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Homemade ratatouille loaded with eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes tossed in garlicky onions, roasted until tender, then sprinkled with fresh Parmesan! Summer veggies never tasted so good!
Why I Love This Ratatouille Recipe
For me, as a gardener, one of the best times of the year is late summer when tons of vegetables are ready, such as eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes. But when veggies are ready, it can sometimes feel like they’re all ready at the same time, which can be overwhelming. There are only so many recipes that can utilize a bumper crop of tomatoes. And that’s exactly where this homemade ratatouille recipe comes in handy.
Originally created in the kitchens and gardens by 18th-century French peasants, the dish was a rustic country recipe made from what was on hand. The name translates essentially to a stew that was chopped and stirred together. In today’s world, ratatouille has come to symbolize a recipe that embodies simplicity and the beauty of unadulterated vegetables.
Rather than preparing this dish in the literal sense, I prefer to slice my vegetables into equal-sized pieces. The layered look of the dish is a feast for the eyes, and I like having a bit more hearty texture to each bite.
It’s a delicious way to make the most of the season’s bounty, and I look forward to the time when I can cook it each year!
Homemade Ratatouille Ingredients
The best part about ratatouille is that it’s a great way to use up the excess garden produce that often accumulates during late summer: tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant.
- Crushed tomatoes are used to create the sauce that goes underneath the vegetables.
- Onion is roughly sliced and cooked in olive oil to create the base for the sauce. The thicker slices of onion make the sauce
- Garlic adds an extra layer of flavor to the sauce.
- Eggplant is plentiful during late summer and is one of the main components of ratatouille. With its soft interior flesh, it’s a perfect vegetable to use for the desired ending texture.
- Plum tomatoes, also known as Roma tomatoes, are meaty and have more flesh and less water content than other tomatoes, allowing them to hold up well and maintain a more pleasing texture.
- Zucchini is a summer vegetable, so it works perfectly alongside the eggplant and tomatoes in the dish.
- Italian seasoning packs a punch of the traditional flavors in a ratatouille, all in one convenient dried variety.
- Parmesan cheese is the finishing touch that takes this recipe from great to amazing. Sprinkle a bit on top before it’s placed in the oven.
- Salt and black pepper bring out all the other flavors of the dish.
How to Make Ratatouille
There are three simple steps to make this ratatouille recipe:
- Prepare the sauce
- Prepare the vegetables
- Cook the dish
Step 1: Prepare the sauce. Heat olive oil in a large oven-safe pan over medium heat. Slice the onion and add it to the pan. Once the onion has turned translucent, mince the garlic and add it to the pan. Season with salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning. Mix together, then add the crushed tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and let cook for 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 2: Prepare the vegetables. Slice the tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant into disks approximately ⅛-inch in thickness. Alternate them standing up in the pan, following the circular shape of the pan. Drizzle olive oil over the top. Season with salt and Italian seasoning.
Step 3: Cook the dish. Place tin foil over the top of the pan and place in the preheated 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and take off the foil. Grate Parmesan cheese over the top and cook for an additional 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil leaves, if desired. Serve with bread.
Pro Tips for Success
- Wait to add the garlic until the onion has had time to cook. The garlic just needs about 30 seconds to warm through and become fragrant. Otherwise, it can turn bitter.
- Utilize vegetables that are similar in diameter. They’re going to get layered against each other, so it helps to try to get them to match in size.
- Cover the dish with foil. This allows the vegetables to fully bake and soften without burning. It creates a more consistent texture for the dish.
Serving and Storage
To serve: This recipe can be served as a vegetarian main dish, as a side dish, or paired with some type of protein. Personally, I would serve grilled chicken as an accompaniment along with crusty bread. You could also prepare pasta and spoon the ratatouille over the top.
To store: Any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days. I would avoid freezing the leftovers, as vegetables with this much liquid do not do well when defrosted.
Frequently Asked Questions
After making the sauce on the stove, simply pour it into a similarly sized oven-safe dish. It makes for a little more clean-up, but it works just the same.
Yes! It will be fine, eggplant oxidizes quickly, so it appears brown, but it will still be fine in the dish.
Another traditional way to serve ratatouille is to chop up the vegetables into small pieces. Rather than layering the vegetables, you can chop them into equal-sized pieces. Personally, though, I think layering the vegetables has a pretty presentation and keeps the distinct texture of each component.
Sure! Feel free to add fresh herbs to the sauce rather than the dried Italian seasoning, especially if you have extra herbs on hand. Fresh basil would be incredibly delicious in the sauce. I feel that the dried version adds a punch of flavor while also keeping the ingredient count low.
Watch How to Make This Ratatouille Recipe
Have I Convinced You to Make This Recipe?
I hope you make this recipe and put some food on your table. Leave a comment and share a star rating so you can let others know how much you love this recipe. This helps show others that this is a recipe they, too, can make, enjoy, and love!
Homemade Ratatouille
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil separated
- 1 small onion sliced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ tsp kosher salt separated
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tsp dried Italian seasoning separated
- 1 14-oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1 small eggplant sliced ⅛-inch thick (preferably "finger" variety)
- 2 small zucchini sliced ⅛-inch thick
- 3 plum tomatoes sliced ⅛-inch thick
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Prepare the sauce. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a 10-inch cast-iron or oven-safe deep skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic, 1 tsp salt, and the black pepper. Sauté until the garlic is fragrant, 1 minute. Stir in 1 tsp Italian seasoning and the crushed tomatoes. Bring to a simmer. Cook and simmer over medium-low heat until the mixture is slightly thickened, 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat.4 tbsp olive oil, 1 small onion, 4 cloves garlic, 1 ½ tsp kosher salt, ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper, 2 tsp dried Italian seasoning, 1 14-oz can crushed tomatoes
- Prepare the vegetables. Add the sliced eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes on top of the tomato sauce, alternating each type in no particular order in a circular pattern, standing upright. Cover all of the tomatoes with the vegetables. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tsp Italian seasoning. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil and ½ tsp salt.4 tbsp olive oil, 1 ½ tsp kosher salt, 2 tsp dried Italian seasoning, 1 small eggplant, 2 small zucchini, 3 plum tomatoes
- Cook the dish. Cover and bake in the preheated 350°F oven until the vegetables are beginning to become tender, 30 minutes. Remove the cover, sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese, and continue to bake until the vegetables are tender, 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before serving.¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
