This ratatouille recipe is my take on the traditional French vegetable stew. Though it’s much quicker than the original, it’s filled with the same sunny late-summer flavor!
Ratatouille recipes traditionally call for an all-day simmer. In this weeknight-friendly version, I boil the veggies to get them started, then gently simmer until they’re perfectly velvety. It’s ready in under an hour!
You only have to wash one pot! And, like its Spanish cousin Pisto and Italian Caponata, it’s even better the next day. Freeze a big batch to brighten your January with summer’s best flavors. Or enjoy for breakfast, lunch, and dinner all week long.
Table of Contents
What is Ratatouille?
Ratatouille, pronounced “rat-uh-too-ee,” came long before the Disney movie! This vibrant vegetable stew has deep roots in the culinary traditions of Provence, a region in the south of France, where it can be traced back to the 18th century.
Once considered a peasant dish, ratatouille was created to use an abundance of vegetables grown in local gardens. Over time, ratatouille became a celebrated symbol of Provençal cuisine. It’s a great example of the Mediterranean diet’s celebration of fresh, seasonal vegetables.
Ingredients and Substitutions
The vegetable stew is best in the warmer months when eggplant, tomatoes, and zucchini are at their most vibrant. Consider doubling and freezing if you have a large enough pot!
- Produce: Eggplant, yellow onion (swap white), bell peppers (green, red, yellow, or a combination), garlic, tomatoes, and zucchini.
- Seasoning: Salt, pepper, sweet paprika, and dried rosemary bring an aromatic quality.
- Fresh herbs: Thyme and basil add freshness. Swap with parsley or dill.
- Olive oil: Use a nice extra virgin olive oil with some personality, like our slightly peppery Spanish Hojiblanca.
- Acidity: Red wine and sherry vinegar add a depth of flavor, balancing the sweetness. The alcohol will cook off, but if you avoiding it substitute with vegetable broth or chicken stock. Season with more sherry vinegar to taste.
How to Make Ratatouille
Like my winter vegetable stew, this easy ratatouille recipe builds flavor quickly and easily using just one pot. Keep an eye on the vegetables as they cook: you want them to be soft and delicate, but not mushy.
- Salt the eggplant: Peel 1 pound of eggplant, removing the peel entirely or in a striped pattern for a more rustic look. Cut into 1-inch pieces and place in a large colander in your sink. When ready, sprinkle generously with salt and leave for 20 minutes as you prep the remaining ingredients. When the eggplant has sweat out its bitterness, pat dry with paper towels.
- Prep the produce: Meanwhile, finely chop 1 yellow onion. Slice 2 bell peppers into 1-inch pieces. Mince 6 garlic cloves (see our how to mince garlic guide for tips). Chop 2 pounds of tomatoes, saving their juice as you go. Slice 2 zucchini into 1/2-inch half moons.
- Cook the onion and peppers: In a large heavy pot, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Cook, stirring regularly, until they’re translucent (about 5 minutes). Add the bell peppers and cook until softened, about 4 minutes more.
- Add the remaining veggies: Add the garlic, tomatoes and their juice, zucchini, and eggplant. Stir in 1/2 cup of red wine and 2 sprigs of thyme. Season with a pinch of salt and 1 teaspoon each of black pepper, paprika, and dried rosemary.
- Boil then simmer: Raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. Turn the heat to low, then cover and simmer until the vegetables are soft and the liquid has thickened, about 20 minutes.
- Season: Remove the ratatouille from the heat, taste, and adjust salt to your liking. Add the sherry vinegar and a generous drizzle of olive oil. Top with fresh basil.
- Serve: If you have time, cover and allow the ratatouille to rest in its warm pot for 1 hour or so before serving. When you’re ready to serve, ladle into bowls. Optionally, top each with a sunny side up egg and pass around some crusty French bread for dipping. Enjoy warm, at room temperature, cold, any which way!
Tips for this Ratatouille Recipe
Cooking ratatouille in one pot is simple, easy, and totally feasible on a given weeknight. Three important things to keep in mind before you get started:
- How to chop the vegetables? Some recipes call for small-dice, while others call for rustic large pieces. It’s a matter of personal preference. I like 1-ish inch pieces, which get nice and velvety without becoming mush. The key is to make the vegetables all about the same size so they cook at the same rate.
- Salt the eggplant. The salt helps eggplant sweat out bitterness, break down its spongy texture, and cook more quickly.
- For the best flavor, rest in the warm pot for 1 hour before serving. This will allow the flavors to settle and deepen beautifully. You do not need to heat before serving, ratatouille is great just warm.
How to Serve Ratatouille
There is a small French bakery near me called Douceur de France. Without fail, every time we visit, I order their ratatouille. They serve it just warm in a bowl, topped with a perfectly runny fried egg and a piece of crusty French baguette or a beautiful fougasse on the side. If I’m serving ratatouille as the main course, which I often do, this is exactly how I serve it.
Though ratatouille needs no further embellishment, it’s also a classic side dish that goes well with simple roast meats, like lamb or chicken. For a dinner party, kick things off with another French classic: the Niçoise Salad.
More Vegetable Stew Recipes
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Ingredients
For the Stew:
- 1 pounds eggplant, peeled (or striped) and cut into 1-inch pieces
- Kosher salt
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 bell peppers (mix of red, green, or yellow), sliced into 1-inch pieces
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 pounds tomatoes, chopped
- 2 zucchini, sliced into 1/2-inch half moons
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- Salt the eggplant: Place the eggplant in a large colander in your sink. Sprinkle with salt and leave for 20 minutes as the eggplant sweats out its bitterness. Pat dry to remove the water and excess salt.
- Cook the onion and peppers: In a large heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is shimmering but not smoking, add the onions. Cook, stirring regularly, until they’re translucent (about 5 minutes). Now add the bell peppers and cook for another 4 minutes, and continue to stir as they soften.
- Add the remaining veggies: Add the garlic, tomatoes and any of their juice, zucchini, eggplant, wine, and thyme. Stir in the black pepper, paprika, and rosemary. Season with kosher salt.
- Boil then simmer: Raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. Turn the heat down, then cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or so.
- Season: Remove the ratatouille from the heat, taste, and adjust salt to your liking. Add the sherry vinegar and a generous drizzle of olive oil. Top with fresh basil.
- Serve: If you have time, cover and allow the ratatouille to rest in its warm pot for 1 hour or so before serving (see recipe notes). To serve, ladle into bowls. Optionally, top each with a sunny side up egg and pass around some crusty bread for dipping. Enjoy warm, at room temperature, cold, or any which way your heart desires.
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Notes
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients, including the olive oil and spices used in this recipe.
- Storage: Refrigerate in a sealed container for up to 4 days. Take it out 30 minutes or so before you are ready to serve. Warm it through over gentle heat or just bring it to room temperature.
- Freezing: Freeze ratatouille, tightly sealed, for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, and again bring to room temperature before serving. If you prefer warm, use gentle heat.
- If you find the texture has softened too much, puree and serve as a creamier soup with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Nutrition
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Loks amazing! I cook without wine. What is substitute?
Hi, Sally! If you’re avoiding wine, you can substitute with vegetable or chicken broth. Simply season with more sherry vinegar to taste.
2lb of tinned chopped tomatoes? Or fresh chopped tomatoes?
Hi, Patricia. You’ll want to use fresh tomatoes here if possible. Enjoy!
I made this last weekend when I had an eggplant & some zucchini i wanted to use up. In the past I made the more traditional version of cooking the vegetables separetly then combining. But this time I was looking for an easier, one pot stove top recipe & I found this. So glad I did – absolutely delicious! Only changes I made was using a 1 lb can of dices tomatoes because I only had 1 lb of cherry tomatoes that I halved, to make the 2 lbs. Also cooked longer, about 45 minutes to get the vegies tender. The first time I served it with the fried egg – reminded me of shakshuka. Great way to add protein & make this an entree. For the next meal I added in cooked shrimp. Another excellent addition to make it an entree. This recipe is definitely a keeper & will be made often.
Hi, Lynn! Thank you for taking the time to share your process, and for the great review! We appreciate it!
Great idea. I was trying to think of ways to add protein to this !
Absolutely delicious! Would recommend!
Would you mind putting all measurements into metric. Many thanks.
Excellent recipe. My husband and I cooked this together tonight. So warm and refreshing. Would recommend. Many thanks for the recipe.
Excellent recipe. My husband and I cooked this together tonight. So warm and refreshing. Would recommend.
Thanks, Krista!
This was wonderful, with full-bodied flavors even without waiting in the pot for an hour! I didn’t have zucchini on hand so sautéed some mushrooms with the peppers and onions, and added a small handful of cauliflower florets with the eggplant. For a cold winter night, the hot, rich vegetable stew was just right. We will absolutely have this again!
Wonderful! Thanks, Jean!
Love this recipe! This must be the third or fourth one I’ve tried from this website and all of them have been hits. Getting the cookbook for christmas haha.
Wonderful! Thanks for your support, Christina!
Could you use can tomatoes? How much?
Hi, Karen. You can use a 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes here in place of the fresh. Hope you enjoy the recipe!!
Wonderful recipe to use all of my tomatoes and zucchini! Very tasty!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, George!
This was soooo good! My 16 yo son helped me with all the chopping and we had a blast cooking together. Baked a whole wheat bread at the same time … OMG best end of summer lunch there is. I used Butternut squash instead of zucchini
and my fresh young eggplant cooked up alright with the skin on. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for telling us about your experience! I loved that you made this with your son — cooking with family makes food taste that much better! Here’s another vegetable soup recipe we love around here.
This recipe is absolutely superb delicious and not hard to make. Fabuluos!
Made this yesterday, it was delicious looking forward to finishing the leftovers today.
Loved it! Looking forward to trying some more of your recipes.
I love this dish so much! Huge crowd pleaser, even for those meat and potato folks!