Late Summer's Signature Dish

For those of you who saw the movie Ratatouille ages ago, but have never really had the Provençal dish, I want to let you know one thing:  traditional ratatouille doesn’t look anything like the dish in the movie.  A picture of perfectly mandolined and shingled vegetables does not resemble what I first tasted in France.  (There is, of course, a recipe out there from a fancy chef, from which the movie took its visual representation. Kids who saw the movie begged their mothers to make something so extraordinarily delicious, and were quite disappointed that it didn’t actually look like that.  My guess is that it doesn’t taste nearly as good as the real thing).  My first ratatouille experience came from a roommate’s mother; one weekend she brought home three or four jars of what looked like spaghetti sauce, but what tasted like the sun in the south of France.  Since then, I’ve been on a quest to recreate that ratatouille each and every summer.

This is the best time of year to make ratatouille.  All of the basic ingredients are in season:  eggplant (aubergine), zucchini (courgette), tomato (tomate), garlic (ail), onion (oignons), bell pepper (poivron), herbes de provence.  Some ratatouilles add different ingredients or make substitutions.  The basic recipe is wonderful, however, as long as all ingredients are fresh.  The little secrets I’ve learned throughout the years?  Grill or roast the eggplant chunks before adding them to the rest; you will avoid the bitterness and strange texture of sautéed eggplant.  Also, this is a stew, but don’t cook it too long.  After the ingredients are all sautéed, mix them together (without completely destroying the tomato chunks) and simmer for only about five minutes or so.  Third, take the thing off the stove, let it cool, put it in the fridge, and wait until tomorrow to re-heat and eat it.  The flavors meld together perfectly overnight.  Finally, don’t make the mistake I’ve made for years and make army-sized batches.  Like jam or preserves, for some unknown reason the flavor is superior in small batches.  It’s delicious by itself or over couscous or rice.

My jar of summer deliciousness

So, my loose attempt at a recipe:

One medium-sized eggplant or 2-3 small Japanese eggplant, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

One large onion, chopped

Three cloves of garlic, chopped

Two small or one large bell pepper (I prefer yellow, orange, red or purple, but green is OK too), cut into 1-inch pieces

One medium-sized zucchini, cut into ½ inch quarter rounds

Two 14-oz cans of whole tomatoes, cut into large chunks, and the juice of one can OR 3 large/5 roma tomatoes, cut into large chunks

Herbes de provence (1 T. or to taste); alternately, use a combination of any of: fresh rosemary, thyme, basil, marjoram, savory

Salt and drain cubes of eggplant on paper towels for a few minutes, then toss in a tablespoon of olive oil.  Roast under broiler or at 400 degrees until lightly browned on all sides.  Meanwhile, sauté onion in another tablespoon of olive oil until starting to brown, add garlic for a minute, then pepper and zucchini.  Saute for a few minutes, then add in roasted eggplant, tomatoes and herbes de provence.  After it’s brought to a boil, turn down and simmer for 5-10 minutes (no lid) or until the very soupy tomato liquid is reduced and you could eat the stew with a fork.  Serve over couscous, rice, or pasta, or as a side dish of vegetables.

It might even taste good while watching an animated movie about a rat who’s a chef.