What does the french dish ratatouille consist of?!
What does the french dish ratatouille consist of?
Answers: Loved the movie! It's s a traditional French Proven?al stewed vegetable dish.
This Ni?oise dish is much more than a vegetable soup. It can be prepared fairly quickly by cooking everything together at the same time, but that needs to be done in the correct sequence to not miss out the art and the flavour of the dish.
It's also true that the recipe can legitimately vary (somewhat) according to tastes, but the variations should be based on experience. The volume is also very variable.
French ratatouille may be served as a meal on its own (accompanied by rice, potatoes, or simply French bread), or as a side dish. Tomatoes are a key ingredient, with garlic, onions, zucchini (courgettes), eggplant (aubergine), bell peppers (capsicum), some herbes de Provence, and sometimes basil. All the ingredients are sautéed in olive oil.
The name of the dish appears to derive from the French touiller, "to stir", although the root of the first element "rata" is slang from the French Army meaning "chunky stew".
"Too much" doesn't apply to ratatouille. Cook it the first time, and eat it hot as the main course; then have it again later as a cold hors-d'oeuvre. In the summer time, it's great as a cold main-course dish. It keeps for several days in the refridgerator. Ratatouille is good served with couscous grain (semoule) or rice. It's a vegetable stew of eggplant, tomatoes, onions, garlic, sometimes other vegetables and spices. RATATOUILLE #1
1/2 c. oil
5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 1/2 c. green or red peppers, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 c. diced eggplant, skin on
1 1/2 c. zucchini, sliced and quartered
1 tsp. fresh black pepper
1 tsp. salt
2 to 3 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
Cayenne pepper or Tabasco
1 1/2 c. chopped ripe tomatoes (may use Italian plum)
In heavy skillet, saute in oil the garlic, add onions and blend. Add chopped peppers, eggplant (does not need to be soaked or salted before) and zucchini. Blend all together well, mixing with a wooden spatula and shaking the pan. Then add black pepper, salt and basil. Add cayenne or Tabasco if desired. Cook 10 minutes over brisk heat, stirring constantly. Then add chopped tomatoes. Let the ratatouille cook down to the consistency you like. Zucchini, onion, tomato, garlic (and a bit more garlic) olive oil, some beans if you prefer.
I think there are lots of variations. But this is what how I was taught to make. I make mine by sauteeing zucchini/yellow squash, bell peppers (any color),onions, tomatoes, garlic, and some herbs. It SHOULD have eggplant in it, but I can't stand the texture of eggplant..so I leave that out. Then I sprinkle it with whatever cheese I have in the house and cover it until the cheese is melted. A hearty mixture of tomatoes, onions, zucchini, eggplant, red and green peppers is cooked with olive oil, thyme and garlic to create a sweet and chunky Proven?al vegetable stew.