My traditional ratatouille recipe is a bright and delicious stew of summer vegetables. Rich and flavorful with hints of olive oil, onion, garlic, and fresh herbs, quick simmered to allow the fresh vegetable flavors of the eggplant and zucchini to shine through.
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Enter your email below & we'll send it to your inbox. Plus get great new recipes from us every week!
Audio Player
It is easy to make and is the perfect accompaniment for chicken, pork, or beef. Or my favorite way, simply served with a crusty loaf of bread and Romano or Parmesan cheese.
Originating in the South of France, ratatouille is made with yellow squash, zucchini, eggplant, red or green bell peppers, sweet onions, garlic cloves, and either fresh tomatoes or crushed tomatoes and seasoned with salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, fresh basil, and oregano. Not only is it a great way to use summer’s bounty of fresh produce, it’s amazingly delicious!
Making ratatouille properly doesn’t take that long. It’s just a few steps of cooking the vegetables in the proper progression so they don’t get mushy. Then a quick simmer and you’re ready to enjoy this classic French dish.
What I like best about ratatouille is that it can be served hot, at room temperature, or chilled. And honestly, it always seems to taste better the next day.
If you love vegetable dishes, you’ll love my Sicilian Caponata Recipe.
Ingredients
Gather the ingredients to prepare our ratatouille recipe. Culinary professionals call this the “Mise en Place,” which means “everything in its Place.”
Setting up your ingredients not only helps speed up the cooking process but also ensures you have all the necessary ingredients on hand to make the recipe.
*You’ll find some recipes that use a bay leaf. I’ve never been fond of the flavor, so I leave them out, but feel free to add them to the seasonings.
*I used whole tomatoes crushed by hand for my ratatouille because it cuts down on the simmering time. But you can use fresh tomatoes (even cherry tomatoes) in your version of this French classic, but if you do, you’ll need to add a little tomato paste.
Specific ingredients:
- olive oil
- sweet onion
- red bell pepper
- yellow bell pepper
- garlic
- eggplant
- zucchini squash
- yellow squash
- San Marzano whole tomatoes in juice
- fresh basil
- fresh oregano or dried oregano
- red pepper flakes
- sea salt and black pepper
- Italian parsley
How to Make Ratatouille
Follow along with my easy instructions to see how to make ratatouille in your own kitchen.
- Add olive oil to a large saute pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Let the oil get hot, then add the peppers, onions, and garlic to the pan and saute for 2 minutes.
- Add the eggplant, season with salt and pepper, and let it cook for 10 minutes, or until it begins to look cooked.
- Add the zucchini and yellow squash to the mixture and let it cook for about 5 minutes. The vegetable slices should be slightly cooked.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes to the mixture. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let the ratatouille simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the eggplant is fully cooked. Don’t overcook the vegetables; they should not be mushy.
If you have zucchini leftover, use it up to make my delicious roasted zucchini with parmesan recipe.
Can I use other vegetables to make this dish?
Traditionally, these vegetables are used in making the French vegetable stew. But I won’t tell if you want to add mushrooms, olives, spinach, or your favorite bitter green to the mixture. After all, it’s your dinner.
Reseason the ratatouille as needed and get ready to enjoy the best ratatouille you’ve ever had!
Serve my Traditional Ratatouille as a side dish, over pasta, rice, or your favorite grain. It also makes a delicious topping for grilled or roasted chicken, beef, pork, or fish.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, it can. Fresh tomatoes were the original ingredient in the recipe. Over the years, cooks have substituted canned whole peeled tomatoes for ease of use, quicker cooking, and not having to worry about the tomato skins.
Ratatouille is a rustic southern French vegetable stew whose origins are said to be from Nice, France. It’s traditionally made with eggplant, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, sweet onions, and tomatoes. It’s typically served during the summer months when fresh produce is abundant and can be served hot, room temperature, or chilled.
No, you don’t. The salting process is supposed to keep the eggplant from absorbing as much oil, but I have never bothered with that process and have always had excellent results in all the dishes I use eggplant in.
Ratatouille goes well with grilled or roasted meats, such as flank steak, chicken, pork chops, and leg of lamb. It also goes well with rice and, of course, crusty bread for dipping. But you can really serve this delightful vegetable stew with just about any entree.
More Recipes You’ll Love!
Ratatouille Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoon olive oil more as needed
- 1 -1 ½ cups sweet onion rough cut
- 1 cup red bell pepper rough cut
- 1 cup yellow bell pepper rough cut
- 2 tablespoon garlic finely chopped
- 4 cups eggplant – peeled and cubed you may leave the skin on if you prefer
- 1 – 1½ large zucchini squash sliced
- 1 – 1 ½ large yellow squash sliced
- 28 oz San marzano whole tomatoes in juice can substitute 5 large fresh tomatoes chopped
- 2 tablespoon fresh basil finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano finely chopped or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper optional
- 1 teaspoon sea salt to taste
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon Italian parsley finely chopped for garnish
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Enter your email below & we’ll send it to your inbox. Plus get great new recipes from us every week!
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a large saute pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Let the oil get hot.
- Add the peppers, onions, and garlic to the pan and saute for 2 minutes
- Add the eggplant and season with salt and pepper, and let the eggplant cook for 10 minutes, or until the eggplant is beginning to look cooked.
- Add the zucchini, and yellow squash to the mixture and cook for about 5 minutes. The squash should be slightly cooked.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, basil, oregano and red pepper flakes to the mixture. Turn the heat down to a simmer and let the ratatouille simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the eggplant is fully cooked. Don’t overcook the vegetables, they should not be mushy.
- Reseason as needed and serve over chicken, fish, pasta or simply as a side dish.
Beth Gilliland says
This is hands down the best ratatouille recipe, and I have made many! One question, though: You say in the ingredient list to use a 28-ounce can of whole tomatoes, and then in the instruction list, you say to use crushed tomatoes? I used the crushed, but what’s the difference?
Chef Dennis Littley says
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed my ratatouille recipe. Sorry for the confusion, I buy San Marzano tomatoes and they’re only sold as whole in juice, so I hand crush them. YOu were fine using crushed tomatoes.
Elizabeth says
I hate changing recipes……but I was replicating a recipe I had at a restaurant that I just LOVED. I made the recipe as written, except I added mushrooms and cooked the vegetables just undercooked. I rolled a spoonful of the vegetables into a homemade crepe with a little mozzarella cheese and lined them up in a casserole dish with a little bit of the tomato liquid from the Vegies on the bottom. I also put a very little of that tomato liquid from the vegetables on top and sprinkle it with a little mozzarella. I placed it in the oven for the cheese to melt and oh my gosh.
Absolutely Delicious! Plus I took one of the crepes to work for lunch!
Thank you for this recipe.
Chef Dennis Littley says
Changing up recipes to your tastes is what home cooking is all about. You can always making them as written but having fun with the recipe can make your time in the kitchen happier.