Tell me I’m not alone in this: You saw Ratatouille, fell in love with Remy (though you still jumped a foot in the air when you saw a significantly less-charming rodent scamper across your path on the way home) and found yourself with a pressing craving, not for the heavy and too-often soggy traditional Provençal ratatouille, but that kaleidoscope of spiraled colors they served to the haughty and (spoiler!) soon-humbled restaurant critic.
I can’t believe how well this worked out. I also can’t believe I cooked a cartoon dish created by an imaginary rat. But I can believe I’ll be making this again tomorrow, because it’s delicious, seasonal, and an incredible cinch to make.
We’re just getting to the point in the summer where all of the vegetables are readying themselves for their farmers’ market close-up, so the timing couldn’t be better. And aside from some needling parchment paper origami and fine-slicing of vegetables (which, as we well know, with my new BFF is frighteningly easy, although the rankings are more like Deb’s thumbnail: 0, Mandoline: 1 right now), you need a minimum of dishes and time to get this together. Not bad for something showy enough for a dinner party ta-da, right?
There are a lot of things not traditional about this version of ratatouille–the lack of herbes de province, that it’s baked and that we ate it with both couscous and a dollop of soft goat cheese–but if you’re like me, and the chunkier authentic stuff has never done it for you, it’s time for this re-creation.
And here is where I will introduce you to d’oh!-moment number two-thousand-seventy-four: Guess what the New York Times ran in their Dining section last month? The recipe for Thomas Keller’s Confit Byaldi, the accordion-fanned version of ratatouille used in the movie! It’s available on their website, looks gorgeous, but although it’s fairly simple for a French Laundry recipe, it’s a bit more involved than my recipe. Though I am sure I will try it one day, I’m almost glad I didn’t see it first as I might not have gone out on my own to find my layered ratatouille nirvana. And wasn’t that the whole theme of the movie in the first place?
Ratatouille’s Ratatouille
As envisioned by Smitten Kitchen
1/2 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1 cup tomato puree (such as Pomi)
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 small eggplant (my store sells these “Italian Eggplant” that are less than half the size of regular ones; it worked perfectly)
1 smallish zucchini
1 smallish yellow squash
1 longish red bell pepper
Few sprigs fresh thyme
Salt and pepper
Few tablespoons soft goat cheese, for serving
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Pour tomato puree into bottom of an oval baking dish, approximately 10 inches across the long way. Drop the sliced garlic cloves and chopped onion into the sauce, stir in one tablespoon of the olive oil and season the sauce generously with salt and pepper.
Trim the ends off the eggplant, zucchini and yellow squash. As carefully as you can, trim the ends off the red pepper and remove the core, leaving the edges intact, like a tube.
On a mandoline, adjustable-blade slicer or with a very sharp knife, cut the eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and red pepper into very thin slices, approximately 1/16-inch thick.
Atop the tomato sauce, arrange slices of prepared vegetables concentrically from the outer edge to the inside of the baking dish, overlapping so just a smidgen of each flat surface is visible, alternating vegetables. You may have a handful leftover that do not fit.
Drizzle the remaining tablespoon olive oil over the vegetables and season them generously with salt and pepper. Remove the leaves from the thyme sprigs with your fingertips, running them down the stem. Sprinkle the fresh thyme over the dish.
Cover dish with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit inside. (Tricky, I know, but the hardest thing about this.)
Bake for approximately 45 to 55 minutes, until vegetables have released their liquid and are clearly cooked, but with some structure left so they are not totally limp. They should not be brown at the edges, and you should see that the tomato sauce is bubbling up around them.
Serve with a dab of soft goat cheese on top, alone, or with some crusty French bread, atop polenta, couscous, or your choice of grain.
Yum! I’ve had it served wrapped in a crepe, but have never considered making it. It sounds simple enough, and nutritious, too!
This looks so pretty. I’m going to have to give your version of this dish a try. It looks so delicate. I guess I’ll need to get a mandolin. When I was in London I had ratatouille several times for breakfast, topped with a poached egg and spooned onto thick slices of buttered toast. Such a great way to start the day.
Is Alex jealous of the Mandoline – Has he given you the “It’s the Mandoline or me…” speech yet? Hehe – I just got my 20% off at Bed Bath and Beyond coupon and I am off to buy one!
Okay, did Alex go with to the showing? Because I need him to talk to B and tell him it’s okay to go to a theater, when it’s a cartoon, without a kid in tow. Thanks in advance.
PS, dish looks delish – minus the peppers.
The movie was excellent. The recipe looks delicious; I’ll be trying it out on the girl once we’re done moving.
Beautiful! I haven’t seen the movie yet, but if a rat can envision this, he can cook in my kitchen any time….
You mandoline queen you!
I see you still have all your fingers and knuckles…
I have yet to see the movie, but yours truly is also not the sharpest tool in the shed. It took the title of your post for me to realize RAT & Ratatouille – haha. I’m a bit dim at times. This being one of them. Your dish looks awesome and I have veggies that just might be made better by this endeavor!
Oh my word. That looks exactly like the cartoon. And I was complaining that the food in the movie didn’t look all that appetizing… If only they’d hired you to enhance their illustrations.
as much as i love zucchini & eggplant, i’m surprised i haven’t made something like this before! it looks amazing.
My garden veggies are calling out to me: PLEASE!!! PICK ME! Let ME be the ratatouilleeeee!
What a beautiful version! Every august, when we are awash in tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant, I get into what my family calls the ratatouille rut, but I love the stuff. I’ve made many versions from Julia Child’s to Richard Olney’s, and I’m going to have to put yours on the list!
I’m so glad you made this! I’ve heard that ratatouille is supposed to be even better the next day, so you’ll have to let us know how the leftovers were. Also really glad you saw Ratatouille – watching it the day before yesterday, I knew you would. Your website has helped me believe that “anyone can cook”. Merci!
Haha…I did exactly the same thing. I made ratatouille after I saw the movie! I was lucky that my fridge was packed with tomatoes, eggplants, and zucchini!
I actually had most of this in the pantry/fridge to try. Skipped the yellow squash and used a yellow pepper. Harmless chance. A bit of oregano may of snaked it’s way in there too.
No goats cheese so I topped it with a good dollop of sour cream mixed with salt, pepper, shallot, and a tiny tiny bit of very finely chopped parsley.
Delicious. Thank’s deb
MMMNUMMY!
I might try this baked with a layer of penne or something.
It’s so not fair! Ever since I heard of this movie I wanted to see it, and it looks like we have to wait for a long time here in Europe….
In the meantime, I’ll comfort myself with your rata! Looks delicious!
Like Baking Soda, I can’t wait to see the movie, and now that all the US food bloggers are talking about it I’m getting even more impatient. I don’t even know when it’s coming to Poland…
I’ve been reading your blog for a few months but haven’t commmented before. It’s one of the very few I visit first thing in the morning to see if they’ve been updated. Great writing and beautiful photos, thanks!
The photos are absolutely fantastic!
Ahh! This looks great! I’m yearning to watch Ratatouille!!!! But it isn’t coming out until Aug here in Singapore! Boo~
My boyfriend and I just saw this movie on Saturday. The minute we walked out of the theater, we looked at one another and said “Where can we find a recipe for that!?” I was thrilled to see that you, not only posted one, but created one!
A million thanks! We will be trying out your recipe this weekend.
for the last 4 days since i fell in love at first sight with Remy’s sweet furry face i have been totally intrigued by the idea of making a ratatouille….thank you for inspiring me and most of all for convincing me that i’m not alone in my love for him…my husband was bored to tears (he’s more of an Emil type of guy so he wasn;t feeling Remy’s passion) while i sat completely rivited. i can;t wait to make this! thanks again!
I just made some ratatouille last wee, haven’t post it yet, but a little different from yours. yours Looks scrumptious in this oven dish. I haven’t seen the movie yet, still begging my hubby to babysit our baby girl but he wants to come to the theatre too…
oh my gosh! It looks just like the movie!
I have been craving this since I saw the movie last Saturday!
I’m going to make it this week.
Thanks for the inspiration!
This looks delish! Perfect idea for a dinner and movie date. I think I’ll try it on Friday! Thanks!
What do I have to do for a ticket to eat dinner at your apartment? Will work for Smitten Kitchen Food.
Wow! I totally wanted to make this after I saw the movie, but I didn’t think it’d ever come out that perfectly (little Remmy sliced his veggies so thin!), so I gave up and made a veggie stew instead: http://daily-craft.blogspot.com/2007/07/vegitable-stew.html
I might have to go back and try this one though.. how fun! Thanks for the inspiration :)
Looks great…what’s the idea behind using parchment? Why not foil?
HA! We drove from the theater to the grocery store!
I do not have ze patience or ze mandoline so mine was less wafer-thin… yours looks gorgeous.
OMG – I NEEEEEEDS me a mandoline. MUST GET ONE. NOW.
That looks so pretty!
If the dishes weren’t so pretty I’d suggest a mandoline internvention. You’re obsessed Deb, and I find hilarious and highly entertaining!
Boo for spoilers! Ah well :) The dish looks GORGEOUS…
Looks absolutely delicious! You should enter this contest: http://www.recipe4living.com/Common/Article.aspx?id=55124
DEB!
I’ve been searching your website for an answer, and have yet to find one- PLEASE OH PLEASE OH PLEASE teach me the wonders of parchment paper! I’ve never used it before and it seems that almost all of your baked recipes require parchment paper either placed beneath the cookables, and now on top of them! How is parchment paper different than just oiling/buttering/greasing up in some way, your pan or or dish or cookie sheet? I assume in this instance it’s to avoid too-browned veggies; but otherwise I’m at a loss. Thanks for your help; I LOVE LOVE LOVE your site!!!!
That is an almightily beautiful photo. It just screams summertime, doesn’t it??
Oh my gosh–I saw this yesterday and haven’t stopped thinking a) I want that ratatouille and b) I need a mandoline!
Love your insight, the site itself and the stunning photos. ;)
Oh my god!! Too funny…this is SO on my list of things to make after seeing the movie and finding Thomas Keller’s recipe.
Yours turned out SO lovely, thanks for sharing!
Using your recipe, I made this last night and it was delicious! It took me awhile to cut things up, as I have no Mandoline (yet), but it was so simple and delicious. Excellent with the couscous and the goat’s cheese was an excellent addition. LOVE your site!
I too watched ratatouille last week and now that I am home from vacation I am making it. I have been thinking about it daily so I have to make it for peace of mind, right.
It looks beautiful – your pictures are so wonderfully color saturated. I just picked a massive zucchini from my garden yesterday, and feel that it is destined for some similar fate – yum!
I loved the movie, and this looks like a wonderful version of Ratatouille. I especially like the idea of a little goat cheese! Yum.
We just saw the movie too and were totally wowed by it. The kitchen stuff alone was incredible. Speaking of incredible, your ratatouille is gorgeous, Deb! Beautifully prepared and wonderfully photographed.
Interestingly, I just found a recipe for Ratatouille Niçoise that doesn’t use eggplant—only zucchini [or “courgettes”]. Eggplant was apparently a latecomer to this traditional dish.
Thanks. Your photography is gorgeous and this recipe inventive. Added your non-traditional take on the Ratatouille/Confit Byaldi to my Ratatouile Recipe collection page.
My daughter and I loved the movie. I think what struck me most (apart from the ratatouille that looked like no ratatouille I’ve ever seen) was that the rats were so content to eat garbage until presented with alternatives. A little social commentary there, perhaps?
Very nice! I just got a request from a 5yr old to make this dish over the weekend, and we’ll be using your recipe as a starting point. The one thing we’ll do differently is compose it in a tower shape so as to better match the dish as presented in the movie. Thanks!
this looks fabulous and it sounds like could be the perfect way to eat a ratatouille that i’ll actually enjoy – like you, the traditional versions just don’t do it for me.
Just wanted to let you know that I made not one, not two, but three batches of your ratatouille recipe on Wednesday night. (The zucchini & yellow squash from the farmer’s market were crazy big and I wanted to use them up!) How was the end result? All I can say is thank you thank you thank you thank you!
With the use of a mandolin, this is such a quick, easy, DELICIOUS recipe. (And like abby, I’m not huge fan of the tradition versions.) It’s been served in various incarnations (thanks for the poached egg suggestion Grant), at every meal in my house for the last day and a half. Fantastic!! It’s first on my list of dishes to make for events this summer when I need to bring a dish to share.
I went home right away and made this recipe. Of course, I overcooked it just like you said not to, but it still turned out wonderful. I am going to try it again next week, without the overcooking part this time. Thanks for your great ideas!
I searched and found your recipe after seeing the movie so I had to try it – it was delicious. I posted about it on my blog and linked to you if you are interested. Thanks so much for sharing! I’ll definitely be making this one again and again.
Thanks for a great way to add eggplant to my meals. My wife doesn’t care for eggplant but was impressed with this dish. I have a keeper. This was a lovely presentation. And a great excuse to get out my mandoline.
For all of you who posted from non-US countries who have no way to see the movie yet, there’s a website that has it. The quality is far from perfect, but still well worth watching.
http://www.tv-links.co.uk/index.do/4
Just scroll down until you see “Ratatouille”. If it’s not there, or the link doesn’t work, just check back every now and then (they update whenever they find a new one).
As for this recipe… yeah. I’m about to leave to get the veggies to make it. Right now. :)
I adored the movie as well! I loved it so much I had to see it again. I’ve been meaning to make this recipe as well, your recreation is gorgeous!
I’m sorry this is so late, but I saw “Ratatouille” and I wanted to make it too.I’m glad you did, so now I know it’s good. Once I get back home I will; I’m currently living at Laval University in Quebec and ‘learning’ French (mostly it’s partying, watching Kanye West and eating poutine).
I’ve been obsessed with the idea of making the Ratatouille-inspired ratatouille since seeing the movie a couple of weeks ago. I recall having seen something with a nice pink color in the movie and wonder about using sliced beets to add a bit of color. Hopefully, it won’t overwhelm the other ingredients.
I’m very fond of the straight stuff–I make the Cook’s Illustrated version where you cut the eggplant in chunks, sweat it, and then roast it with zucchini. It requires much less oil than simply cooking the eggplant in the pan.
I made this for my mother, who will be having surgery this week and needed a little help in preparing some meals…she was blown away by how pretty the dish looked. I only baked it for 20 minutes, so that she could finish it off herself.
I’m adding it to my list this week (without the omission of any ingredients), and will blog about it!
Hi -I read an article in the past week or so stating that the movie’s director (producer?) actually spent several days in the French Laundry kitchen with Chef Keller for research on a professional kitchen AND his recipe – which is why the kitchen is so good in the film. Chef also got to voice a brief line in the film as well…sorry can’t recall which character.
I made this over the weekend and it was delicious! I didn’t use bell peppers and didn’t have parchment paper, but using aluminum foil worked out fine. Thanks so much for the recipe, Deb!
I’ve been drooling over your photos of this dish for a week! My step-daughter and her fiance came yesterday to stay for a month, and they are vegans…..guess what was for dinner tonight?!?
I doubled the recipe, had couscous, crusty bread and a grilled steak for the meat eaters in the household (husband and son), and a dollop of goat cheese for me!! My family is now wiping the casserole clean with the remnants of the crusty bread…and I was hoping for leftovers. Oh, well…
Great recipe Deb! Thanks!
Deb
p.s. I’ve got to go see this movie….
That looks fantastic! Its so good to see a movie stoking interest in provincial cooking. The movie easily ranks in my top 3 of the year thus far. If you have a spare minute, check out The Connoisseurs review of the movie, you won’t be disappointed.
Well, now. I’m just going to pluck my eyes straight from head, as they’ve seen ultimate beauty. That is one GORGEOUS dish!
Oh smitten, you have inspired me again! I re-created your beautiful creation for dinner tonite, delicious! I served mine with fresh parmesan and ricotta cheese (and melted swiss on my serving) oh my, so amazing!
MMMMMM MMM! I made this dish and it turned out wonderful! I’ve always wanted to make ratatouille, but could never find something “pretty” enough. Thanks to the movie and your wonderful recipe my ratatouille itch has finally been scratched!
We made this with a bit of tomato/basil sauce on the bottom with roasted garlic strewn about. Also, added some sliced pattypan squash (they looked like little spoked wheels!) and since there was no thyme about, used basil and parsley. Grated mozza on the top, and served over buttered, sesame’d noodles. Oh my – how incredibly wonderful. Ratatouille has always been too soggy and goopy for my taste but this is firm and good and feels wonderful in the mouth. The movie has spawned a whole new taste sensation. Now if I could just teach my pet rat to cook……..
first of all i love your blog
it is very excellent and cool
and because of that i too am making your ratatouille’s ratouille
that’ll be tomorrow night in case you’re in the neighborhood
so stay tuned because i will report back
did i tell you i love your blog?
I made this for dinner last night and it was *delicious*! Very colorful, and not as heavy as the stew, and the best part is how well the leftovers kept. Next time I’m adding fresh basil and local scallop squash. Thanks for the recipe!
Oh Deb, this is exactly why I love your blog! I watched the movie about a week ago, finally, and have been dying to make the recipe. My sister thought it incredibly silly to make a recipe of a cartoon rat…but here it is! Thank you for yet another inspiration :)
i made it last night. just as you said. more or less. not as pretty but in the end – it baked up unbelievable amzingly delicious. the best veggie dish ever. very summery and itlaiany – and well, can you tell that i am in love? i served it over whole wheat couscous. i’m going to post about it now. thanks for the winning recipe – and i love your blog. it’s one of the best going.
I made this lovely concoction for dinner tonight. Anything to get the littles to eat their veggies – “It’s from the movie…?” It was wonderful! Served over large couscous with a grilled pork tenderloin and crusty bread. Ahhh… can’t wait for leftovers. At 375 it only took 12 minutes in the convection oven, and we used the Cuisenart to slice the veggies (I am too destructive to be trusted with a mandoline.) Super easy, super fast. And our guests ooohed and ahhhed over the whole thing. Thank you.
Thank you for this recipe of Remy’s ratatouille ! I watched the movie last week and I wanted to cook this wonderful recipe. Thank you for the photos too, it looks very delicious, more that the french traditionnal ratatouille.
Do you know where we can find the other recipes of the film, most particularly the soup, the omelette and sweetbreads ?
I hope that Pixar will publish a book with all the recipes of the cartoon.
After taking my 11 year old cousin to see the movie last week, he asked if I could make ratatouille for his birthday dinner last night.
OMG! It was delicious and a huge hit! I made another with the left over slices, and had some it for lunch today with coucous and goat cheese, even better!
For breakfast I will have it with a poached egg!
THANKS DEB!!
phew! i’m glad to know i’m not the only one to suddenly have a liking to this dish. i tried a simple recipe i found on suite 101, which was just as lovely (and easy). i might give yours a try next :-)
I came online today specificially to find out if anyone had made the movie’s version, and yours looks lovely and delicious! I can’t wait to try it out!
Absolutely delicious. I used tomato instead of red pepper, though. Thanks for sharing this with us.
I made this last night and it came out really well! I had a tomato that was going to be too ripe very soon so I pureed it with some fresh parsley, then added the chopped onions and garlic as per your recipe. Very tasty, a wonderful “harvest season” meal now that it’s starting to get cold out. Mine was a little saucy, probably because I used a fresh tomato. I served with homemade parmesan pita chips on the side. Yum! Can’t wait to eat the leftovers for lunch!
i have just watched the movie and would not believe that i am the only person who wants to cook ratatouille after watching it… so here i am. thank You and thank Google.
happy now but …unfortunately with your beautiful photos hungry now………..
Just a little correction: Remy did not create ratatouille.
But this looks delicious, but I don’t know where I can find these vegetables in Ukraine. Nevertheless, I’ll see what I can do. Thanks.
jealousy. mine doesnt look as good as yours.
http://loveatfirstslice.wordpress.com/2007/09/01/penne-rigate-con-ratatouille/
I was desparate for the resipe since my son wanted it after seeing the movie.
And wow, this is exaclty like the movie… I don’t know how I bumped into this site
but a wonderful surprise.. Would like to try your others too..
Absolutely remarkable! I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoyed not only making this dish, but eating it too. This is now a family favorite. Thanks so much for sharing this with us “foodies”.
Oh my goodness. My family and I decided to rent Ratatouille tonight, so I thought it would only be appropriate to have the dish along with it. I couldn’t find anything that looked quite like the movie but I really wanted it just like that, so I continued my quest. I was OVERJOYED when stumbling upon your website, and decided to make it. Let me tell you, that is probably one of the best decisions I have ever made. It was delicious and my family gave RAVE reviews. Thank you so much for making the whole experience wonderful! :)
Thanks for posting this, the recipe and the photographs. I’ve bookmarked this and plan to make it as soon as my mandoline slicer arrived :).
mmm, i must find one of these Italian eggplants, mine was way too big!! when you say tomato puree, do you mean tomato sauce?? or am i way off? lovely pictures and recipe! it’s baking as i comment….
Ok, just found your blog for the first time and I am “smitten” My children got Ratatouille for Christmas and I have been looking for a creative way to engage them in dinner preparation. This will do the trick. We will be having this for dinner tonight. Can’t wait to see your other creations. Thank you!!!
I made it last night. Was in a hurry, so I used Trader Joes organic basil spagetti sauce in the bottom of an oiled square pan, sliced the veggies on the slicing side of my box grater, and a knife for the red bell pepper, and layered it in rows. Olive oil and dried thyme on top, parchent paper, and baked it. Using a spatula to serve, it lifted into beautiful rows onto the plate. Even my kids loved it. Thank you!
OMG This is absolutly sensational!!! This just makes me rat-a-tat-tat!! It is 1am and im starting this now!!! Thanks for the great recipie!! I love you!!! I will email you a dish!!! I love you sosososososososososso much!!!
OMG OMG OMG OMG SOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOD!!!! I am watching the movie as well as indulging!!! All i need now is a pickle and a brownie to go with it! I am moving to France or Germany or wheever this came from. OMG my stomach is eating itself at the thought of this!. I addes some ground rat meat in memory of Remmy!!!!
My son, who is 5, watched the movie and immediately wanted to have the dish. It was hard finding a recipe, but this is perfect. Go figure, a healthy dish that my kids beg me to cook. Thank you.
Just tried out the recipie, absolutely delicious! I’ll definatley be making this more often! Thanks a lot!
Thanks for posting this…I have had and made the traditional ratatouille, which is great, but my 5 yr old daughter, after watching the movie several times, finally asked me to make it this way. I kind of had it figured out, but wasn’t one hundred percent sure and finding your site on the first google search, took your recipe. We will be making it tomorrow, so I will let you know how it goes.
I am also looking at your other recipes and they are looking VERY good. I am bascially a self-taught cook that got tired of eating like a bachelor and started the trial and error method….with many errors(note to everyone:do NOT follow the directions about boiling shrimp 5-10 minutes….ugh..)
Anyway, great job…this page is bookmarked now.
I’ve now made this 3 times and each time it gets better and better. I can’t find Italian eggplant but I have seen some Japanese eggplant thats a lot smaller which would work. Unfortunately every time I decide to make ratatouille I can never find it! So I just slice it thin and then quarter it and it seems to work ok. I also can’t find any sort of squash that looks like it could work (I’ve only seen the spaghetti, acorn and butternut varieties) so I substitute slicked mushrooms and yellow and orange peppers and its great.
We made this dish at the insistence of my curious 4 yr. old son. It turned out very nicely. We doubled the garlic and olive oil and added a dash of dried chili peppers to the tomato sauce just to give it a hint of zip. Sprinkled sea salt over the completed dish before baking. Served it over “dirty rice”. We plated just like they did in the movie. The laughs and giggles were well worth the effort. It tastes great. The lightness of the dish is the big surprise. The veggies are almost “fluffy” light. It is amazing. Next time we may plate it over whipped coliflower and see if we can match the lightness of the veggies with the starch. With a bit more experimentiation and fine-tuning, we can take this dish from the “very good” category to “over-the-top”. Hard to believe a cartoon can inspire such a delicious dish…and kids WANT to eat it!!! If you have not tried this recipe and you have kids…it’s a must. There are not too many dishes this simple and fun to make with kids that turns out sooo delicious. Assembling the veggies is about as simple as topping a pizza.
Sorry, MEL (#76 post/SEP 23rd)…Smitten/Deb did NOT say Remy created ratatouille! She was referring to the “take” on ratatouille that Remy made (his own version) to serve the food critic! The recipe served was Remy’s own creation from the traditional ratatouille recipe! Smitten, you did an awesome job on the recipe, and your handsome sidekick did a superb job of photography!
“Restaurant” Critic! Oops…oh, well!
I acutally went online looking for ratatouille recipes because I wanted the version Remy made. Good to know I’m not the only one who was inspired by it. I loved the recipe!!!! It was so easy to make and so delicious. Plus I finally got to do something with parchment paper.
This is terrific. I’ve made it a couple of times in the past 2 weeks… the second time for guests. My wife says it’s the best thing I’ve ever cooked. Though I’m no expert chef, that is still pretty high praise.
The photos look so real it’s almost as if I can taste it. THe movie is my all time favorite. I’m doing a school project on provencale cooking. For extra credit (this is a big project) I thought I’d make ratatouille to please my teachers!
Thank you very much!!!
Oh my, what a little piece of Heaven!!! Tried it today, turned out looking just like yours, and tasted like a cozy, homely, but wonderfully tasty dish, just the way I had dreamed Remy’s recipe must have tasted to Anton Ego! The most amazing part is that I am a deplorable cook, able to make mostly only grilled things on my foreman grill and basic dishes such as omelettes. Still, this turned out lovely – the very best dish I’ve ever made! And now I too can make it on special occasions and bring it when I need a dish to share. I did use a couple variations based on the Confit Byaldi recipe you give the link to above: 1) cooked the onion and garlic, salt and pepper in olive oil until soft in a pan, then 2) took half a red bell pepper, cooked according to the Byaldi recipe, chopped it and mixed into the mix above, 3) simmered the whole thing with some parsley, thyme leaves and half a bay leaf, removing the thyme and bay leaf once it heated up; 4) used sliced tomatoes instead of red bell peppers interspersed with the other veggies, and made the vinaigrette according to the Byaldi recipe to decorate the plates/dip the ratatouille in. I really did like the vinaigrette. I also served this on top of parmesan couscous with some chopped tomatoes and basil. YUM!!! Finished the meal with cheese crepes and berry jam and it felt just like I was in France! Thank you from the bottom of my heart Deb, like the other reviewer said, you’ve proven to me ANYONE CAN COOK! =)
Amazing job!!! I’ve been looking for this recipe to make from watching the movie. Seems like you did it perfectly. I know that if I made it like this, my son would recognize it immediately and dig in. Thanks a bunch!
Is it okay for me to say that this recipe actually made me horny? No? okay -well than this recipe made me drool – mucho drool. Can’t wait to try it out. Thank you!
I’ve made this a couple of times, and since its just me, the man, and the mess making/non veggie eating one year old, I get enough ingredients to make up three pans, and I freeze the extra two. Works really well!
Awesome- I was going to see if anyone freezes theirs! Any tips for rethawing?
I kinda can’t believe I’m commenting on a recipe you wrote a year ago, but one of my summer cooking goals is ratatouille (because it is that time of year for those veggies) and I was wishing for the recipe in the movie. Deb (can I call you that? I like to believe I’m friends with all the bloggers I read religiously), you’ve come to my rescue, again. Thanks.
Wow, just made ratatouille for the first time using your recipe and it was AWESOME. (I’d been wanting to try it for a while, but our grocery store doesn’t typically carry eggplant.) Used a food processor to make really, really thin slices (and save time) and simmered the tomato sauce all day! I was kind of worried, especially since I’d never cooked/eaten eggplant before, but everyone seemed to love it. I served it on top of small pasta shells and with No Kneed Bread, which definitely added a rustic sort of feel to the entire dish! Everyone loved it, thanks for the recipe and making me believe that yes, it was possible to make something as beautiful as Remy. After all . . . anyone can cook, right? :-)
I own the movie…and have been craving ratatouille every time I see it. We watched it again tonight and I resolved to find the perfect recipe…Deb, you’ve done it…faithful to movie AND the discerning taste buds…thanks for your creativity and hard work!
This is a great recipe. When I cooked it for the first time for my wife and daughter they said it was fantastic. It not only looks good but it taste outragous.
This will be a keeper for our family recipe book.
Many thanks!!
Got the link to this recipe from my son Josh – he said it was great so I tried it with very fresh veggies from our local CSA. As luck would have it, the farmers from the CSA (in Madison, NY) joined us for dinner the night I made it. It was FABULOUS! They loved it and so did we. Not just beautiful but very tasty – definitely a keeper!
I don’t know how I’ve lived in the dark for so long with this recipe… I have simply GOT to try it out once I get back from Niagara!
Hello! I saw this when I was searching for the recipe of Ratatouille which looked similar to the movie. May I know what you meant by parchment here? I really want to try this but I don’t know what you meant by parchment.
Hi Hazel — Parchment is a silicon-covered baking paper, safer for high heat than waxed paper. I used this brand mostly because it’s all I see in the stores in my neighborhood.
We made this with fresh veggies from our garden. It was amazing! And easy enough. Thanks for sharing it. We’re enjoying the rest of your site as well… slow roasted tomatoes are delish!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v198/shardsofdecency/rata.jpg
this is making my mouth water!
I love this recipe. It is exactly what I had in mind when searching for Ratatouille. Thank you.
I am SO going to make this. I’ve been wishing for Remy’s version ever since seeing the movie. Thank you!
I have seen the movie and the recipe looks so good, but I have never had any of the vegetables in the recipe. Do you think a picky eater would like this recipe?
I have been looking FOREVER for a Ratatouille recipe that looked like this. All the others are just a chunky veggie soup. I had some like this at a potluck the other night and it was outstanding, but I never found out who made it. They had added dashes of parmesan cheese with the spices, and no goat cheese on top. I am DEFINITELY going to try your version of this delectable dish. THANKS FOR SHARING!
I made this for my boyfriend and I on our anniversary, since Ratatoullie was such a meaningful movie for both of us… and we absolutely LOVED this recipe! The goat cheese was incredible on top (would never have thought about that) and everything was so delicious. With a baguette on the side and a good glass of merlot, mmmm! So so so so tasty! I used a little basil and a Japanese eggplant (since the size was more compatible), and I threw a little bit of the tomato puree, garlic, onions and herbs on top of the slices, as well. It turned out fantastic. Oh and I forgot the parchment paper so I just used foil. Thanks for such a great recipe and a wonderful explanation of how to make it =) everyone should try this!
hi my name is renée and i am 12 years old and since i loooooooovveeeeeeeeeee to cook and am gonna be a chef one day i am going to cook this for my family! This is the only site that had it instead of the stew ratatouille.
thanks!!!!!!!!!!
I am trying this new food called Ratatouille.I also hope its GOOD!
Hi my name is Nichole and i am12 years old and since i love to cook I am going to be a Chef too.But when i grow up i am going to cook this recipe for my Mom,Aunt Neesie,Uncle Moose,Grandpa,Grandma,and my 2 Brothers. THANK YOU!
We just had a fabulous meal of this ratatouille – well, we adjusted a bit for local ingredients. It was great! I put a photo of mine on my blog, I was so pleased.
springchook.blogspot.com/
Thanks for helping make it happen!
I hate vegetables but this ratatouille is amazing….. now i just have to learn how to spell it
thanks
cooked this several times and sooo delicious! put in skinny sliced butternut squash as an extra vegetable and its the best thing in the world!
THANK -YOU SO MUCH – I LOOKED FOR HOURS TRYING TO FIND THIS DISH FROM THE MOVIE- MY 16YO SON WANTS TO BE A CHEF AND HE LOVES THIS MOVIE AND WANTED TO MAKE THIS DISH…. THANKS AGIAN … RONI MOM OF ROBBY
Hi!the recipe looks delicious, but i have one doubt:about the degrees, are they farenheit or celsius? because i’d like to cook ratatouille without burning it… or having it raw.thanks for the recipe, it looks just a marvellous as in the movie.
Fahrenheit. Will edit that in now!
I had an urge for Ratatouille this week…and found your recipe today, while looking for one to follow. Wow, exactly like the one in the movie.
I changed two ingredients though : red bell pepper by a yellow one, and the yellow squash by round tomatoes (not the italian kind). Color for color, taste was great.
Thanks for posting it. Bon appétit à tous et à toutes!
My little kids have been pestering me too with questions about ratatouille ever since the movie came out. But my husband is not as enamored with eggplant as I am I’ve stalled in making this dish–until now. The kids and I made this the other night and the reviews were fantastic, from my husband. I sauteed the onions & garlic, then added a full 15oz can of puree and then put that in the bottom of the casserole dish. We followed the rest of the recipe but then made a standard cheese sauce (roux + milk + 1 cup give or take of monterey jack) and poured that on top before the final sprinkle of seasoning & thyme. With about 10 minutes left to cook, I removed the butcher’s paper and let the top brown. The red sauce percolated up and mixed with the cheese sauce perfectly and the veggies were al dente without a glimmer of mush. Ooooh-la-la!
Well, I made Ratatouille two after watch the movie. :) However, the way i made it was a bit different from what you have done. Just a bit. And I like it a lot. Lolz!
Great recipe! Even better the next day. Very good on top of a good wheat pita with a dab of Laughing Cow cheese on top. Next time I think I’ll sub some fire roasted tomatoes for the regular pureed tomatoes and see how that works.
After seeing the movie, I searched the web for recipes, and found Rat-a-too-ee for you-ee and followed the directions. It was DELICIOUS and my husband who doesn’t really care for eggplant, loved it! The whole layer thing is beautiful to look at too.
This is so worth the trouble, and very impressive for presentation to guests.
AMAZING- Made it, loved it, Made it for family during the holidays, they loved it, and we will all make it again! Thank you so much! This is one wonderful comfort food that won’t build the bulge! DE-lish!
Very pretty and sounds delicious as well. I usually make mine as more of a stew and serve it with crusty french bread, but it is a very simple & forgiving recipe. I also favor basil & bay leaf as my spices.
This looks so good!!! I loved the movie and I know I will love this dish… I am making this tonight for my family and it already smells insanely delicious.. Can’t wait to try it…
I made this for my family…and there wasn’t a morcel left! I absolutely love this recipe!
i hated it it was dreadful i basically threw up and to be honest im increadably suprized that the other people liked it!!!!!!!they probable lied so to get to the point it was terror to eat it ]:(
i love it
I made this for my family and we loved it! We all donned scarves and pretended to be snooty food critics while we ate, for the benefit of our 4 year old, who loves the movie.
You are not alone! I’ve been drooling for a version of Ratatouille like this since I saw the movie! Thanks so much. And great idea, by the way, serving it over a bit of cous-cous with a bit of sour cream or yoghurt on top. Great dish to serve vegetarian and non-vegetarian guest mixtures, I’m sure this will be a crowd-pleaser.
There’s no indication of a yield…I’m guessing this is for two people?
It really depends on whether people are using this as a side or a main — and the size of their vegetables. As a main, at least 2. As a side, easily 4.
Thanks, Deb. I’m using this as a main dish for my roommates. I can’t wait to try it!
I’m loving my new mandolin (mine is a very cheap XO brand) and it bit me hard this week when I was making vegetarian ‘steak’ sandwiches. Ouch! I’m hoping it gets easier to become accustomed to the finger guard, because I’d love to make this when the vegetables are in season and not have my thumb take the brunt of the damage!
Oh my god thanks soo much! youve helped alot. like other people i too fell in love with remy and the dish, ratatouille. i had been looking and looking everywhere for that special dish withe the colorful array of disks on top, thinking it was pasta but i dont mind eggplant. although my mother dosent aproove of all the veggies, (even though she more of a veggie lover…) i suggested italian sausage to be thrown in. and cow cream (mexican favorite) instead of goats cheese.
Now im off to find french bread!!!
Wow! I just wanted to say thank you for the recipe. I made it tonight as a surprise for my girlfriend and it was amazing. I spiced the tomatoe puree up by using the canned diced tomatoes that have green peppers and onions in them. Then I blended them. Really the only other difference was I added italian seasoning to the puree along with the salt, pepper and olive oil. Needless to say, this dish brought a big smile.
Thanks again.
I am a 12 year old but I love to cook! I watched Ratatouille the other day and had a strong craving for some Ratatouille! So I googled “Ratatouille from the movie (recipe)” and I saw your website. I tried it and it was DELICIOUS!!!! Thank you SOOOO much!!!
could you use waxed paper instead of parchment paper?
I would not. The wax on waxed paper melts at high heats.
I came across this recipe when I was trying to find a vegetarian supplement for my boyfriend’s cousin who was coming to dinner. I had seen the movie, which I loved, and had wanted to make ratatouille since seeing it. The dish not only looked amazing but tasted just as great. Everyone raved about it and ask for the recipe. Thanks for such a great recipe! This one will be a family fav. for a LONG time!
I’m here in Brazil.
Please, where can I find the recipie of the Remy’s SOUP?
My little son (8 years old) ask me every day to prepare this soup!!!!
Can someone help me?
Thanks a lot.
Suely
Suely try this website http://www.vrmag.org/issue29/RATATOUILLES_RECIPES_WITHIN_GUSTEAUS_KITCHEN.html
its great.. I used pizza sauce or classico portabello mushroom pasta sauce and used big carrots and sweet potato instead of the squash.
Very very nice.. everyone loves the presentation
I just tested this recipe out before I make it for a dinner party and it came out fabulous! It is a beautiful dish that is light and fresh, AND packed with great big flavors. I skipped the red pepper because I didn’t have it on hand and I think I will skip it when I make it again (even though I know it’s a traditional part of the dish) because I think it may add too much sweetness to the already sweet tomato sauce on the bottom. Thank you for this recipe!!
After searching everywhere for the movie version of Ratatouille and we found your website. My 6yr old son & I made this last night. It was terrific! Its fun for a little boy to know the difference between zucchini, squash and eggplant. Thanks for a great website and wonderful inspiring pictures.
This is such a great variation of ratatouille! The presentation is perfect for dinner parties! Thanks!
i loved the movie too when i watched i a few years back and searched for the same recipe but did not have the time but now i pursued on to find it and poof here it is.
thank you soo much for this recipe. :)
it’s summer here and its an excellent time to cook this dish.
i tried it yesterday and it turned out great i had it with couscous YUM!
loved he presentation yet it’s so tasking yet worth the effort :)
i had a little variation though i added carrots and potatoes in the mix still it tasted great :)
xoxo
what is the purpose of the parchment paper can that be skipped ?
Wow. This was amazing. Great suggestion to use the couscous and goat cheese; my husband and I loved it. (I forced him to watch the movie with me while we ate, and afterwards he–grudgingly–admitted it was pretty cute!).
As far as the parchment paper goes, I think (and this is just a guess) that it serves to both keep the moisture in and prevent the top from getting too brown(?)
its nice that you think you made something first but, chef thomas keller has been serving this dish at his resturant the french laundrey for years he is also the chef the makers of the movie consulted when they were making the movie sorry
Juan — And? That precludes someone from trying their own version of it at home? What a shame that would be, if all home cooks could only defer to famous chefs for recipes that inspired them. Also, you might want to note the link to the original — far more complicated — Keller recipe in the last paragraph of the post.
Loved the movie and will be trying this dish when the vegies start making their presentation. I enjoyed all of the above comments. The purpose of the parchment paper is to absorb the steam that would create the mush that ratatouille is know for. Thanks for that tidbit! Whoever discovered that.
I can’t believe i discovered this nearly 2 years after it was posted! the fact it’s great is so obvious but i thought i’d share what i did (being, as usual, short on ingredients but high on ‘HAVE to eat this!’)
I put a can of chopped tomatoes and herbs from waitrose on the bottom. I mixed my chopped onion and garlic in.
I used a very sharp knife to cut zucchini and yellow squash only as i didn’t have a capsicum or eggplant and couldn’t be bothered buying it. i sprinkled herbs de provence instead of fresh herbs and it was AMAZING! my husband and i ate the whole thing with a lamb rack while watching ratatouille!!
Flip your casserole dish over on top of a piece of parchment or wax paper. Run a sharp knife around it, using the dish to outline the cut. Lift off the dish. and punch out the paper. Done
Oh, my! I finally got around to making this. It is so wonderful. I don’t have a mandoline so my slices weren’t quite as thin as yours but it didn’t seem to matter. I ate it plain, no grain, no cheese. This is definitely going into the regular rotation.
FINE I WILL GET A MANDOLINE. Reading cooking blogs is supposed to be free haha.
not supposed to make me spend more money on cooking supplies.
:) This dish is so delicious AND so lovely to look at. Thank you so much for sharing it. I’ve shared the dish with my extended family and it’s a hit. I plan on lovingly making it every summer for the rest of my cooking life!!
Oh my this was SO yummy. I didn’t have any bell pepper so I left that out, but it was still excellent. It was so delicious that we didn’t need to have it with cheese. Thanks :)
Loved the film, and LOVE the dish – THANK YOU. I’m making it again tonight…
This was SOOO good!!! My family LOVED it!!! Thank you!!
Just found your site while specifically looking for the recipe used in the movie. THANK YOU!!! This was wonderful! There were no leftovers and there are only two of us!
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe. I made it last night for a dinner party of 18 and everyone loved it. It is such a simple but wonderful dish, and the goat cheese is a great touch!
I was also enthralled with the dish that the little rat made….just never have had the time to make it…but after seeing your wonderful pictures i certainly will…Thank you!
i made this yest wid my sister…it was delicious…i am a food lover…n ever since i have seen the cartoon i have wanted to make this dish..awesome work man…
Oh!I just love your site!I just thought you would like to know that ratatouille’s ratatouille is an actual dish. It’s called Confit byaldi and it was created by the chef Thomas Keller specifically for the movie Ratatouille. I like your version though. It’s much simpler and quicker to cook than other Confit byaldis I’ve cooked before, but it tasted delicious anyways. Thank you for the wonderful recipe!
Misha — This was noted in my post.
I still haven’t gotten around to seeing the movie, but I made this dish last night and it was absolutely delicious, especially served just as suggested atop couscous with a dollop of goat cheese. And pretty! I don’t think anything so attractive has ever come out of my kitchen. Thank you for providing the perfect recipe to take advantage of farmer’s market vegetables.
My husband and I have been making his families recipe for ratatoulie for years. But until today, I never actually looked up recipes for it. I was astonished to see it is suppose to be a stew. Then I found this site and similar the person who posted this particular recipe, we have always made ours in layers in a casserole dish. We alternate layers of the vegitables but also add grated cheese(your choice, we use chedder aged 10 years). We usually end up with 3-5 layers of each vegitable and cheese. Then we top it with cheese and italian bread crumbs. Then Bake. I recommend reheating leftovers in a toaster oven not the microwave.
I remember the movie and thinking how great it would be to make it. Never got around to it. I was going through some cookbooks today and saw a recipe for ratatouille but noticed it was different. I went online to search for the recipe and came across here. Just want to say thanks because I’m going to make this tomorrow!
Just made this this evening. Delicious. Luckily no rats were involved.
What a great recipe! I’ve fixed it three times and every time enjoyed it more. Initially, I thought I had some Pomi tomato puree, but did not. What I did have was Trader Joe’s Italian Starter Sauce. I is so good and I used the entire carton, 16 oz, so I’ve stayed with that. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly — except for last night when all I had was a lot of yellow squash and red pepper, so I made it without the eggplant or zucchini. It still tasted delicious, but the reason for the eggplant and the ‘less seedy’ squash, zucchini, became apparent. The yellow squash alone is not very ‘substantial’, so the dish lacked the structure that it has with eggplant and zucchini.
I have tried ratatouille before, made it myself, have been served it by others, ate it in France when we lived there and never thought it was particularly good. But this recipe is delightful; however, I think it is more properly called a ‘tian’ because of the way that it’s made.
Thank you for this new family favorite!
Not like you need anymore pats on the back….but i cant help it…I have made this dish several times, there are never left overs! I substituted the soft goat cheese on top (for lack of it at the store) with some tomatoe feta crumbles and baked them a little on top. It is just soooo delicious. ( Mouth is watering just typing about it.) I especially like this recipie because it is so simple and takes so little time. The cous cous is perfect for this, I never used it before and now I do with so many things. I use way more garlic and spices than most people but this has so much flavor it doesnt need much changing. My son asked me if I could put some round pepperoni’s in the rotation….I might try this it sounds interesting.
Thanks again!
MMMMMMM im 12 and making this beautiful dish thanks to you. Hope its delicious!!!
Oh geez, I made this ages ago and forgot to comment… thank you so much for sharing this, it is an easy recipe with a huge payoff. I used basil instead of thyme (because that’s what my potted plant garden provided) and it was great. I served it to my bf, and showed him the movie for the first time, and when Remy pulled off the parchment paper, I just giggled in delight, because I had just done the exact same thing :-)
I made it this afternoon. Delicious. Would be good with some penne, or coucous as showed. Yummy sauce and veggies taste fab. I think I’ll watch the movie tonight.
wow, you are so my superhero! i have been experimenting a bit, but never got a version that looked quite llike this! beautiful! (i guess i will have to buy a mandoline) thanks for your recipe.
I is so good and I used the entire carton, 16 oz, so I’ve stayed with that. Otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly — except for last night when all I had was a lot of yellow squash and red pepper, so I made it without the eggplant or zucchini.
I love this french food!! :) I always to cook this recipe with many variant!!
The best! :)
This is amazing! It’s summer in a pan. Thank you! My 3 little boys chose your recipe for me (from photos of several online versions) on the basis of it most resembling the dish in the film. We were all delighted that the taste is at least as wonderous as the presentation!
Made this last night! Used foil instead of parchment and cooked mine a little too long (more limp than I would have planned). Still delicious served over quinoa! Smitten Kitchen, without a doubt, is the one recipe source that never disappoints.
Thank you. This recipe is very yummy and fun to serve… our 8 & 10 year olds loved it too! I was short on time so I used my Salad Shooter with the slice blade and some were not perfectly even but it took only 5 minutes to prep the slices and 10 minutes to layer. I used good sea salt and a thin baking sheet liner to cover the veggies. My family was asking for it the next day. I plan to serve this the next time I have a pot luck or picnic/barbecue.
These pictures are great. I’m hungrie….
Finally, an eggplan dish that works! I made this the first time exactly as you described: mandolined slices of small eggplant, zucchinies and peppers overlapping in turn. It turned out great, and even my 2-year old ate it with cous cous. The second time, I got cocky and started to improvise. I used a fairly large eggplant, mixed thyme leaves in the tomato base (in addition to sprinkling them on top of the sliced vegetables, to up the thyme flavor) and layered the eggplant slices on top of the tomato base, without overlap, then peppers, then yellow squash, then green zucchini and then another loose layer of peppers. I followed the rest of the recipe exactly as written, and it was still delicious. The eggplant was much softer, but I like it “overcooked.” Of course, overlapping the slices looks much prettier in the final dish, and I would definitely do it for a party. For a family meal, though, layering seems to work, too, especially since it cuts the prep time. Thanks for this recipe!
thank you for this great recipe, I forgot the tomato sauce all together & it came out amazing. All 3 of my kids ate it up and asked that I make this again soon!
Ohh, this is such a delight. I will definitely make this recipe. This is my favorite movie to date.There are tears in my eyes right now. This is pure love. Thanks for this inspiration. Ohh, that there are people that exist in a world like mine. :)
awesome recipe!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!
Looks fantastic. Been wanting to make this also since I saw the movie. Now even more. Any suggestions for somebody allergic to onion? More garlic? Turnip? Something or nothing?
so i just made this tonight and let me say that it is DELICIOUS! a few notes i have from my experience: i didn’t have tomato puree available so i used 1 small can of tomato paste and added 3/4 of that can of water to the baking dish. also i would recommend cutting the eggplant last as it turns brown which caused it to be a little soggy at the end.
I made this and blogged about it! http://creativetastes.blogspot.com/2010/05/more-baking.html
I have been watching the movie with my kids over and over lol to figure out the recipe that’s in the movie, glad I found this page. Thanks for sharing the recipe :)
My 13 year old daughter made us this dish for dinner tonight. She has never cooked before (other than Ramen or canned raviolis). But to my surprise the dish turned out GREAT. Never thought I would try a dish my 13 year old saw on a cartoon and would like it, what a surprise!!!!!
I’ve made ratatouille every summer since I saw that movie. I’ve always used a recipe that ran in the paper at the time of the movie’s release that very much looks like the “peasant dish” Anton Ego describes. When I came across your recipe here a few months back I was excited but waited until summer when the needed vegetables would be more readily available. I had almost forgotten about it until my neighbor brought me a bag of squash on last Saturday. I had to take pictures of the dish it was so beautiful. And when I tasted it…well, I didn’t flash back to my childhood in the French countryside, but only because I grew up in south Georgia. Great job. This is by far the best ratatouille recipe I’ve used and it’s also the easiest. Thank you for sharing it with us.
the movie is great!
i came across this today flipping through your site and just wanted to say how gorgeous it is. i too made ratatouille after seeing the movie, but it was more of a everything chopped and then for a long time in a pot type deals – this seems much more my taste and way prettier too.
Yours is so very beautiful! I’ve made it twice now but although the vegetables were yummy (except the time I burned them…my bad) the tomato puree never bubbled and instead stayed in a rather thick sludgy paste which wasn’t so nice…I thought it was because I was using double concentrated puree but the second time I used the regular type and it was the same. Would something like passata work better? Or a can of chopped tomatoes? I’m dying to have it the proper Deb way and simply can’t be dissuaded by my culinary mishaps!
(Sorry for the second comment but by “work better” I mean “work better for me in this situation” of course, I’m not doubting your gorgeous recipe in the slightest.)
That looks so delicious!! But what I really want to know is the sauce that Remy put on the dish. If anyone knows, I would be forever grateful!
Trust me – you’re not alone on this (ha ha!)
The other night at around 11:00 PM, I got hungry and started making some french onion soup. I turned on the TV and Ratatouille just happened to be on, so I watched it.
When it got to the part where they pulled the Ratatouille out of the oven, I’m looking down at my french onion soup and thinking, “What am I doing with THIS?” And I’ve had a hankering for Raratouille ever since. This recipe looks wonderful!
Made this tonight for dinner, followed by my second viewing of the movie. It was absolutely delicious!!! I was worried I wouldn’t have enough veggies, but it fight perfectly in a 9″x9″ pyrex (with a few bits of stuff leftover).
I also got really excited when he was using a mandoline on the squash as I did just that a few hours prior :-)
I loved this recipe, although I found the eggplant was a little too dry — in which case I think sauteeing/frying extra beforehand like Julia Child’s recipe suggests would have made it pretty near perfect. Thanks for the easy meal guideline!
Seriously delicious
I just made it today,before i didnt like to cook well lets say not really often, after I watched the movie I started taking cooking seriously. And so I started browsing the internet how to make ratatouille and I found this. I like the smell and the taste is delicious.
Thanks really much for those who took their time to find this recipy it taste really good! :)
This might be a stupid question, but does it have to baked in an oval baking dish? Can I bake it in a rectangular Pyrex one?
Chelsea — Of course.
Omigosh, Deb. I was perusing your site (as I often do) for recipes for a dinner party I am having tomorrow, and I came across this again. And I have to say I am SO glad you posted this because this is how I found you! After seeing Ratatouille I just knew if I had ratatouille like it was in the film, I would love it. And so I Googled it and after looking at a few (very not acceptable) recipes I found this and I was like “this is it! who is this person?” And I tooled around your site some more, and then promptly fell in love. I’ve been a devoted SK fan ever since. Just so you know, this was the beginning of my love affair. Now I have made more of your recipes than I can count, and I have told ALL my foodie friends that they must find you. In fact I refer to you at home so often my husband knows just who “Deb” is! If you ever need to travel through Mid-Missouri, you let me know girl.
Ha! Home alone last night, drinking a glass of wine, channel surfing and what should appear, but Pixar’s Ratatouille! I watch in delight and think to myself, I should really make that sometime. It’s the perfect time of year right now. I wonder if SK has a recipe for it? hmmm…
little did I know you have the EXACT recipe I am looking for! whoohoo! Thanks Pixar and especially, Deb!
I made this tonight for dinner, served over fried polenta. It’s steaming hot outside, but it was DELICIOUS. Can’t wait to make it again when our tiny apartment isn’t the same temperature as a sauna!
I made this for my love interest tonight, and he loved it. I didn’t have the patience to arrange the vegetables just so, but kind of threw them into my skillet (since I didn’t have a round pan large enough) on top of the tomato sauce, but I kept a sort of layered look going on. I sauteed the onion and garlic, just because I have an aversion to un-sauteed onions, and served it over couscous, to which I added feta cheese that was soaked in mint-thyme flavoured olive oil. I bought almost everything for the dinner from the farmers’ market, including most of the veggies (except the eggplant and couscous). I also served it up with the purple cauliflower gratin and sliced potatoes sauteed in butter, olive oil and salt, with peach-blueberry cobbler for dessert. Best dinner I’ve had in a while.
I tried this today and it was amazing! I just watched the movie last night and had the urge to make it. I served it appetizer style on top of sliced and toasted french bread and rubbed garlic on it. Absolutely delicious!
After seeing Ratatouille I had always wanted to make the famous dish but just didn’t have the time until now. I search and luckily came across your recipe (so glad I waited), it is phenomenal! I added a bit too much pepper but still it certainly did not ruin it and I topped my portion with some goat cheese, absolute heaven! I made two platters of it and going to take one over to my mother’s on Monday as she isn’t able to cook for herself right now. I bought some fresh mozzarella cheese for her since she doesn’t care for goat cheese, I know she is going to love it as much as I do! This is really a winner of a recipe and I could easily eat this everyday of the week! Guess it’s a good thing that I made two platters of it or mom wouldn’t get to try it :)
Merci beaucoup for this recipe! I’ve been making it since you posted it, and it’s become one of my staples. Everyone loves it–even those who normally turn up their noses at vegetables! Thanks for a great recipe; I love your site because everything becomes so easy and enjoyable with your descriptions and beautiful pictures.
Oh, Heavenly! I just was coming here to see if you had something new (to me) that I could do with our CSA eggplant & these pictures have my mouth watering. I also, by chance, happen to have some Vt. Creamery Bonne Bouche in the fridge. Thank you for making my weekend!
Omg, my mouth is watering. Thank you I ve been looking for this recepie for a while.
The left-overs are even more divine. I served on warm homemade whole wheat bread, spread with goat cheese & pesto, and a slice of garden fresh tomato. A true summer sandwich.Thank you, again!
The best way to cover a dish with parchment paper is to trace the upside down dish on the parchment paper (before filling it for you silly ones with no common sense) and then cut it out on the inside of the line. Perfect fit! To easily line a dish with parchment, turn the dish over and cover the outside with the paper, making the lines by rubbing the paper with your hands to crease it. Invert the dish then insert the paper’shell’ you just made.
A friend of mine recently recommended your site, and this was the first recipe I tried out. I made this last night for some good friends of mine, most of whom are vegetarian. The lone non-vegetarian was vocal about her apprehension of eating a bunch of vegetables as the main course, but she was quickly won over when she tasted this ratatouille! It was so simple to make (even without a mandoline), and was a perfect meal for a warm summer night — not too heavy, seasonal ingredients, etc. I substituted quinoa for the couscous and added some rosemary as well and it was all around a big hit! I will be making this again soon for sure!
I’m so glad I found this recipe. We take part in a monthly cooking club and we’re having a summer soiree – french food of course! This is the perfect time of year for this dish :)
This recipe was amazing. Thank you for not skimping on the olive oil – I’ve had many ratatouilles without the amazing, rich texture of this one and I’m sure it’s the oil. (Maybe also the parchment?)
Also, all I had was a square brownie pan, and the dish was still absolutely gorgeous! Thanks for another great recipe, Deb.
I made this last week and it was incredibly delicious! You can see my post about it here: http://comfortofcooking.blogspot.com/2010/08/ratatouille.html
I’ve had this bookmarked since it was first posted, and I finally made it this weekend. In a word, fabulous! I think this is one of my favorite dishes from Smitten Kitchen–I’m hoping it makes the cookbook!
We just made this, and it turned out AMAZING! My 5yo son ate so much we thought we’d need a forklift to get him off of the chair. Gonna become a standard – thank you so much!
Thank you so much for this recipe! My mother demanded “Ratatouille a la Remy the Rat” for her birthday dinner, and I didn’t know what to do. But then I found your blog! It was so deliciously wonderful. I added rosemary in addition to the thyme because I had it around, and it worked well. Thanks again for your help!
Hooray, thank you for posting this! I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who started dreaming about that ratatouille after seeing the movie. I also cried when Ego tasted the ratatouille and flashed back immediately to his happy childhood. Surely I can’t be the only one there, either? Right? Am I?
made this last night…forgot the onions & garlic, used substandard tomato sauce, over salted the eggplant (to get the bitterness out), and forgot to cover it, and it was still OUTRAGEOUSLY delicious! i hand sliced everything which wasn’t much work with a really sharp knife. yum!
Just made this for my veggie-skeptical boyfriend. He LOVED it. And so did I. Sooo good.
or try this dish with cuminsauce, there’s more than one way to make ratatouille :-)
I don’t think I saw this anywhere – if you use a large epplant, should you salt it first even if the slices are thin? I just bought it yesterday so it’s still fresh. I’m just learning to cook eggplant so don’t know much aside from chunks and thick slices yet.
All I can say is wow. I absolutely hate squash and zucchini. However, my 12-year-old son (who has Autism and therefore lives through movies) insisted that we make Remy’s ratatouille. I used your recipe and made him do it – mandoline and all (with supervision, of course… it has a hand guard and all that). I can send you the photo proof.
When it came out it smelled divine. I told my wife I was going to eat a bite, with the yellow squash and zucchini, as I had to honor his effort. It was delicious and I had a full two servings. My wife was astonished to see me devour it. Not as much as I was. Awesome, tasty, well done.
This is not a ratatouille, this is a TIAN
Thank you for the great recipe. I made it for my brother and sis-in-law this weekend to celebrate his birthday- it was delicious, and there were no leftovers! I will be making this again for sure!
Notes: I was not able to find Italian eggplant in any local markets or vegetable stands in my area, so I simply sliced and quartered the “regular” eggplant, which fit just fine with the zucchini and yellow squash discs. I also used Pomi chopped tomatoes, which was a little chunkier than puree, and a can of Hunts “all natural” tomato puree. The result was fab-u. Thank you, again!
I made this today just because I happened to have the right ingredients and needed to use them up. It was amazing! I never would have guessed it would taste like anything except, well, boring zucchini and eggplant.
We took it to a family dinner and served it as a side dish, expecting it to just be something else to add to the meal and use up some vegetables, and it ended up being by far the hit of the night. There was none left in the dish by the end of dinner.
I saw the movie and often wondered how that recipe would translate to the home kitchen. Brilliantly done, and beautiful photography. On my must try list now Thank You
~Barb
I have been making this dish for over 3 years now since I first saw it in 2007. Kind of mastered it by now and don’t even have to refer the recipe anymore. Made again today for dinner!! Our family just can’t have enough of this recipe I guess! By the way this goes fantastically well with the Foccaccia (minus the Blueberry)!
Indeed, it’s funny; in the movie (and in your recipe), this is more what we call a “tian” in Provence than a “ratatouille”.
Very nice and tasty blog, by the way! :-)
Ok I will admit when I watched the movie it made me want to have this dish. I looked it up and it seemed simple I just never remembered to get the list of ingredients. I made it tonight and I really really enjoyed it. So did my husband. Nice to have something else to add to our menu… Thanks
We started making this back in 2007 when it was first put up on the web, at my daughter’s insistence that we make ‘Remi’s’ ratatouille. Considering the fact that she (5 at the time) wouldn’t eat a vegetable if you paid her, watching her devour this dish (especially since she helped prepare it) was a pleasure. Now 8, she makes it all by herself, even cutting the parchment paper. (although i stand guard while she uses the mandolin). WE LOVE THIS RECIPE!!!!!!!!!!!! Soooo good. The goat cheese, imh, is what pushes it over the edge into HEAVEN…
THANK YOU for this recipe. I too wanted to make this after watching the pixar movie. Made Ina garten’s Vegetable Tian last month and everybody thought I made ratatouille, because it looked like Remi’s dish. Going to a French Food-themed dinner party this Saturday, and I’ve been assigned to bring ratatouille, so glad I searched for it on your sight. So awesome, so beautiul and so simplistic at the same time. Thank you. =)
I made this for the second time tonight, and am again super pleased with the results. I chose to add sliced tomatoes, which only added to the already tremendous tomato flavor in the dish. It is comforting, inviting and absolutely satisfying. Thank you so much for sharing! I’ve passed the recipe along to several of my friends. :)
Ratatouille’s ratatouille was a great success. My wife and I both love the movie and have since wanted to make this dish. I found your recipe a few days ago from a Google search, and knew this one was the obvious choice if we were to recreate the movie’s version. Although our peppers and eggplant dwarfed our skinny zucchini and squash, we countered their large diameter by placing multiple slices of squash and zucchini adjacent to one another.
Our much awaited meal was so delicious, we’ll be making it again for times to come. Thank you for inspiring us.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING THIS! I have tried to look for this since I watched the movie! How many people does it serve? I am having my parents over for dinner and I want to know whether the amounts are all right.
Thanks again :)
looks absolutely wonderful! I have a project for school and we need to bring in an example of a traditioal french food and I think this fits the bill perfectly. Seems simple and healthy which it a plus too because my teacher is vegetarian so well see. I have a question, can the eggplant be replaced by anything else? Like maybe tomato? Im not too sure if a bunch of high school students would like eggplant but theres a first time for everything =) I’ll write again after the fact so anyone curious to know how it went can know. Thank you again for posting.
Just made this today! Incredible! I had been wanting to make it just like the movie and it came out better than i though it would! So tasty!
Wow! I can’t believe I just came across you delightful website! Believe me, I’ll definately be trying this- and many more of your recipies! I’m quite excited!
I just made this and it was FANTASTIC! What a wonderful vegetarian dinner!
i was wondering if just using cut up pepperoni like in the movie and the pizza sauce?
This was really yummy with parmesan chicken tonight! My boyfriend, who hardly ever eats vegetables, loved it. Thanks so much for the recipe and the lovely pictures! (Mine didn’t look as good as yours, though!)
Made this last night. Only change was I used dried Thyme because that’s what I had on hand. Came out beautiful and if you can imagine… it tasted even better than it looked! Thanks for this recipe.
lol, had NO idea it was anything like THIS! Would have sworn it was tomato sauce across the bottom, lined with layers of alternating thin sliced potato and pepperoni! Hmm, maybe I’ll make it my way and call it Tato-roni-touille! Hmm, a layer of mozzarella above the sauce or on top of the whole thing might really work good too… :-)
Deb – America’s Test Kitchen’s pound cake recipe calls for parchment at the bottom of a pan before baking. They recommended tracing the bottom of the pan onto parchment with a pencil and then cutting the shape out. I trimmed slightly inside the pencil line and it worked perfectly. I feel like the same technique might work for this type of dish as well. Just a thought.
I’m going to make this for my boyfriend for his birthday on Friday. I could only find regular eggplants at my grocery store, so I was thinking of slicing it length-wise, before putting it through the mandoline, so that the eggplant slices aren’t twice as big as the zucchini and squash slices.
I made this today with my boyfriend! I am a terrible cook but even I could make this! Generally, Andrew always cooks but we went to my grandparents and I handled the dinner. I’m a vegetarian and always looking for easy recipes. This is perfect for my repetoire. Plus, it looks like it would be fun to add my own touches to it! Thanks for sharing!
thank you for sharing this recipe. I ve been wanting to make this very dish for along time now. got the vegies last night and making it this late this afternoon for dinner. ill let you know how it comes out. thanks again!
Your dish looks quite good! Remy’s ratatouille was created by Thomas Keller of “The French Laundry” restaurant! Thanks for posting, this looks really tasty.
I was browsing your recepies when I found this, and you’ve made my day. I’m glad I’m not the only one who got inspired (hungry) from Ratatouille. How cute was that movie, anyway? Thanks for posting, I’m going to try and will let you know :)
Ugh!!!…. worst dish ever.
I don’t know what these other comments are talking about, but it tastes horrible. I cant understand how the guy (I think his name is like ego) liked this. Don’t suffer like i did. Don’t make this dish.
I have made this apart of my limeted cooking repertroir, I have yet to mess it up unliuke anything else good I cook then try to repeat but often fail. All the ingredients are grown in my yard so I’ll be eating it often this summer. It’s a dish that I, being a vegetarian LOVE and have taken to a vegan potluck, but it also impresses my meat eating friends and family. It’s beautiful and full of flavor – I use my garden’s heirloom tomatoes for puree and replaced thyme for parsely, sage and a little rosemary. This recipe is superb – in fact when I was having lunch at an french farm bistro in my town, wondering how the french do it, I ordered the ratatouille and was so dissapointed it wasn’t even half as good as this one.
I am a horrible cook who just happens to love Disney movies. I’ve been obsessed with Ratatouille (the movie) since it came out, and I keep telling myself I will try my hand at the dish. I finally tried this dish and, regardless of my lack of talent in the kitchen, my entire family ate every single bite of it! I thought it was absolutely delicious!! Thank you so much for posting this!!
I just made this! Can hardly wait to eat it when the husband gets home. It smells amazing!
Made this last night with my new mandolin (which is perfect for this recipe). It was wonderful with the goat cheese, cous cous and a big salad! Big hit in my little kitchen. Won’t be the last time this get’s made this summer. Thanks! Love your site :)
Luv the dish!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My 3 year old daughter (who loves to cook) just watched Ratatouille and harvested the summer squash from her garden . . . so you know that we’re going to have to make this! I’ve looked at several recipes but really like this idea and I’m going to try your recipe tonight!
I just made this dish… and immediately put it inside of a grilled cheese sandwich made out of a combination of soft cheeses and a little cheddar. It was unbelievable. Try it if you have leftovers!
First of all, I worship your recipes. Every one I’ve tried and tweaked a little from your site has made me a food celebrity amongst my family. :) Secondly, a VERY easy way to trim the parchment paper to fit your pan (mentioning this somewhere for readers like myself may make your recipes even just that much easier) is to place the paper UNDER the pan, trace around the bottom with either pencil or washable marker, and cut! Perfect fit! :)
I’ve been making ratatouille like this for years. I use no eggplant, just squash, sliced thin and layered with green or red peppers and topped with some diced tomatoes (or halved cherry tomatoes) and a bit of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Delicious! I was so excited in the movie to see the mouse layering his ratatouille that I exclaimed to my husband, “He makes it like me!”
Kate, I’m THE official official of the movie, and REMY IS RAT NOT A MOUSE!!!!!!
GET IT RIGHT!!!!!!! SORRY, I just had to tell you, it’s me, not you, it’s just a petpeve of mine when someone calls ANYTHING the wrong name… if you called him ‘mouse’ because it sounds beter then rat, I understand… sort of…. at lest then you would understand he is a rat……. =P
I made this WONDERFUL dish tonight, with a few minor changes. I used my homemade spaghetti sauce in place of the tomatoes and instead of the thyme, I used a Tuscan seasoning mix. Hubby was more than skeptical, to say the least. Now 3/4 of the pan is gone and he has asked me to make it again next week! THANK YOU for the fabulous recipe!!! Anyone thinking of trying it should! (Oh – and I have a sub-par OXO mandoline. It handled the squash & zucchini brilliantly, but I had to slice the eggplant and red onion by hand.)
does any one know the ending song to the movie even though its in french it still sounds good
Can’t wait to make this tomorrow for dinner guests. Deb, do you knowifthis can be made ahead of time and reheated? I want to avoid using the oven right beforrri have my guests over because of the ridiculous heat expected!
Thanks!
This dish was AMAZING! I made it one night for my family during our “$35 meal week” and we fell in love with it. It was very easy and fun to make. However, to make it more filling, I added smoked sausage which kept the flavor of the vegetables while adding a little substance. We will definitely make this dish in the future.
I’m actually making this as i comment. It looks beautiful and delicious. i can’t wait until it’s finally done. I’m serving it over orzo and I’ll be watching Ratatouille the movie as i eat.
OMG! This was so delicious and easy! I didn’t think that putting the sauce underneath would give it any flavor. I spread the sauce and sprinkled herbs over the sauce and over the vegetables. I did do the parchment paper, and I served it room temp, as 100 degree temp calls for cool meals! It was outstanding! I didn’t drizzle much oil, maybe a teaspoon. It looked beautiful, I wish I had taken a picture! Thanks for sharing this!
Just wanted to comment and say this was a wonderful recipe for ratatouille. My husband didn’t like the more stew like version that I was used to and love. I tried your version and it’s delicious too and gets my family to eat our wonderful in season veggies. We live in the South and I served ours over cheesy grits. So good!
That was a GREAT recipe! Thank you so much, I always love aalll your recipes, and this one was superb. Easy and elegant and delicious!
made this tonight.. I LOVED it. It made the eggplant disappear magically and when I took my first bite my pupils dilated and i reminisced about an imagined french province childhood.
Just made this for my family today! was a big hit!! thank you, it tasted great! i will make it again!
Just wanted to thank you for this recipe. My kids and I love the movie and they wanted to try this dish. Found it online, and made it using the food processor instead of a hand mandoline. It was a little more time consuming than I’d hoped — layers take a while to assemble — but so good that my picky eater son even ate quite a bit. Delicious!
I was so excited when I found this recipe. I had seen the movie and how beautiful it came out there, but was wondering how I would make it in real life and what to pair with it. This recipe is total gastronomic success. I made it for my parents with the couscous and goat cheese as suggested and it was incredible. I wouldn’t be surprised if the leftovers are gone by morning :) thank you so much!!!!
This was delicious! My husband and I ate the whole dish, and almost an entire loaf of fresh-baked french bread with it. Two thumbs up!
Delicious! Every bit as delicious as it looks in the movie! I did 3 long rows in my 9×13 pan instead of circles and chopped cubes to cover the edge. Used normal eggplant, sliced and halved. Used aluminum foil instead of parchment to cover the top and it smelled amazing while baking.
Since the vegetables are in season and so fresh, I ate it with bread, no goat cheese or other strong flavors. Tho it’s going in my party dish list cuz it took me forever to arrange the slices, but so delicious!
Yum! Just finished off a whole 13×9 pan of this delicious dish. Everyone requested that it be a repeat meal. Thanks for the easy instructions. It was a hit!!!
When looking at the ingredient list, this appears to be a very bland dish. However, something magical seems to happen in the oven, and this comes out to be one of the most flavorful, wonderful vegetable dishes I’ve ever made. Who knew baked veggies could be so amazing? This simple recipe is so good, I have no motivation to try the immensely more complicated one you linked to in the post.
We have made this about once a year since you posted the original recipe, and we love it every time!
Here are our most recent tweaks:
Baking it in our largest skillet – lacking any sort of large round/oval baking dish.
Foil and parchment seem to work equally well.
Sprinkled oregano leaves, not thyme, over the top (thyme plant was recently stolen… wtf?)
Last night served with a roasted pork tenderloin. They go perfectly together!
What’s so tricky about cutting the parchment? Before putting food in the backing dish, simply place the dish upside down on the parchment paper. Trace the outside of the dish with a pencil, then cut parchment about a 1/4 inch inside the traced line and Voila, you should have a perfect fitting piece of parchment for inside the dish.
hey listen you made it wrong this type of ratatouille is based off of the stew and it is baked a chef created this confit and he let the rat *remy* make it so if you look it up on youtube and find ONE that looks like your discription look at it it is supposed to be marinated overnight and cooked late at nightwith a combination of japanese eggplant yellow or butternut squash tomatoes onions garlic seasoning on the top *basil etc.* and bellpeppers it will be marinated over night after covering it for the almost entire cooking session and then you cool it off, cover it with ceran wrap and let it chill and marinate in the fridge overnight like i said for the 3ed time i know in the movie it was shorter but the juices has to mellow out and become one and once its finished marinating you pop it in the oven for 10-15 minutes then serve it on a platter with tomato sauce with balsamic and you drizzle it around the edges and you garnish it with a chive stem this should be a hint to were you should look and how you will know it is the correct video i am young about 11 but i am a cooking prodigy *stealing a line from ratatouille* ANYONE can cook! just take this advice and you and your friends will have the best ratatouille they EVER had! thx if you listen to my advice ^_^ :D
Unfortunately, this didn’t turn out well for me, the vegetables came out rubbery and the eggplant bitter, and when I tried to increase the cooking time, the squashes were too mushy and the eggplant even rubberier. Is that a word? It is now. A disappointment as I like my summer veggies and was trying to find a recipe that worked for them. Might try again sometime later, and salt the eggplant to reduce bitterness and marinate the veggies overnight.
Wow, what a wonderful dish and it comes out so pretty! This one is a keeper!
Thank you SO MUCH for creating this recipe Deb! Been a huge fan of the Smitten Kitchen for a while now, just not far enough back to see your original post. I was thinking about it and thinking about it and finally got around to Googling for ratatouille — your luscious photo was the first image hit, how about that? :o)
I followed your recipe to the letter with the exception of adding sliced roma tomatoes into the mix. Gave me another reason to break out the mandoline (borner) that I asked for and received last Christmas.
Watched Ratatouille (again! again! again!) just this past Monday and followed on by making the delicious dish for dinner. I’m gonna have to say that tomatoes are definitely sliced into the animated version. ;o) And people are right, it DOES taste better the next day and it serves up very well cold. So leftovers or not, it’ll make for a delicious dish whether you keep it hot or not.
I should also mention that I generally HATE eggplant but I love it in ratatouille! :D
I made this yesterday afternoon. It was a COMPLETE SUCCESS! I modified your recipe by adding fresh basil and I used sliced tomatoes instead of tomato sauce.
Thank you, it was insanely delicious. I made 2 big trays of it and we polished one of them off last night. Guess what we’re having for lunch today :-)
Easily the BEST recipe I’ve pulled off the internet in 2011. Thanks!
I have made this four times in two weeks because it is that insanely good! I make ratatouille all the time, but this is by far the best and easiest version I have made.
The movie was great as well…..
My three sons are always turning their noses up at eggplant and squash. When I told them I was making ratatouille, they were quite enthusiastic albeit skeptical when I told them what was in it. I piled it up on their plates like the movie and they gobbled it up declaring how delicious it was!!! One son added hot sauce and said it was even tastier! Thanks for a new way to feed my kids their vegetables!
how many servings does it make?
How much is the serving size for this if it was the main dish?
BELLA
P.S.Where did you find this recipe?
Made this tonight for my “convent” and they all LOVED it– even my picky 10 year old. Served it over bow tie pasta with a sprinkle of chopped fresh basil and a bit of Dubliner cheese. YUMMY!! Thanks!
Good gravy, I loved making this! My family, friends and girlfriend always requests this dish. It goes great with bœf borginion al a Julia Childs! Thank you for posting this recipe!
Just wanted to say that I love you for this! So cute, so delicious.
Ha! I just looked this up and have got to tell you that my daughter (now 10) and I had the same thought when we saw the movie. This year we altered our fanned style and after preroasting the veggie slices to dry them a bit, we made a layered tart/pizza/galette with them. I used a caramelized onion jam as the “sauce” on the dough, and shredded a bit of mizithra cheese over the top. The best yet! Thought I’d share…
OK. Never try this on a food processor. Fortunately I had done my mis en place(!) so that I only needed to layer the veggies in place after I almost sliced my finger off on the blade of the slicing attachment. Dumb move. Not sure I could be trusted with a mandoline now.After the clean-up, first aid, and whining, I just dumped in the veggies on top of the sauce with its onion and garlic, sort of moving them about to spread them out a bit. Also included some chopped parsley and basil.Topped with the pepper rings, a layer of parchment, and slam! into the oven for 55 minutes. Served the dish on top of Pastene cappelli d’angelo pasta. Delicious even if not as pretty as yours. Next time, I want to add some pattypan squash in the mix, and let it sit for a bit to mellow the flavors. This thread is now over two years old! Ratatouille rules!
Did you have to prep the eggplant at all before putting it into the dish?
I used the eggplant straight.
Thanks! Good to know.
How funny – I just thought to do the same thing and figured I had better check in case someone else did it already (ratatouille from Ratatouille). I have a slightly different idea but if I pull it off, I’ll still link back to you.
Gorgeous!
I’m so glad you made this recipe!!!! I made ratatouille for the first time just becuase of the movie and I really wanted to make it as beautiful as his and now I can!!
Hi! Great recipe! I’m going to try to make this tonight for my wife and I, because a friend of ours gave us way to much zucchini and squash from his garden.
I had a question to, I actually work for a NPR station in Philly and the website I take care of (WHYY’s Fit) is always looking for recipe submitters. A co-worker said she’s never cooked a bad recipe on your site. So, my producers were wondering if we could post/use this recipe on our site? (And any others that have a healthy standard) Of course we would give you and your site full credit as we do with others that submit and let us use their recipes.
thanks!
-Matt
Thank you so much for taking the time to recreate this dish. We are trying to eat more veggies and it proves tricky with our son, I have always wanted to try ratatouille but it always looks mushy. This though looks delicious! Thank you again!!!
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe! I made it for “Boss Luncheon” at the office. It looked and tasted great, everybody was asking me for the recipe! I posted a photo of my dish on my blog!
I’ve made this three times, and each time we swoon. My husband thought he didn’t like eggplant. Ho ho! I did peel mine which made for a less-colorful version, but this is such a lovely dish anyway. We LOVE it and make it every couple of months. Thanks so much!
Thank you so much! I have to admit that this version is the closest I have seen to the version in the movie! And I love it.
Ahoj, Deb! Today I published an old post on my blog, where I made ratatouille after your recipe. The blog is in Norwegian, but I tought it only polite to tell you about it anyways as I even quote you in the post! You can see it here: http://juksemat.blogspot.com/2011/11/ratatouille-la-rottatouille.html
It was a perfect dish to go with raclette!
Can you bake it in the oven and then put it in a crock pot?
Can we cook the dish without using parchment paper?
Zoey: You can use foil instead. The purpose of the parchment paper is to prevent the veg from over drying and turning brown.
This recipe is delicious!! Much like you and others, I always wanted to try ratatouille like the one in the movie. I just made it for my family while I was home during winter break. Super simple, and my parents loved it. Thanks for sharing!
I usually make a more “rustic” version with roasted veggies tossed with tomatoes, roasted garlic and balsamic. But I needed something “prettier” to take to a Passover seder last year…where we were joined by several gluten-free vegetarians. Now that is a dietary triple threat to cook for — kosher for passover, gluten free, and veg ! This was the PERFECT choice, accompanied by a quinoa pilaf with fresh herbs and pine nuts. Very elegant and healthy without making a big deal over the need for “special” food for some of the guests. This is now my standard spring/summer ratatouille – and I save the roasted version for fall and winter !
I made this dish a few times, following your recipe, but making it mine at the same time… anyway, my family LOVED it! I always wanted to try ratatouille (the name sounded so cool) and after watching the movie – hands down had to have some.. here I am, a few years later – and it was worth the wait – just like the critic in the movie – we swooned over it :) Thanks again!
This is the very best recipe! I found this after my daughter fell in love with the movie and have been making it regularly ever since. You are amazing!
Thank you for all of your recipes.
My roommates and I just made this fabulous dish. Thank you so much. We have decided it was the best thing we have made yet (we use your site a lot for recipe inspiration!). We had a lot of potatoes that needed to be eaten, and made garlic parsley mashed potatoes to use as the base for your dish. It was AMAZING! Thank you!
I was so excited to try your dish- looks amazing!- so ran out and bought all the ingredients, however, I now have to go out of town this weekend. Do you think I can freeze it?
I will make this with my daughter this week!
Hi, I just made this ratatouille for a party and just having it on the table upped my street cred amongst my gourmet relatives. Thanks!
My compliments for this recipe! I just made this ratatouille dish for lunch and it was just soooo delicious! Dishes like this make it so easy to be vegetarian! I thought the movie was one of the cutest I have seen since years and so inspiring as I just love to cook from scratch.
Already planning on making this again. I did make some changes. I saw an italian sausage and ratatouille recipe on Simply Recipes and since I had some sausage on hand I sliced them in with the veggies (combo of hot and sweet italian sausage, just browned in a pan beforehand). I also added a dash of cinnamon and cayenne pepper to the sauce. As for the sauce, I used a pasta sauce instead of tomato puree since I had some sauce to use up and I appreciated the extra flavors the sauce gave. Loved the cinnamon/cayenne in the sauce and I will add that again next time. I also loved the sausage (esp the hot sausage) but the thicker slices of sausage took away from presentation so next time I might just take the sausage out of the casings, brown them a bit and then crumble them into the sauce. Oh, and I added rosemary to the thyme sprinkle over the veggies. Plus, I used a circle of foil instead of parchment paper over the top because I never remember to pick up parchment paper. I overcooked it a bit because I wasn’t sure if it was done or not at 45 minutes so I added another 10 minutes (since the recipe said 45-55 minutes) which was way too much. Just something to play around with I guess. Overall, absolutely delicious! Having the cheese with it really puts it over the top. Just had it with pasta since that was what I had and it was SO good. Thanks for the recipe!
Made this tonight, definitely botched the laying of the vegetable slices, but omg was it ever delicious! Hopefully, next time I make it, it looks better (and tastes just as good!).
I made this the other night. YUMMY! Thank you so much. Next time, I will make sure I serve it over cous cous or something to grab all that delicious sauce. This was soooo good :D
I made this for part of Easter dinner. It was super fun! Thank you for posting the recipe. I attempted to post a picture of mine in this text box… but i am just not that talented. :)
~Barbara
How many does this serve?
I’ll make this again and again! Really, I can’t find the superlative that’s adequate to describe how good this is. I too saw “Ratatouille” and wanted to experience what the food critic felt. Now, I think I have. I’ve worked professionally in some great kitchens. This recipe is a keeper right down to the goat cheese. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Looking forward to trying this! just bought all the veggies that are in this at the farmer’s market and I was looking for a good way to use them. This looks great! Thanks for sharing!
My 4yr old son has been wanting to try ratatouille just like the movie of course. So we finally made it today. And it was so beautiful and delicious. I’m not the kind of girl who enjoys cooking or even really knows how. I mostly boil or microwave lol. However this recipe was incredibly easy and lots of fun to do with my son. It has really inspired me to start trying to cook other things, so thank you for your wonderful recipe.
Great recipe! I substituted crushed tomato for the tomato puree and used Herbes de Provence instead of fresh thyme. Turned out really well! Impressive looking and even my husband who hates eggplant and zucchini enjoyed it! Thank you!
Mmmm! Just made this for dinner with 2 summer squash and 2 zucchini (because that’s what was available at the grocery store, and I don’t like eggplant) in an 8×8 pan. I had enough sliced veggies left over to make a teeny one in a loaf pan! I only had jarred garlic pasta cause, so I used that in place of the tomato/onion/garlic in the bottom of the pan.
I love my mandoline :)
I make this for my kids (ages 2 and 3) ALL the time. I put it over colorful pasta and top it with parmesan cheese. It’s their favorite meal!
P.S. it tastes even better with fresh veggies from farmers market and the kids have a blast tasting all the fresh fruit and veggies!
I have made this several times now and it’s a hit at our house! So colorful and taste terrific too! You are right, the worst part is getting that pesky parchment paper to lay flat. I’ve bent it, folded it, tucked it down the sides…nothing worked. Finally, I put a small ramekin dish on top of the paper and that did the trick!
I always have a lot of left over vegetable pieces so I save those for stir fry in the next day or two.
Thanks for this recipe, it’s delicious!!!
Watched Ratatouille and got hungry for Remy’s dish. :) I made this last night and my goodness, it is delicious!! Only thing I changed was, I sauted the onions and garlic in a little olive oil before adding to the sauce and I had to cover my dish with foil because I didn’t have an parchment paper on hand. Thank you for sharing the recipe. I think I will be making this weekly.
i loooooved the movie and for my dads birthday we are going to cook it for him….lots of fun
We loved the ratatouille it was sooo good… thanx for the recipe
My 11yr old son wanted me to make this dish after he saw this movie. And it turned out amazing and he loved it
Watched this tonight with my children and am planning on making this tomorrow! Thanks for the recipe. Looks lovely and just like the film.
Yummers!! I’m looking at this dish and vision a raw salad with a light vinegarette dressing drizzled over it. Hold the eggplant and replace it with cucumbers and roma tomatos. Sound good?
Holy foo! This is amazing. I made it with butternut squash and had it with some nuts and raw mushrooms and chickpeas on the side, just because that’s what I had. Unbelievably delicious. I’m sure 346 comments of praise speak for themselves, but I have one thing to say: You are a genius!
I think i’m going to try to make this dish next!
Ah! I’ve been looking for this recipe (I love the movie to death) and all I could find were chunky stew-like recipes that resembled the more well-known and plain ratatouille, instead of the delectable-looking version seen in the movie! Thank you! I am definitely going to make this!
Thank you for this recipe: my son wanted ratatouille Remy style and I wasnt that hopeful I’d find a hint on the web. Instead, here it is! My ratatouille is now baking, while Ego’s mother version is stewing on the burner: we’ll see who wins… Thanks again!
YOU are my Gusteau! It’s recipes like this that make me feel like I really can cook! This was easy, quick, and unbelievably delicious, not to mention heart-healthy and easy on the eyes. Just know that your wit and your recipes are so appreciated. Thanks you!
This was just what I was looking for as far as recipes go! I changed it up just a little to suit the “what I have in the fridge” issue, and I know it wouldnt be authentic, but i used canned stewed tomatos instead of puree, and added some celery into the mix. *crosses fingers* I hope it turns out well!
I found it very difficult to use the mandolin for the eggplant and peppers, so I wound up using a knife. It does a great job on the zucchini and squash though!
After a lot of trial and error and Benadryl, I found out I am allergic to eggplant but loved the dish. Any other recommendations to replace eggplant?
My 14 year old has been waiting to make this since the movie came out. I had found your recipe a while ago and finally gave in. It was good! Thank you for a fairly easy, yet delicious recipe!
Hi there! I’m a thirty-seven year old Mum, ready to cook this dish tomorrow! My two daughters and two sons watched the movie yesterday, so today I did lots of researching. Found this easy/simple/scrumptious recipe! I really hope it works out well. I’m going to buy the ingredients and I’ll get back to you. :)
^^Nora
P.S. Dame Dalla Winskey? I tried going to your ‘damedallarestaurant.com’ but it doesn’t exist. Are you lying to us all – about your restaurant? You seem like you’re showing off . . . But honestly, this Smitten Kitchen is way better than you, no offence! You sound like you’re a twelve-year-old
It’s in the oven right now with the movie just starting. We’ll let ya know how it turns out.
Brad
Alabaster, Al.
Thanks for the recipe. Like Brad said above, it is in the oven.
Thanks a ton again.
Cheers
Arun
Chennai, India
Itmay have been 5 years ago that you created this wonderful recipe but I am just now finding it. Had some friends and family over and knew some were on strict vegetable diets, this was the perfect recipe though I substitutes the eggplant for some sweet potatoe. It worked wonderfully. I’ll be making it again – and it gave me an excuse to buy a mandoline!
I made it with my father and it is in the oven now. We hope it will taste good…
Thanks a lot to the rat.
Sona – 12 years
from Armenia
I’m trying to get on the Meatless Monday bandwagon, so I made this ratatouille dish this evening. My family devoured it! I’ve never made “traditional” ratatouille, and don’t know that I ever will, because there’s no need to improve upon perfection!
I’ve just tried it out. It’s delicious!!! I thought it was a complicated dish, but in fact, it’s easy :) Thanks for inspiration! :)
This recipe was awesome! My hubby and son watched Ratatouille twice this past weekend, and so naturally, they both begged mommy to cook ratatouille like Remy. Well, this recipe was such a success! With minor tweaks here and there (as my family are definite carnivores), I had added slices of salami and it was delicious! Also added balsamic vinegar dressing to top it off during last 5-10 min and that did the trick for us. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Just made this for dinner tonight! Naturally, after watching Ratatouille the other night i felt inspired to actually make the dish. It came out wonderful and will become a regular in my cookbook. I also added a bit of romano cheese grated on top before cooking for a little twist. DELICIOUS. Your recipes never fail. Thank you for everything!
This looks great can’t wait to try it.
I’ve made this dish often and you can swap Italian spices for the thyme and serve with pasta, makes a nice dish this way. Also add a dash of crushed red pepper for zing. I’ve found that the leftovers make a nice pasta sauce, too – just toss into the food processor and push the button for a few seconds and voila! you have primavera. The mix of veggies can be varied depending on what you have on hand. This is a go-to dish for me!
Well, I guess you really weren’t alone with having become intrigued by the look of te dish in the film. Three hundred and sixty-six comments! I found your posting bey the photo, because I was looking for precisely this rat ratatouille. I loved your comment that you can’t believe you are being inspired by an imaginary rat. But I think it’s OK. this really was a great movie, for the kind of movie it was; and the way in which the critic was transported to his childhood was simply brilliant, because that’s what food does. Thanks so much for posting this recipe!
Just popped this into the oven… can’t wait!
I love Julia Child’s recipe for ratatouille, but usually restaurant versions are ho hum. This looks just gorgeous and I’ll have to make it some time. Cheers!
I’m right there with you, however this wasn’t something I ever even thought about trying. Luckily though my 6 year old, who is a very picky eater turned to me about 2 weeks ago after watching the movie again, and says “Mommy, will you make Ratatouille for me? I promise I will eat it.” Now this alone shocked me as I have only been able to get her to eat peas, corn and carrots, nothing else. So I’ve been scouring the internet trying to find this recipe, bonus is that my Vegetarian Husband is dying to try this as well, because it’s something new. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for creating this recipe. *Fingers crossed* Here’s hoping its a hit.
How many servings does it make???
What a beautiful dish! I managed to impress my Granny at Christmas dinner, which is no easy feat.
My 12 year ild daughter made this dish for christmas and it was so delicious, simple recepie and great taste!
First smittenkitchen recipe I made. This ratatouille is easy to make and delicious! I served it over quinoa (cooked with a bit of leftover zucchini and red bell pepper) and watched the movie Rataouille after making it.
I first saw this recipe in your cookbook, and made the veggie subs for some vegans at a Christmas party. They were A Hit! However, I had some of the roasted veggies left, and have to tell you that they made a lovely veggie lasagna. Noodles, white sauce, parm, veggies (with any of the tomato sauce that clings to them) — layer and bake. (I did add a little s&p to the veggies.) Beautiful, delicious and ridiculously quick and easy.
A pleasure reading through the much looked for recipe! Almost connecting with me in person. The picture i must admit lead me to zero in upon your version of ratatouille.Though the yellow coloured vegetable may be difficult to source, I will try to stick to the said work. Thanks in advance!
Made this for dinner tonight alongside a turkey meatloaf. Delicious! I used the slicer attachment on my food processor to cut all the veggies. I also used canned tomato sauce because that’s what I had on hand.
lol…..loved the movie…. can’t wait to finally taste ratatouille!!
Made this from the Smitten Kitchen cookbook last night and we inhaled most of it…just enough for one more sub for today’s lunch. My cast iron skillet worked perfectly. I’ll be making this again, soon.
I’ve made this now 5 times – the first time I made it, within moments of having the first bite, I took out my newly-cleaned baking dish to make more because I knew I was going to want to eat more for the rest of the week! It impressed the always-skeptical vegetarian boyfriend (who swore up and down that he hated ratatouille, and then he ate about the entire pan), and I also introduced your dish to my sister, who eats paleo, and with a couple minor variations she now makes it all the time as well. Thanks for another outstanding dish, Deb!
I just made this for dinner, and I had to write in and tell you how amazing it was. I served it on rolls with a bit of pesto and some fresh mozzarella, and it was absolutely incredible. My husband, who is a born-and-bred Kansas meat and potatoes guy, even loved it!
Just wanted to let you know that I make this ALLLLL the time and absolutely love it. I’ve turned friends and family members who are meat-meal only peeps into ravenous ratatouille cravers, and it’s in regular rotation. I also ADORE your cookbook. That is all :)
Loved it! My kids and I watched the movie Ratatouille and made the dish last night. Very tasty and the kids actually ate their veggies!
Last night I made a mixed up version combining your recipe and Thomas Keller’s Confit Biyaldi. Having a full house of non-veggie eaters, I was a little worried, but it ended up tasting hauntingly delicious! Thank you for the inspiration.
Anyone can cook! Beautiful, delicious, easy, and impressive presentation…Love it!
Great blog too!
i am 11 i am a good cook and i did it for my parents they loved it thanks a lot
OMG I am writing a request to Disney to make more food related movies to get my kids to eat vegetables!! I absolutely love this@!
Yes yes yeeeeeees,
I am one of those thousand of people who adored the movie and craved to taste that delicious coloured and sliced ratatouille!
THANK YOU SO MUCH
I love all of the recipes I make from you site, but this is by far one of my favorites. I’ve made it several times, but usually just for myself to enjoy. I recently started living with my boyfriend and have really wanted to make it, but have been afraid that he might not be a fan of such a simple, vegan meal. He’s not what I call a “chicken-tenders-only” type of person, but isn’t always too adventurous with food.
I’ve been cooking my way through your cookbook and was inspired by your idea of placing the lovely ratatouille on a baguette. I thought maybe if I told my boyfriend I was making “subs” it would spark his interest :) I made it last night and watched nervously as he ate the first bite. His eyes lit up and exclaimed that it was amazing. He promptly ate a half loaf of baguette heaping with ratatouille.
Thanks for providing an outlet for my boyfriend and I to eat a tasty vegan meal!
I made this recipe last night and it was wonderful! I served it over saffron risotto and it was delightful :) Thank you for posting!
I have to thank you for keeping your site up and running! I made your ratatouille last year and it was so delish. All through summer I enjoyed it. My hubby wouldn’t even try it, OK more for me :) Anyway, I just bought a treasure trove of fresh veggies to make it today and couldn’t find my recipe….absolute panic set in! Thankfully with google, I found you again. I love the tomato puree which to me says it’s more of the movie version which is the only one I want. **Phew**, now I can rest easy for tonight dinner and put the print out in my recipe file again :)
your picture is on the wikipedia page for ratatouille!
Almost everyday, I watch Ratatouille and pause the bit where the ratatouille is made and then I enter paradise looking at the delicious dish. Does anyone know what that stick kind of thing that linguini puts on top of the ratatouille is?
This.is.epic. We have made this two nights in a row because we are flooded with garden veg. We swapped tomato slices for the peppers, did not use sauce on the bottom but caramelized onions and garlic, topped with parm and Herbs de Provence. It makes a beautiful broth on the bottom that is delicious soaked up with toasted sourdough.
this was amazing, delicious, and easy! (aside from the part where i chopped off a chunk of my finger with my old, dull-as-hell mandoline). i’ll be making this all summer =)
This was a blast to make and now I’m enjoying all the deliciousness along with the movie.
Watching it steam when I took the parchment paper off was nothing short of magical. :)
I made this delectable dish last night. My family and I ate it for dinner. It was delicious w/pasta and bread. The leftovers the next day were just as good too! It was also a good excuse to bust out the mandoline again. :-)
Wonderful recipe! I fried up the extra eggplant and zucchini that I had to freeze for a future “Parmesan” dinner. This is definitely a make-again recipe!
Hi! This looks so delicious!! Ratatouille is one of my all time favorite movies. I was just wondering how many people this serves… Can’t wait to start cooking!
We have made this dish many times, both in a conventional oven and our solar oven. We use Japanese eggplant, which is long and thin, because it is about the same diameter as the squash and zucchini. Thank you so much for making this delightful and healthy dish come to life.
The movie has been getting a lot of airtime on the Disney channel this month and my 7 year old has been begging me to make Ratatouille. Thank you so much for this recipe! We sliced all our veggies by hand (he did the chinese eggplant and the zucchini). He did the entire assembly, and miracle, he LOVED the dish! (Usually I have to sneak pureed veggies into the spaghetti sauce.) Luckily we had enough veggies for 2 dishes because the whole family had seconds (and the little guy had 3 servings :). We served over couscous with goat cheese. Everyone skipped the couscous after the first serving. We dined while watching the movie. Outstanding! We’re going to try the tart next. Again – thank you so much.
So I had just recently watched the movie Ratatouille and I hadnt watched it in a very long time and I realized that I forgot how much I loved it. I also realized how much the food had inspired me and how tempting the food had all looked. Then I said to myself I want to make these foods and the first one that popped up in my mind was this recipe. And now thanks to you I know how to make it! :)
What a wonderful dish.We made it for the first time tonight. My 11 year old sliced the veggies on the mandolin(with the guard of course) and helped with the assembly. We used veggies from our garden and from the farmer’s market. It tastes as beautiful as it looks. It may appear intimidating, but don’t be afraid. Its a breeze to make . Great dish!
Do I need to add more time to cook if I add sliced sausage to the layered accordian of beauty?
I’m a recent vegetarian (3 weeks and going strong) and my favourite dish is ratatouille at the min! And it is so good for you!!! I like to spice it up with a little chilli in the tomato sauce and add basil!! Also slice in strong mature cheddar and layer! Yummy!! It freezes well too so it’s my lunch for the week! Also you old try vegetable chilli! Available on the Jamie Oliver website…totes amaze balls!
I have to say that I have no regrets after trying this recipe! Ok – maybe there is one – why I made so little of this… Thank you for sharing!
we made this tonight after watching the movie as a family. my four year old had four huge helpings, goat cheese included. thanks for this recipe, its a keeper!
Tonight, while watching the movie, I made a version of your recipe. I eliminated the eggplant and used zucchini, yellow squash, red & yellow peppers. It was a HUGE hit!!! Not only beautiful, but delicious as well! My 7 year old devoured it. Thanks!!
oh yes, you’re not alone.
I don’t have a comment, but a question (& I don’t have time to read 408 comments to get my answer:). so, where in the heck do I find Italian eggplant? I’ve had a lot of trouble finding it.
Julie — What kind is available to you? The variety doesn’t matter that much.
Ok, I’ll just get the regular eggplant. Thanks Deb. Since I am on here now, in the movie, they used a sauce, do you know a recipe for the sauce?
Got any recipes for the “lightningy” mushroom Remy cooked on the old ladies roof? It looked delicious. I could probably get the ingredients from the movie, but would I toast it, roast it or bake it? Thanks for the great website!
This recipe was delicious! I made it for dinner this evening and the dish has an explosion of flavor. Nothing too overpowering or strong. The preparation was easy and throwing it in the oven makes it so easy. The only time consuming part is cutting up the vegetables.
This was my first attempt at making this particular dish and you can’t go wrong with this recipe. Thank you for sharing!
~s
I like this recipe to make ratatouille even thought im like youny this is a perfect dish
I am not crazy about these kind of vegetables but I made it & tried it anyway & it was pretty good, but my parents LOVED it. I’ll be making it again for them sometime.
was looking for a ratatouille recipe (yes, because of the cute cartoon rat). And found it really funny to discover that I make this dish already but not so pretty! :)
Ever since i watched the movie Ratatouille I really wanted to cook the dish. When I found out the ingredients that was inside I was first put of as they are not my favorite vegetables in the world! But I made it anyway. It was great fun to make and I was surprised I could make something look so colorful and similar to movie! It even looked restaurant material when I plated it up!I have made this twice so far for different people and each time it has tasted amazing! Thank you for the great recipe! I will definitely be using it alot more in the future!
Gemma :)
Made an impromptu version for dinner. It looked and smelled so good that we dove right in and finished it before pausing to Instagram it…
I made this tonight, and served it on a bed of mashed potatoes, with steamed spinach on the side. It was AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS! The flavours worked together so well. I’ve never liked a recipe as much as I like this one. My family loved it and gave it the highest scores. I’ll definitely be cooking it again and again – and serving it up to all my guests. Thankyou for this fantastic creation. Judy :)
Absolutely everything you hope it will be. Delicious. Savory. Filling. Wonderful dinner with just the goat cheese on top and some french bread. Incredibly easy. LOVE IT!!
Made it.
Stuck the Film on.
Ate Ratatouille, watched Ratatouille.
It was righteous…
FIVE STAR REVIEW… this recipe was FANTASTIC! I made a few minor adjustments, like using Greek oregano instead of the other herbs, and served it with a dollop of sour cream & pesto sauce as well as some crumbled feta. DELISH! I will definitely be making this again.
I was looking for the recipe for ratatouille and couldn’t believe I found this one. I didn’t waste anytime fixing it for my family. Though the kids weren’t big on it (too many veggies for them lol), my boyfriend and I loved it!!!! Its been made our fave dish!!
Fantastic – doesn’t need the parchment, just put some foil over.
I spiced it up a bit by making a bit of a tomato sauce for the base – canned whole tomatoes, garlic, onions, a bit of wine, and anchovies simmered for 30 mins or so.
Amazing.
My advice – MAKE 2!!! This was AMAZING!!! I made 2 of them exactly as the recipe says. We ate through most of them the first evening. Great recipe – thank you so much for sharing. Definitely going in my “keeper” file. I think this year I may grow eggplant, squash and zucchini in the garden, just so I can use it with this recipe. Fantastic!
This was OUTSTANDING! We had enough veggies leftover to make another batch the second day and most definitely did! It was rich and luxurious – definitely one of the best veggie dishes I’ve ever had. We used goat cheese and some vinaigrette made with aged balsamic, extra virgin olive oil, herbes de Provence and fresh thyme, seasoned with salt and pepper. Beautiful!
Oh my foodness(Typo. I like it so it stays)! This has to be the most versatile recipe of ratatouille I have come across. I was initially intimidated by this recipe because of how beautiful it looks. I didn’t have most of the ingredients or tools, so I improvised. I didn’t have the eggplant, squash, pureed tomatoes,a mandolin slicer, or a dish that would work for this type of recipe. So, instead I used mushrooms and heirloom tomatoes in place of the squash and eggplant. I pureed my own tomatoes using a can of diced fire roasted tomatoes, and I arranged everything in individual baking dishes that I purchased from Pier 1. I also had Herbs de Provence and sprinkled that on top. It turned out AMAZING and it was so beautiful to look at. I served this with oven fried polenta squares so as not to take away from the wonderful flavors of the ratatouille. My husband and I enjoyed it so much, I’m going to make it again and share the recipe on my blog!
served this, this evening to friends. Needed a good vegetarian dish. Fabulous!!!
By the way doubling recipe, baking in a 13″x10″ pan serves 8 nicely. Thank you so much for coming up with the recipe.
how did you determine that this recipe didnt have herbs de province?
kyle — This isn’t an official authentic ratatouille recipe, just a quick hack that makes a pretty dish. You can absolutely use herbes de province if it wouldn’t be ratatouille-like without it for you.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who made this immediately after seeing the movie! Thought it was quick, easy, and delicious. Thanks for another great recipe Deb!
this is not bad I made it multi times it is delicious the best dish I had made in years
I am still young funny thing to me
Loved the movie … each time I saw it…. Your recipe works superbly. It’s easy enough to make, straightforward ingredients, simple process, fantastic result! I find it interesting that all of the ingredients, though fine on their own, become something quite different and quite special when they are brought together (as in “…are you tasting the nuttiness?”). Thanks.
I have a little ‘kitchen mayhem’ story to share about my experience cooking this recipe.
I’ve been cooking a lot of meals with asian and middle eastern flavours recently, and as much as I enjoy those types of foods, I was looking to change it up a bit. I decided on your recipe, and got to work painstakingly slicing those veggies as thinly as I could (I need to invest in a mandoline for sure). The layers didn’t look nearly as pretty as yours since my vegetables were all different sizes, but I put it all together in *what I thought was* an oven-safe baking dish, and thought it looked pretty darn good. I put it in the oven and turned my attention to other things, until a few minutes later I heard a faint “clunk” sort of noise followed by the hissing sound of liquid hitting a hot surface. With curiosity I opened the door to the oven, got a big whiff of smoke, and saw that the glass dish had split in half, spilling ratatouille onto the racks and bottom of the oven. Of course the smoke alarm went off too, so it was a chaotic moment of running to turn it off with a broomstick, opening a window, wiping up the mess and carefully removing the broken pieces from the oven (thankfully it was a clean break and there were only the two pieces). I didn’t want all that effort for a beautiful meal to go to complete waste, so I salvaged what I could of the food, dumped it into a smaller but definitely-oven-safe dish and stuck it back in to bake. It looked nothing like that beautiful photo in the recipe, but it tasted pretty good! I’m looking forward to trying it again with more appropriately-sized veggies, and of course an appropriate baking vessel ;)
well ! I was so good and easy to make, LOVED IT !!!!!!!!!!
I just made this tonight an my dad said it looked like a picture. It is pretty to look at and tastes just like it looks sooo YUMMY!!! I like that it is vegan and gluten free makes eating healthy a breeze :)
Mandoline Tip: The hand guard that comes with the device does a good job of protecting your fingers, but a poor job of delivering even slices. Better is to use a kevlar glove.
http://goo.gl/lWt4aj
Oh. My. Gawd. I’m actually glad the husband got called to go to work before this was finished! It looks gorgeous, and tastes fantastic. Really easy, too, and gives me some quality time with my mandoline! Taking over to the folks’ tomorrow after church. Poor hubby, the leftovers will probably be licked clean by the time he gets back!
came out great and very pretty! i ended up slicing the veggies by hand, and it really wasnt much work to throw this together. i used pomi strained tomatoes and dried thyme instead of fresh. would definitely make again.
Thank you so much!! I wrote down the recipe from several sources..but they did not look like what I fell in love with on the movie!!! Yours was the one I wanted!!! I will try it as soon as I get all the ingredients!! and I will stack it just as seen on the movie!
can I skip the parchment paper? would love to make this disg tonight but dont have any parchment paper laying around :/
Caroline — Yes, you can use a lid or foil that’s not too tightly wrapped (leave some room for venting). The parchment keeps the ingredients submerged in their cooking juices, so they don’t dry out before they bake through so just keep that in mind as you choose an alternative.
My first ever mandoline was delivered yesterday and I inaugurated it today with this recipe. Tastes delicious and I got many wows for how pretty it looks. The thyme adds a great flavor! Thanks for this healthy and tasty recipe.
Hope your move is going well, and excited for your new book venture!
My house smells so yummy with this and the fresh herbs I used.
So when I made this, I cut WAY too many veggies and discovered something lovely. You can assemble the recipe, cover and freeze it, then bake from frozen without any issues! I ended up making 2 pans of ratatouille since I had so many sliced veggies leftover and the second (frozen) batch was still delicious. Technically I did make Thomas Keller’s version, but I imagine the results will be the same. For reference, I sliced up 4 kinds of small, assorted yellow and green squash; eggplant; and tomatoes.
This is so delightful! Thank you for making this recipe. It’s so cute how faithful it is to the movie. It brought us a lot of joy last night. :)
I made this tonight for dinner & it was fantastic! I added a sprinkling of herbs d’provence to the top before baking & grated some ricotta salata (what I had on hand) over the top after serving (will do goat cheese next time for sure) & served with some garlic rubbed slices of whole wheat baguette. It was a great way to use up seasonal vegetables from my CSA & a great dinner for a temperate summer evening. When I told my husband what I was making for dinner all he wanted to know was if it was going to be “like the one made by little chef?” & when I told him yes, he was excited about it (simple pleasures). Using the mandoline made this easy to make. Will keep this in mind for future company. Cartoon food always looks so good & your recipe did it justice by far!!
Parchment paper tip:
Before you start, flip your casserole dish upside down on a piece of parchment and trace it with a pencil. Then you can cut out your piece and you’re ready to go.
I’ve loved all your recipes so far. Looking forward to making this one tonight!
7 years later and this is still one of my favorite and go-to recipes.
Finally made this dish after years of wanting to try. It came out great! Even the pickiest eater in the house ate it, and my husband was sad when it was finished off. Will definitely be making this one again.
My young son is obsessed with this movie, and asked me what ratatouille is? We looked on the internet and found your recipe. It looked so beautiful and so like the one in the movie, that I actually got him to try it (NOT an adventurous eater!). He didn’t like it, but my DH and I DEVOURED it, it is so delicious! I’ve made it 3 times since and it’s excellent every time. Thank you for sharing it!
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Made this for a perfect accompaniment to mustard lemon chicken on the barbecue for a warm summer night. I used a cuisinart to slice the veggies and it was so quick and easy. I only had diced tomatoes on hand, so that’s what I used. I thought cutting the parchment was pretty quick – I didn’t see a need to stencil and cut, I just eyeballed it. Looked so pretty, will make this again and again for sure.
This makes the best lunch served over orzo(that’s what I had) with a little baked lemon chicken! Thank you
Deb – I will be making this recipe for a dinner party on Saturday. I’m expecting ten, plus myself. How much of this should I make? (There will be two other courses, as well as hors d’oeuvres.)
Thanks!
Branden — If it’s just a side, I’d say 2. You can make 3 if you’d really like a good chance at leftovers.
8 years later, this recipe is still goin strong! This is in my oven right now and the comments are only making me MORE excited. We’re not big couscous people so I’m serving over orzo. Thanks again for sharing this! Love Ratatouille- and I don’t even have kids yet :)
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i have made this numerous times. the best is with all the vegies, garlic and thyme fresh picked from my garden. this is so tasty!! i have made it with large portebello mushrooms and it is sooooo good. thank you so much for sharing the recipe!!
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Wow, this looks almost like art. I do it always more roughly. But at the end it has to taste :-) http://www.allekochen.com/ratatouille-der-bekannte-franzoesische-klassiker
br, Alex
I loved the movie. I met Ratatouille at the French restaurant at Epcot. Was looking for a recipe for yellow squash…decided to go with my favorite rat chef. I too wanted to make this and you came up with a fabulous recipe. It was amazing. My 7 year old nice gave it 10. Thank you!
Okay, but isn’t this dish actually something called tian? I just know this because I saw a different version online and then looked it up. It is called Tian Provençal and according to what I’ve read the ingredients are the same as ratatouille but the cooking method is different. BTW tian is named after the ceramic baking dish in which it is cooked.
If you think the above is pointless, then I have another question which would be what is the diff between strata and bread pudding (savory)? Also, for those of you looking for the recipe, it is much easier to find one when called by the correct name. With regard to the movie — which makes a catchier rat name ratatouille or tian? Want to make a bet in why this is called ratatouille in the movie?
EL — It is indeed a tian! Although I hadn’t realized until after I wrote this that the NYT had run the recipe (there called Confit Biyaldi) from the movie that week. I still prefer my lazy version. I am not certain there is a difference between a strata and a savory bread pudding. I tend to think of the former as a little less rich and more vegetable heavy but that is based on absolutely nothing factual.
Made this last night – it was amazing. When/if you’re in Tel Aviv, please come over for dinner.
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Woow, Its look very yummy. I like this recipe. I really appreciate your work, make this recipe at home. Thanks for sharing this good food recipe with us.
I have made this recipe over & over! It is SO. DELICIOUS! Thank you for sharing it!
Is this one layer or several layers? Thanks.
Marilyn — One pretty tight layer.
I realize this post is about 9 years old BUT I wanted to “chime in”. I used your recipe as a great guideline for my own. I am not a “professional blogger” but I am a professional in the food & beverage industry AND this idea, your idea, scales well for full 2 1/2 inch schafing dishes! — Here is the old link for how I did it at work so you can see a picture – http://www.bartonsonboard.com/2014/12/teachers-christmas-banquet-ratatouille.html
Where I purchased for this they called the eggplant I used Chinese. Long, skinny just like the zucchini and yellow squash.
I was reminded of this post recently because we were in Key West with family (rented out a big property on the ocean for a wedding) last month and we split the dinner meals up by having each family do the meal for a certain night. About 20 adults pluc kids. I remembered this being easy (for me) and a WOW factor on presentation…so I went with this as my veggie dish for the meal…I won’t go into all the details.
I had a hard time finding any eggplant that would do so I just bought purple potatoes (which are found in most grocery stores now), peeled them, and sliced them thin (just like everything else). Because they hold the purple color when baked for presentation value and because it was a veg (albeit a starch/carb) it still worked nicely for the dish. Once again a huge HIT!
— Thanks again!
Saw this and decided to update link on comment https://www.tyronebcookin.com/2014/12/teachers-christmas-banquet-ratatouille.html
Um, I’ve actually wanted to share this for a long time but kind of forgot, and only just remembered. The first time I made this, I kind of mis-translated/read far too quickly/assumed another American-English-to-British-English misunderstanding and used the top half of a butternut squash instead of summer squash. I’m telling you this after all this time because it made this recipe even better. Accidents are actually the mother of invention, I think. Thanks for the “I made this” comment option which reminded me. It’s a huge improvement, also to the site in general, kudos, well done!
That turns a summer dish into a fall one–great idea! I am so glad for your error and for telling us…I will make it both ways!
Made this tonight with the addition of red skinned potatoes and sprinkled a little fontina cheese over the top before baking. I served it with a poached egg over the top – it was absolutely delicious and completely satisfying!
I made this with some left over marinara as the base and dried italian herbs on top, healthy and so delicious!
Made this several times. This tastes good and looks very pretty I like to serve it with goat cheese and polenta. This serves nicely along side a baked ziti and salad when enteraining.
I made this and it was absolutely amazing. I had a lot of sliced veggies leftover that I was going to use for something else, but immediately after having my first taste, I grabbed another pan and made a second batch. When my son got home he tried it, said it was delicious and asked how much of it he would be allowed to have – it was just that good :)
I think every country that borders on the Mediterranean and its adjacent waters has some version of ratatouille. This one reminds me of Greek Briam. I love it!
I made this for dinner last night. Like most of the other “I made it!” folks, I made a few adaptations out of necessity (and forgetfulness, but we’ll get there). I didn’t have tomato sauce, but I DID have some fresh tomatoes from my CSA, so I gave those a rough chop and threw them in a pot with some salt to make sauce while I sliced the rest of the vegetables. I layered the sauce both on the bottom and on the top, which meant that the tomato chunks got a little roasted in the oven, which I thought was nice! My other mistake was that I… somehow managed to completely forget about the garlic, onion, and olive oil until it was IN THE OVEN. So I pulled it back out, dropped some already-roasted garlic cloves on top with about a tablespoon of olive oil, and didn’t sweat it.
The result? Phenomenal. The vegetables had all their structural integrity, but had softened just enough that they had a pleasant texture. I used the herbes de provence that I forgot I’d bought a month or two ago, served over pearl couscous (which is what I had) and put a little dollop of greek yogurt on top. I’ve got another eggplant from my CSA, and I think I know where it’s going, too…
I’ve been thinking about trying a ratatouille for some time, but just never got around to it. My 8-year-old son and I just watched the movie (again) and this time, I decided to go for it. On a pie baking marathon at the moment, and Thanksgiving is today, but what the heck. Made a few adjustments, as I usually do. I love a little potato in a hearty dish, and my husband likes meat; he is also allergic to bell peppers (of any color.) So: tomato paste, olive oil, very finely chopped onion & 2 cloves garlic, salt, pepper, thyme & just a dash of rosemary. Then layer the baby eggplant, zucchini, yellow neck squash, smoked keilbasa, pre-(gently)cooked potato and a thin slice of garlic against every layer of potato. FABULOUS! Had a little extra of everything: will layer it with ricotta cheese, mozzarella & lasagna. :)
Outstanding and deliciously simple to put together. The goat cheese took it over the top. Looking forward to making it again and serving to guests.
This was the very first recipe I chose to make from your cookbook, in its carb-a-licious sub form. I’m not sure why in all honestly, but the colorful spiral of fresh veggies certainly was enticing. In all its simplicity I was absolutely floored by the combination of flavors and instantly vowed to never eat another meatball sub again…I may have broken that vow a few times, but this is STILL a fond memory for me as THE FIRST of many kitchen successes thanks to you, Deb. My only regret, besides never finding a red pepper small/thin enough to compliment the tight spiral, is not seeing the side note about adding the goat cheese! It didn’t occur to me until I saw it as part of this recipe on the website, but I now have new inspiration to make it again and take it to a whole new level!
i really like this post thank you for making the ratatouille dish of legend. i created this myself in the kitchen, a DIY project, and i thoroughly enjoyed the flavors and seasonal texture that resulted from the eloquent process that is to create a cartoon dish. Remy is an inspirational character for all chef’s around, Everyone can cook was a motivational book that should be created as to persuade mankind to show that everyone is capable of becoming what their dreams are. For example, my dreams are to be an American chef however my skills are lackluster within the cooking realm, therefore, this movie has given me a inspirational streak as to my dream of becoming a chef just like Gordon Ramsey.
I make this at least once a week, it is so delicious and healthy! I add a can of chopped tomatoes to the sauce to make it saucier, and add extra onion and garlic. I use tin foil rather than parchment and it works out just fine. I like to serve it along sauteed italian chicken sausage, and a green salad. Crusty bread dipped into the sauce doesn’t hurt either, if you want to indulge some carbs…. Love your site, Deb! Thanks so much for all the great recipes!
i used this recipe for my daughter to bring to school for her french cafe and her classmates and teachers said it was outstanding
Honey, this layered dish is a Tian, and it’s increasingly called Ratattouilli! I love a nice layered Tian, and I also love the ‘chunkier authentic’ ratattouilli.
Tian is a real art, so call it what it is!
Ratattouilli is a vegetable stew, not so pretty, but yummy for some of us.
I made this a while back, and it was fantastic. When making for picky eaters, I would recommend having a spaghetti sauce on-hand for a more saucy, pasta-like experience. This was the healthiest “make again”-rated recipe I have ever made for my family! Making the recipe a second time right now!
I cheated on the ratatouille, hand cut the veges & stacked in a rectangular Pyrex dish, (neither flat nor circular) It came out fantastic! I baked a little longer than the recipe suggested, then topped with grated Parmesan cheese. I love how the veges maintain their individuality, unlike the usual ratatouille ” stew”. I will never make it any other way than this! My husband had 3 helpings! Thanks Deb.
hello! i just have to come here and tell you that for years now, this has become one of my favorite recipes, hands down.
i live in the american south, and in the summers we are absolutely inundated with the trifecta of eggplant, peppers and summer squash, so this is seriously just perfect!
i make it pretty much exactly as written, and it is just amazing. sometimes i add some extra seasoning to the sauce – red pepper flakes, creole seasoning (blasphemy!), paprika… it’s all good, the flavors of the vegetables together are what makes this so magical.
in case anyone is discouraged by veggies that aren’t the same sizes, no worries! it still works just fine, and is still so beautiful when it’s all layered together.
thanks so much for this keeper, i’ll be making this one foreva and eva.
I am swimming in squash and eggplant and am headed out of town this weekend, so I would love to know if I could make this and if it would freeze well to have on my return? Thanks in advance!
I think so. It might be a bit more watery when baked, but should still taste great.
I want this but it is going to be 90+. Has anyone every used an Instant Pot for this?
I made this today and it was very easy to put together as well as beautiful to look at. Everyone in the household enjoyed it. I had a couple of small zucchinis, one long eggplant, a few shallots and one red pepper and these “clean out the vegetable crisper” vegetables went a long way. I definitely will make it again!
Oh SO delicious! I made this with garden veggies the same day I made the focaccia because I have a vegan friend staying with me and liked your sandwich ideas. The ratatouille became the sandwich filling. Jammy and concentrated, so good!
This was excellent and beautiful! Served it over orzo pasta. Didn’t have goat cheese so used some Boursin.
This was incredibly easy and so delicious! I used the leftovers to top my pizza on our family’s make your own pizza night (sprinkled with goat cheese instead of mozzarella) and even my not-so-fond-of-vegetables husband thought the flavor was amazing!
Now if only I could convince the toddler of how good this is…
It’s looking delicious, I wanna eat this.
Alexa
Check this out on NBC news. Maybe you should have put a copyright on the dish.
https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/ratatian-your-new-favorite-vegetable-dish-ncna964106
We have been making your version for years, and it is great!
I made a double batch for a party and used a half sheet pan for baking. It was a huge hit! I ran the veggies through a food processor and trimmed them (halved the eggplants) to fit down the feeder tube. I just layered them with the pretty edge showing and the presentation was still beautiful.
I noticed that your currently at the glut end of zuchini and eggplant season so wondered if you had any other quirky suggestions for ratatouille? It has to be one of my all time favourite vegetable dishes. Just a note. I do a large baking pan with 2 onions, 2 capsicums (pref red but can be red & green), 1 large eggplant, 1 large zucchini, 2-4 roma tomatoes, 2-4 garlic cloves and your favourite herb (rosemary, basil, oregano). Although this appears to be a mountain of vegetables I roast it until the vegetables are very limp soft and almost caramelized which reduces it to 1/4. Great through pasta when hot, as a side dish to a meat dish or on toast for brekky the next day. You can also add a touch of vinegar to the left overs to brighten it up and change the flavour profile.
I’ve long overlooked this recipe but made it tonight as Ratatouille is currently my 4 year old’s favorite movie. As expected he didn’t even take one bite, being a fan of neither eggplant, zucchini, or yellow squash (we omitted the pepper), but he loved watching its creation. I had a true Ratatouille moment when tasting this. I used a favorite red pepper/tomato sauce for the sauce and the final result was…revelatory. If I’d had a childhood in France I would have been transported. It is SO good. I get why Remy chooses this dish to serve. Already dreaming of eating it again.
I think this just screams for burrata on top. For some odd reason, yellow squash is almost impossible to find in Mexico where I live but I’ll substitute some other colored pepper. Thanks for what looks like another great recipe.
Like many of you, my son and I made this dish after watching the movie. It was easy to make and we had fun in the kitchen together, I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. My husband thought he wouldn’t like the dish, but was sad there was none left over. I did not use a mandiline and it still worked out great.
I make the cookbook version of this every summer when I can find thin eggplants and skinny sweet Italian peppers. I love assembling the spirals and it is wonderful. I confess I eat it without goat cheese or anything. Just its basic goodness. Well sometimes toasted Local bakery bread.
Third time I’ve made this sans the eggplant. I put green chilies in it and use a can fire roasted tomatoes. Definitely sprinkle some goat cheese on top.
Well were should i start,
this is not a ratatouille maybe for ignorant but a tian Provencal
it is a fact go in France and they will serve you a different dish.
why French chef spend year perfecting a dish that American change-…
A tian Provençal very similar but very different than a ratatouille … basic
Well, where should I start? No chicanery here – a completely transparent post about making a dish that a cartoon rat made. But you know…if you need to get into a huff there’s always something to snit about. I’m sure French folk will survive this assault on their culture. I’ve made this and traditional ratatouille many times as well as similar dishes with different names. Cooking is such fun isn’t it?
We got a vegetable shipment with a couple of large zucchinis and summer squashes (think cricket bat), an eggplant and a couple of onions. This worked out really well for using these bad boys up, taste, and leftover options.
I doubled the recipe in a 10×13 pan and used crushed tomatoes instead of pureed since I had them. Also added a lovely sliced a lovely tomato on top because I was afraid vegs were too high.
Goat cheese was a good complement.
Thanks for this!
Hello! I have a heavy pan (le creuset) with a lid. Can I use that instead of parchment paper ? thanks! this looks delicious!
Apologies if you answered this before, (so many comments I couldn’t get through them all!) but what are the advantages to doing the parchment origami, as opposed to foil or just parchment on top? I’m assuming you would have to remove it to check the veggies and sauce as recommended in your recipe? And then replace it if not done?
It keeps the vegetables down a little and allows some steam to escape. But, it won’t ruin it to skip it.
Made tonight and it’s one of those recipes that tastes too good to be true for the effort required. Perfect for a summer meal: bright, seasonal, scrumptious. We served with white rice since it’s what we had but I wouldn’t again- will try polenta or couscous next go around. The goat cheese should not be skipped or substituted, it really added to the dish!
I have been making this recipe since you first posted it on your blog many years ago. It is a favorite in my house. Every summer I make it when the eggplant , zucchini and summer squash are in season at the farmers market. We usually enjoy it at breakfast topped with 2 poached eggs sprinkled with a little goat cheese and fresh thyme, It is heaven. Thank you Deb.
This recipe is delicious. I’ve made this many times over the last couple of years. The goat cheese really brings it all together and makes the flavors pop in your mouth. So good!
I found this recipe in the archives while looking for something cozy and vegetable forward for our family dinner. Though the ingredient list is simple and it won’t win any beauty contests, the end product is amazing. I used 2 zucchini, 1 small eggplant and 1 red bell pepper. I had quite a bit of leftover veggies, so probably would use a bigger dish next time. We served it with crusty bread, and there was not one spec left. A victory especially considering our teenage sons who are sometimes skeptical of summer squash.
THIS is the recipe that caused me to find you! And I’ve never looked back (except to find your recipe for whatever I am attempting to cook. My extended family thinks I snuck off to culinary school!
My husband just made this- with the addition of a sliced tomato interleaved with the other vegetables- and it was INCREDIBLE. Truly more than the sum of its parts!