or the other way of looking at Ratatouille


By Philippe Broad

PARIS, 5 OCTOBER 2009 - If you are tired of ratatouille with over-cooked vegetables or swimming in a bath, here's an excellent recipe which provides a more modern crispy alternative of this tasty Provençal dish. Is this the recipe from the movie? No. But since when does Disney decide what America eats?

Serves 4

4 Zucchini (in French: courgettes)
2 Eggplant (in French: aubergines)
4 ripened Tomatoes
3 small Green peppers
1 Medium Red pepper
1 Medium to large Onion or 4 to 5 small fresh onions
2 cloves Garlic
Flat Parsley, chopped
Basil, chopped
Salt
Pepper from the mill
Olive oil for cooking

NOTE: The order of cooking is important, so keep the vegetables separate when preparing them.

Preparation

• Slice the onion and chop the garlic finely.
• Cut the peppers in two and remove the storks, seeds and white fleshy parts, then cut into 1/2 inch squares.
• Without peeling them, cube the Aubergines and courgettes to an equivalent size.
• Remove the stem and seeds from the tomatoes and cut the flesh into small pieces.
• Chop the parsley and basil, keeping a few small leaves as garnish.

Cooking

1. In a frying pan, sauté the onion, garlic and peppers in olive oil over a brisk heat, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper as you go along. When the peppers are 3/4 cooked (they should be nice and crunchy), remove from pan and keep warm.
2. Sauté the aubergines until they are cooked through and nice and golden. Set aside with the peppers.
3. Sauté the zucchini.
4. Add the tomatoes and parsley as the zucchini start to golden, and cook for a further 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Return the peppers and aubergines to the pan, mix all the vegetables thoroughly and add the basil.
6. If required, deglaze the pan with a little water and then reduce.

Transfer to a serving dish and garnish parsley and basil leaves.

Serve with a chilled Blanc de Cassis ou Rosé de Provence.