Ratatouille
January 17th, 2017
This Recipe creates 8 servings
Prep Time: 01 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time: 0:00
As we all learned from watching the movie of the same name, ratatouille (pronounced /rat-a-too-ee/) is a generally regarded as a "peasant stew". This means that it was typically made with whatever ingredients the cook had on hand. I have seen many different recipes for ratatouille. It seems that the only ingredient that is required to make ratatouille, is eggplant. Here is my ratatouille recipe..
Ingredients:
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1 Head Garlic, roasted
1 Large Clove Garlic, cut into slivers
1 Pimento (red bell pepper), roasted
Olive Oil
1 Red Onion.
1 can Diced Tomatoes
3/4 lb eggplant, diced
1 Zucchini Squash, diced
1 Crook-Neck Squash, diced
1 Tomato, diced
3 Ounces of fresh Cilantro, finely chopped
1 handful Chick Peas
1 Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 Green Bell Pepper, diced
1 Yellow Bell Pepper, diced
1 Orange Bell Pepper, diced
1 lb Ground Beef, cooked - OR - 1 lb Shredded Chicken
1 Large pinch of Cumin Powder
1 Large pinch of Anise Seed
1 Large pinch of Cinnamon
Jalapeno, Habanero, or Thai Pepper to taste (roasted, if desired).
Directions:
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Roast a large garlic.
Roast a pimento (red bell pepper).
Heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a large pot.
Add a handful of fresh garlic slivers.
Add 1 freshly diced red onion.
Sweat the onion and garlic.
Add a can of diced tomatoes (including all the juice from the can).
Add 3/4 lb diced Eggplant.
Add 1 diced Zucchini Squash.
Add 1 diced Yellow Squash.
Add 1 freshly diced tomato.
Add a few ounces of freshly diced cilantro.
Add a handful of chick peas.
Add the roasted garlic paste.
Add the roasted pimento.
Add 1 freshly diced bell (red) pepper.
Add 1 freshly diced bell (green) pepper.
Add 1 freshly diced bell (yellow) pepper.
Add 1 freshly diced bell (orange) pepper.
* (See below for additional thoughts...)
I like to add a pound of freshly cooked hamburger or freshly cooked shredded chicken.
To make this a vegetarian dish, just leave out the meat.
Add a large pinch of cummin powder.
Add a large pinch of anise seed.
Add a large pinch of cinnamon.
Add jalapeno, habenero, or thai pepper to taste (roasted, if desired).
Add enough vegetable stock so that everything is covered in the pot.
Simmer for about 30 or 40 minutes.
Remove from the heat and stir in about 15 or 20 fresh basil leaves immediately before serving.
Serve in a bowl as a stew, over pasta as a sauce, or in a bowl with cheese on top.
I like to eat it with bruschetta.
*Feel free to experiment by adding any other vegetables or legumes that you enjoy: fresh asparagus, canned hominy, okra, green beans, peas, navy beans, whatever...
