A Serving of #Ratatouille - h8454 - a photo on Flickriver

            I have a confession:
"I had no idea what ratatouille was until after the animated motion picture by Disney was produced." 

Then, I fell in love with it! 

It's quick & simple to prepare, tasty, and filling.

Of course, I must also say this:
Although it's a dish with origins from Southern France, it also shares many similarities with - and could, in fact be - cuisine from the Southern United States, such as yellow squash, zuchini, eggplant (also called "aubergine"), tomatoes, onions, bell peppers (though there are none in this version), and herbs.

So... how to make it?

Easy!

This is, quite simply, a vegetable stew.

FIRST: Ensure ALL vegetables are washed with Soap & a wee bit (not much - like a cap-full, or two in a sink-full of water) of Common Household Bleach to remove dirt/debris, and kill all germs/cooties!

2d: Coarsely chop all vegetables (it's 'player's choice' how you want to slice/chop etc. I most often cut 'em into large chunks so they can be eaten with a fork.)

3d: Some variations call for sautéing the vegetables before cooking them, though it's entirely up to you whether you do, or not. It's NOT necessary at all. Place ALL the vegetables - skin and all on the eggplant - into a pot of boiling water to cook along with flavoring herbs - savory, thyme, marjoram, basil, oregano, garlic, etc. I also like to add a can of either and/or crushed tomatoes/tomato paste. 

4th: Cook until tender - NOT mushy, babyfood consistency. The vegetables should still have some texture to them.

NOTE: It might be preferable to prepare the tomato stock beforehand to allow the flavors of the herbs to meld, and prevent overcooking the vegetables. 

5th: OPTIONAL - some versions call for baking the resulting stew (in this version, I did, and topped it with bread crumbs - hey... gotta' do something with that old, old, old, hardened bread, eh?). 

And, since ratatouille is essentially a "basic" dish, you can jazz it up, or dress it down to your heart's delight. If you search for images or recipes, you'll find some mighty snazzy presentations, but again, that's not the original. It's just fancy fretwork, that is all. 

Oh... and do I need to tell you?

Use a BIG pot.

Taken on: August 16, 2015

Tags:

2015

Southern Breeze

iOS

iPhone

iPhoneography

food

light

travel

trip

family

fun

friends

ratatuoille

squash

zuchini

aubergine

eggplant

yellow

tomatoe

tomato

stew

quick

easy

MBP

CS5

bread

crumbs

vegetables

dish

garden

fresh

simple

United States

USA

France

herbs

thyme

basil

savory

marjoram

onions

garlic

recipe

green

color

photo

photography « less

Sets appears in: • 2015 • iPhone 6 more » • Food, Groceries & Other Stuff We Eat-n-Drink « less

Groups appears in: • I Ate This • FOOD: I Cooked/ Made this! more » • Real Food • iPhoneography « less

Camera: Apple iPhone 6, f/2.2, 1/30 sec, 4.2mm, ISO 160 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Apple iPhone 6
Lens:	iPhone 6 back camera 4.15mm f/2.2
Aperture:	f/2.2
Exposure Time:	0.033 sec (1/30)
Focal Length:	4.2mm
ISO:	160
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 Macintosh
Show full info

Stats: 1,136 views