Easy One-Pot Ratatouille Recipe

With The Oppressed being a vegetarian, I sometimes cook meatless meals. It's easier for me to cook one meal for everyone instead of multiple meals for different people. There was one time she wanted to help me shop for dinner and help cook it. Also, Lent is in full swing. This means I am a vegetarian on Fridays for the time being.

I got a recipe from Sonia at Love Incredible Recipes. She describes her website as, "including a collection of delicious vegetarian recipes and refined sugar-free recipes." It was a recipe for ratatouille. I have made ratatouille before. It's a fairly simple dish to make, and it's full of vegetables. Always a plus when you have growing Miracles of Christ to feed and keep alive. I like eating it but, once again, I am in the minority. It hasn't been a hit with the family. You can find Sonia's recipe here or just scroll down.

There were some options for me as I was planning the meal for this particular evening. I had some other vegetarian meals I could make for The Oppressed if this didn't go well. For the rest of the family, I thought of making the ratatouille a side dish. With other options on their plate, they could either eat the ratatouille with the rest of the food, or just skip it and eat everything else. Of course, there was also the option of facing more criticism of making something for dinner that didn't go over well.

The Ingredients

The number one ingredient when it comes to ratatouille is vegetables. I was off to the grocery store for the necessary sundries. Grocery shopping can sometimes be an adventure for me. Anyway, here's what you need for Sonia's ratatouille.

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 finely chopped yellow/brown onions (medium)
• 3 celery sticks chopped
• 1 large/medium carrot chopped
• 1 red bell pepper chopped
• 8 garlic cloves crushed or minced
• 1 red jalepeño pepper or chili pepper diced
• 1 zucchini/courgette chopped
• 1 small eggplant/aubergine chopped (optional)
• 680 g tomato passata (Tomato puree for our American friends and readers)
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, mor or less according to taste
• 1-2 fresh basil leaves

Note: One small can of tomato puree is 10.75 ounces (305 g) and a large can is 29 oz (822 g). I went with two small cans. It's less than the 680 g the recipe calls for, but you can still make it work.

Instructions for Cooking Ratatouille

Now that you have what you need, it's time to put it all together and make some culinary magic.

1. Heat olive oil in pan on medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.

   

   Add the onions and garlic.

   
   
2. Stir in the onions and cook for 30 seconds, until onions become soft and slightly translucent. Stir in the carrots, cover, and let cook for 4-5 minutes on low-medium heat.

   

   Stir in the carrots and cook
   on low-medium heat.

   
   
3. Add peppers, courgette/zucchini, aubergine/eggplant (if using), and the chili/jalapeño pepper. Cover and cook on medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring intermittently.
4. Add oregano and salt. Stir and mix well. Cover and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring every 2-3 minutes.
5. Stir in passata (tomato puree). Cover and cook for 10 minutes on low-medium heat, allowing sauce to slowly boil. Once cooked, turn off heat. serve with basil garnish and optional cheddar cheese.

A smoking-hot meal
(or side) for the family.

The Results

I was a little wary of serving this dish given the feedback the family has given me about ratatouille, even if it was as a side. They ended up liking it! Even The Oppressed, who doesn't like eating vegetables despite being a vegetarian. It looks like I finally found a ratatouille recipe my family will like. This could spare me some negative feedback when it comes to mealtime. Huge to shoutout to Sonia and everyone at Love Incredible Recipes for this and for scoring this daddy some points at mealtime!

Click here if you're interested in cooking pancakes vegan style! And if there's a recipe you think I should know about, reach out and let me know!