Do you have a garden bursting at the seams with all the produce and you need a recipe to enjoy them in one dish? You came to the right place to learn how to make the best ratatouille with this recipe. This recipe keeps things super easy with simple ingredients, yet packs all the flavors in every bite. This is a must-make if you have a garden you are harvesting from daily or farmers market products you are needing to enjoy. You can’t go wrong with this recipe and you are more than welcome to alter it to your liking.
Garden Fresh Produce
I have been planting a garden and harvesting from it for years. There is nothing that I love more than being able to walk out into my backyard and pick garden fresh produce. During this time in the season, my garden is busting at the seams with every type of produce and it makes me have to be creative on how to use it all up without having any waste. This Ratatouille recipe does just that! It allows you to take tomatoes, zucchini or squash, eggplant, garlic, and herbs to create this delish dish. Trust me, it is a must-make and the perfect way to use up fresh garden goods.
Blending The Sauce For The Skillet
The first step you are going to take to make the best Ratatouille is blending the sauce. This sauce will be the anchor that holds all of your vegetables and tomatoes down to bake. I love keeping my ingredients super simple yet full of flavor.
Sauce Ingredients
- 2 cups tomatoes
- 1 tsp Herbs de Provence
- sprinkle Sea Salt
- couple cracks Black Pepper
- 1 heaping tsp Minced Garlic
- 1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar ( I like using white balsamic for the flavor and to keep the color vibrant)
Place everything in a blender or Cuisinart and blend until smooth. I love using a cast iron skillet for this recipe but you don’t have to. Any baking pan with work, I like the material and the ease of the circle cast iron skillet. Pour the sauce directly into the bottom of the skillet and set it aside.
Prepping the Vegetables and Tomatoes
For this part of the recipe, I kept the quantity open. The amount of each vegetable and tomato you use will depend on the size of the skillet or pan you use. It also will depend on the size of each item that you have as well. I used a ten-inch cast iron skillet and had pretty small, skinny vegetables as well as tomatoes.
- Squash or Zucchini or a mix of both
- Eggplant
- Tomatoes
- Basil
- Optional *** Shredded cheese
Start slicing everything and try to make the slices uniform in size. This will ensure even baking when cooking the Ratatouille. I sliced mine one at a time and made piles of each item. This helped when it was time to start pairing the items together to fill the cast iron skillet. You can see how I had everything assembled in the photo below. This made it super simple to pick one slice up of each item and start layering around the skillet.
How To Assemble Your Ratatouille
Now that you have all of your vegetables and tomatoes cut and lined up, you are ready to start assembling them. This takes a little bit of time, but I promise the finished product is worth it. In some ways, it was really therapeutic for me to stand and stack the items around the cast iron skillet. Take your time and once you are finished placing them around the skillet you can sprinkle fresh basil on top with the optional shredded cheese. This dish is incredible with or without cheese, so try it both ways and see which one you prefer more.
You will place the skillet in the oven at 375 for 30-35 minutes or until it is fork tender and slightly browning around the edges. I like to serve this dish right out of the oven, I love it steaming hot. It can be served on its own as the main dish or add a protein and have as a side dish. Like I said before, you really can’t go wrong with this recipe for the best ratatouille.
I can’t wait to hear how you enjoy this dish! I always love getting comments and feedback on my recipes, so be sure to reach out.
How To Make The Best Ratatouille
Equipment
- 1 Cast Iron Skillet you can also use a regular baking dish
Ingredients
Sauce Ingredients
- 2 cups Tomatoes
- 1 tsp Herbs De Provence
- 1 tsp Garlic minced
- 1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar I like using white balsamic to keep the vibrant color and less intense balsamic taste
- Sea Salt Sprinkle
- Black Pepper Couple cracks
Vegetables & Tomatoes
- Squash or Zucchini or mix both
- Eggplant
- Tomatoes
- Basil
- Shredded Cheese Optional
Instructions
- The first step you are going to take to make the best Ratatouille is blending the sauce. This sauce will be the anchor that holds all of your vegetables and tomatoes down to bake. I love keeping my ingredients super simple yet full of flavor.
Prepping the Vegetables and Tomatoes
- For this part of the recipe, I kept the quantity open. The amount of each vegetable and tomato you use will depend on the size of the skillet or pan you use. It also will depend on the size of each item that you have as well. I used a ten-inch cast iron skillet and had pretty small, skinny vegetables as well as tomatoes.
- Start slicing everything and try to make the slices uniform in size. This will ensure even baking when cooking the Ratatouille. I sliced mine one at a time and made piles of each item. This helped when it was time to start pairing the items together to fill the cast iron skillet. You can see how I had everything assembled in the photo below. This made it super simple to pick one slice up of each item and start layering around the skillet.
How To Assemble Your Ratatouille
- Now that you have all of your vegetables and tomatoes cut and lined up, you are ready to start assembling them. This takes a little bit of time, but I promise the finished product is worth it. In some ways, it was really therapeutic for me to stand and stack the items around the cast iron skillet. Take your time and once you are finished placing them around the skillet you can sprinkle fresh basil on top with the optional shredded cheese. This dish is incredible with or without cheese, so try it both ways and see which one you prefer more. You will place the skillet in the oven at 375 for 30-35 minutes or until it is fork tender and slightly browning around the edges. I like to serve this dish right out of the oven, I love it steaming hot. It can be served on its own as the main dish or add a protein and have as a side dish. Like I said before, you really can't go wrong with this recipe for the best ratatouille.
Check Out These Posts For More Recipes!
