Ratatouille
Ingredients:
1 eggplant, cut into 2cm, skin on 450gms
½ tsp salt, cooking / kosher salt
3 tomatoes, 200gms chopped
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 brown onion, chopped 1cm 200gms
3 capsicum, red, yellow & green, 200gms
3 zucchinis, 200gms
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped (~3 tsp)
1 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped (Note 2 for subs)
sea salt, to taste
cracked black pepper, to taste
20 black olives, pitted, halved
Basil Oil:
100gms basil leaves
50gms Italian parsley
50gms spinach leaves
100mls canola oil
Cook zucchini: Add another 1 tbsp olive oil & cook the zucchini with a pinch of salt for 3 minutes. Make sure it stays firm (ie. raw inside). Like the capsicum, it won’t go golden. Add to pot.
Add remaining ingredients to pot: Turn the stove under the pot to medium-high. Add tomato, thyme, olives, remaining salt & all the pepper, & mix. Once the mixture is hot, reduce heat to a low simmer.
Braise: Cook for 20 – 25 minutes with the pot lid off, stirring every now & then, until all the vegetables are cooked through & the liquid has reduced. The mixture should be thick enough so you can pile it on a plate (ie. not watery), but still very moist & juicy.
Make the Basil Oil:
In a blender, combine basil leaves, Italian parsley, spinach leaves, & grape seed oil. Pulse for about 2-3 minutes or until you achieve a vivid green colour.
Transfer the mixture to a small saucepan & heat to a slow simmer with barely any movement in the pan visible. It is imperative you monitor your heat control as you any wish to infuse aromatics with the oil & slowly leach the colour from the basil, parsley & spinach. Maintain this temperature for 5-6 minutes. Strain the mixture to remove solids, extracting as much oil as possible. Place oil in a squeeze bottle after cooling.
Serve as a main with crusty bread, or as a side dish. See above recipe card for more ideas!
Vegetables contain a high water percentage Pectin, a component found in plant cell walls, breaks down with heat, releasing the bonds between cells. The percentage of water in each vegetable & the extent of heat applied will determine how fast the cellulose structure breaks down.
Eggplant & capsicums contain approximately 92% of water, whereas zucchini & tomatoes are higher still. Subsequently, each will break down extremely fast when heat is applied.
Traditionally, when cooking a ratatouille, each vegetable is cooked separately; I can only assume the water contain plays a pivotal part in this tradition