shrimp with Tomato, Basil and Coconut sounds fantastic!
That’s my choice!
^_^
I LOVE Muir Glen tomatoes!! We are in Texas, & fall has finally arrived. I would definitely try the Texas Style Beef Chili.
Hello Jules – Your Ratatouille recipe sounds absolutely delicious! I was very impressed with Muir Glen’s Recipes and would probably like to try the Giambotta Lamb. I think the Mac ‘n cheese sounds scrumptious too and could easily be made gluten free.
The Tialpia Tomato Basil recipe sounds delicious. I would just use a different fish, since I don’t personally like Tilapia…but I love pretty much every other fish.
Yummy! I would love to try your ratatouille recipe. I bet the grilling adds amazing flavor.
I’d love to try the Creamy Tomato Soup, but I’d have to have it dairy free. Not sure if it’s possible to sub for the whipped cream and cheese and still have a delicious soup.
Hi Pat,
Here’s the recipe I mentioned. It’s from a Weight Watchers cookbook. We are not dairy-free but we LOVE this soup. Easy, delicious, and quick! It’s supposed to serve 4 and if you’re on Weight Watchers, each serving is only 3 points. Enjoy!
Tomato-Tofu Bisque
1 TB unsalted margarine or butter
1 chopped onion
1 TB flour (we use Jules flour mix of course)
Two 14 1/2 oz cans diced tomatoes (We love the Muir Glen Fire Roasted)
2 C. vegetable broth (or chicken broth if you like)
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
3/4 lb soft tofu (in those boxes) (reduced fat if you can find it, or not). Reserve 1/2 C of the liquid.
1/2 C. minced parsley (the flat leaf kind)
2 TB minced fresh dill
1 TB honey
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, melt the butter. Add onion and cook, stirring as needed, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, until flour is lightly browned, about 1 minute.
Add the tomatoes, broth, oregano, and pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until heated through, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a blender or food processor, puree the tofu and the reserved liquid (my box tofu never has enough reserved liquid so I just add more broth or water). Add the pureed tofu, parsley, dill, and honey to the tomato mixture; cook, stirring as needed, until just heated through, about 3 minutes.
I’m glad to see your recipe for ratatouille. I had it in Europe and just loved it. What a great way to get lots and lots of yummy vegetables in the diet.
I would love to win the basket! I use Tomato products almost on a daily bases!
The Arrabbiata Pasta sauce , I think would be a big hit in this family!
I would love to try a gluten free version of stuffed shells. If only there was huge gf pasta! The Giambotta Lamb also looks yummy. I will have to try that recipie!
Hmmm..what to try first? I love and use their Fire Roasted tomatoes exclusively. I haven’t tried making their Stuffed Chicken Parmesan, so I think I’d choose that recipe.
I would make the Thai seared shrimp with tomato, basil and coconut. All of the recipes look great though, I didn’t knwo they had so many recipes on that site, thanks for showing me!
Mmmm…I love ratatouille. I made an easy 10 minute version, which I discuss here: http://theoncominghope.blogspot.com/2011/09/not-your-grandma-recipe-10-minute.html
It’s been an ultra-delish timesaver!
Hello Jules,
First off, thank you for sharing this website, Muir Glen. There are some amazing recipes on here that I will definitely be trying out.
I would love to make the Fire Roasted Tomato Basil Crab Bisque. It sounds absolutely delicious as we enter this chilly fall season! The dish combines three of my favorite ingredients: tomatoes, seafood and basil. Yum!
I’d like to try the fire roasted tomatoes in a homemade salsa or marinara sauce.
All of the recipes sound yummy. I would probably try first the spinasse ragu – or maybe the stuffed chicken parmesan. So hard to choose!
I think the pizza pasta sounds good to me.
I checked out Muir Glen’s site and the Beef short ribs w/ tomato wine sauce sound wonderful.
Sounds like a great adult recipe….The Muir Glen’s Beef Short Ribs w/ Tomato Wiine Sauce sounds great. I have pork ribs & will try it with them & then with Organic Lamb ribs > I may have to take some liberties, but the tomatoes will be there!!!
Thin We’ll have to have in some guests……
My picky kids are difficult to feed so I would try the pizza pasta. It combines 2 of their favorite things!