Ratatouille is an iconic southern French dish that highlights summer’s best vegetables. The flavorful tomato-based sauce is topped with layers of zucchini, eggplant, summer squash, and tomato, then baked in the oven until it’s soft and tender. And while it’s considered a light vegetarian main dish, I’ve got plenty of delicious serving ideas below!
Why You’ll Love This Ratatouille
This ratatouille recipe turns a bounty of fresh, in-season vegetables into a gorgeous dish with such delicious, complex flavors. From the tender, melt-in-your-mouth vegetables, to the roasted, herby flavor, it truly speaks to everything I adore about French food. Especially the light and fresh dishes I enjoyed when traveling throughout Nice and Provence. Here are a few other things to love about it:
- It’s a stunning dish to serve at a dinner party. The thinly sliced and layered vegetables are mesmerizing to look at and present beautifully. This is one dish that will certainly impress, especially during the holidays. And while it make look complicated, don’t be intimidated — the process is quite simple. It just needs a little prep work!
- The leftovers are even better. I actually rejoice if I have leftovers of this recipe, because the flavors continue to meld and become even better the next day. Plus, there are so many delicious ways you can serve it up (see my ideas below!).
Ratatouille versus Tian Provencal and Confit Byaldi
You may come across two types of ratatouille from Provence — one that’s more like a stew and the other made with beautiful slices. Both are considered “ratatouille” as they use the same ingredients with very similar flavors. But the difference lies in how they’re cooked and presented.
Traditional ratatouille (or ratatouille niçoise) is a simple, rustic dish you’ll find simmering on the stovetop at home, sort of like a home-cooked meal you associate with your mom or grandma. The process requires diced vegetables to be sautéed in a pot before mixing them with the tomato sauce and simmering them into a stew.
On the other hand, tian Provençal is a bit more sophisticated with thinly sliced vegetables arranged beautifully in a baking dish and baked in the oven. It’s also similar to Thomas Keller’s confit byaldi, which was the star dish of the Disney Pixar movie Ratatouille. And it’s the approach I’m using for this recipe today!
Ratatouille Ingredients
- Ratatouille sauce: This is essentially a piperade sauce (a blend of tomatoes, roasted red peppers, onions, and a few other ingredients) and it’s what gives this dish so much flavor. I’m using herbs de Provence in the sauce, but if you don’t have herbs de Provence, just swap in a mix of dried basil, thyme, and oregano.
- Sliced Vegetables: I’m using Chinese/Japanese eggplant, zucchini, summer squash, and Roma tomatoes. If you only have access to globe or Italian eggplant (which are pretty bulbous) that’s fine, just halve or quarter each slice to make them smaller.
- Herb Dressing: Don’t skip this simple dressing as it adds depth of flavor to the vegetables. All you need are chopped fresh tender herbs (I’m using thyme and parsley), garlic, salt, and black pepper.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
How To Make Ratatouille
Saute the onion and carrot. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrot, and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.
Add more veggies and simmer. Add the crushed tomatoes, roasted red peppers, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Slice the vegetables. While the sauce is simmering, use a mandoline to thinly slice the eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, and tomatoes. If you don’t have a mandoline, slice everything with a knife. It’ll take a bit longer, but it’s do-able!
Blend the sauce. Transfer the simmered vegetables to a blender and pulse until lightly blended. Alternatively, transfer it to a 4-cup measuring cup (or large wide-mouth jar) and use an immersion blender to puree it lightly. Then, pour the sauce back into the pan and smooth it into a flat layer.
Arrange the vegetables and drizzle the dressing. Alternate the sliced vegetables, placing them in a circular pattern around the outside of the skillet, working towards the center. Then, stir together the herb dressing and drizzle it on top of the vegetables.
Bake and serve. Cover the pan with a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes at 375°F. Remove the lid and bake for another 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the top is lightly golden. Before serving, garnish the skillet with a few sprigs of fresh thyme leaves. Alternatively, you can plate a portion of ratatouille with a few spoonfuls of sauce (just like in the movie!).
Serving Suggestions
- Serve it as a vegetarian main course: Ratatouille is great for a light dinner with plenty of vegetables. But if you want to add some heft to it, you can serve it with polenta, rice, mashed potatoes, or crusty toasted bread.
- Treat it like a vegetable side dish: You can stick with the French theme and serve this with my rainbow trout almondine. But it also works alongside other proteins such as baked chicken, baked salmon, baked cod, or pork meatballs.
- How I enjoy leftovers: For breakfast, I love enjoying a serving with a poached egg on top or even inside an omelet. For dinner, you can serve it any of the ways I mentioned above!
Make-Ahead & Storage Tips
- Storing leftovers in the fridge: Ratatouille will stay good for 4 to 5 days. Just note that the vegetables will soften over time, especially when reheated.
- How to freeze and reheat ratatouille: You can freeze this for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. When you’d like to enjoy it, thaw it in the fridge overnight, then reheat it in the microwave, oven, or stovetop.
- How to prep this ahead of time: There are a few ways you can go about this. One, you can bake the recipe as is the day before and reheat it back in the oven with foil. Second, you can prep the sauce and dressing ahead of time and store in the fridge. When you’re ready to make it, pour the sauce into the pan, add the sliced vegetables, top with the dressing, then bake! I don’t recommend slicing the vegetables a day in advance, especially the eggplant, as it will oxidize and brown.
More French Recipes You’ll Love
- Salad Lyonnaise: The best breakfast salad with frisee, poached eggs, and a warm bacon vinaigrette.
- French Carrot Salad: A delicious combo of crisp julienned carrots, green onion, fresh herbs, and a bright honey mustard dressing.
- Gluten-Free Crepes: These crepes are soft, light, and layered with strawberry chia seed jam.
- Nicoise Salad: The most bountiful salad of fresh Mediterranean ingredients.
- Hollandaise Sauce: Made in just five minutes, this decadent sauce is a brunch essential!
If you make this ratatouille recipe, I’d love to know how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration (and exclusive content), join my free newsletter.
Ratatouille
Description
Video
Equipment
- Mandoline This is my favorite mandoline yet!
- Le Creuset Braiser My go-to pan for dishes like this.
- Immersion Blender I've been loving this quality immersion blender.
Ingredients
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small carrot, grated
- 1 (14.5-ounce can) crushed tomatoes
- 3 roasted red peppers (from a jar), roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons herbs de Provence, see substitutions below
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Sliced Vegetables
- 1 Chinese eggplant
- 2 zucchini
- 1 yellow summer squash
- 5 Roma tomatoes
Herb Dressing
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tender herbs (thyme, basil, parsley, tarragon, oregano, etc)
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Saute the onion and carrot. Preheat the oven to 375F. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrot, and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and saute another minute.
- Add more veggies and simmer. Add the crushed tomatoes, roasted red peppers, herbs de Provence, salt, and pepper. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Slice the vegetables. While the sauce is simmering, use a mandoline to thinly slice the eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, and tomatoes.
- Blend the sauce. Transfer the simmered vegetables to a blender and pulse until lightly blended. Alternatively, transfer to a 4-cup measuring cup and use an immersion blender to lightly puree it. Then pour it back into the skillet and spread into a flat layer.
- Arrange the vegetables. Alternate the sliced vegetables, placing them in a circular pattern around the outside of the skillet, working towards the center.
- Drizzle the dressing. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper. Then drizzle it on top of the vegetables.
- Bake. Cover the pan with a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the lid and bake another 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the top is lightly golden.
- Serve. Garnish the skillet with a few sprigs of fresh thyme leaves before serving, or plate a portion of ratatouille with a few spoonfuls of sauce. If you'd like to see how I plate it like the movie, watch my tutorial video above!
Lisa’s Tips
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- Storing leftovers in the fridge: Ratatouille will stay good for 4 to 5 days. Just note that the vegetables will soften over time, especially when reheated.
- How to freeze and reheat ratatouille: You can freeze this for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container. When you’d like to enjoy it, thaw it in the fridge overnight, then reheat it in the microwave, oven, or stovetop.
Nutrition
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Behind The Scenes
The first time I tested this recipe I didn’t cover the sauce on the stove while simmering, which caused it to reduce too much and get a bit thick. I also tried using the immersion blender straight in the pan on the stove, which ended up splattering red tomato sauce all over my white t-shirt (thankfully, my arms and plate in the photo above strategically cover the mess). But yes, I know, what was I thinking testing a tomato-based recipe in a white t-shirt?! You would think I’d be a bit smarter by now, lol. But as I always say, I make the fails so you don’t have to!
This dish is just so delicious and beautiful. The tomato sauce alone is just awesome. I can’t wait to make the sauce again for some Italian pasta dishes. The vegetable were so tender and yummy with the sauce and the dressing. We ate every bite and scrapped the brazier clean, definitely a family favorite and a keeper for the fam ily cookbook, along with yours of course Lisa. Also ordered your recommended tools. They were a big help in this prep process. Thank you, Lisa for this recipe!
Thrilled to hear you’re loving this ratatouille recipe, Marie!
What can you use if you don’t have a braiser? I don’t have one.
You can use any large pan or even a baking dish.
This was as delicious as it was visually stunning!
Thank you, Jamie! I’m happy you loved it.
this recipe is the best. we mad it and the whole family loved it.
Awesome! So happy you all loved it!
This is the best Ratatouille recipe I have ever made! Felt so great to make an entire recipe from the farmers market and the garden. Will be making this again very soon! Thank you
Oh yay, I’m so thrilled to hear that! Thanks so much, Sara!
I made this beautiful and delicious recipe today
Wonderful! Hope you enjoy it, Beverly!
I’ve been dying to make this dish for years and when I saw your latest video, I knew it was time. Fantastic. Thank you for sharing! Even my picky kids liked it!
Oh wonderful! I’m so happy you gave it a try and your whole family loved it. Enjoy!
I made this tonight for me and my husband. I’m normally a simple cook, so I was really surprised that mine turned out just as beautiful as yours. It wasn’t difficult to make, it just had several moving parts. Oh, yeah, it was also delicious!!
It really is a stunning dish, isn’t it?! So happy you loved it, Karen!
Although very impressive to see, it was really easy to make! My guests were literally licking their plates they loved it so much!
Thrilled to hear everyone enjoyed this ratatouille recipe, Erika!
Just made this last night, it was wonderful! Can’t wait to try it as a leftover, thank you for the great recipe, so glad you recreated Remy’s version from the movie, lol!
It’s hard to resist Remy’s version, haha. ;) Enjoy!
Excellent dish and so beautiful! My guests were mesmerized! I wish I could post a picture.
So thrilled you loved it. And yes, it really is a beautiful dish to look at as well. :) Enjoy!
Just in my inbox today and have a drawer full of CSA veggies to use. Made this for dinner. Amazing! I’ve been obsessed with the ratatouille that is plated in the movie and never found a recipe I liked.
I cheated as I forgot to make the dressing…. Costco pesto for the win. Just thinned out with EVOO.
Served it with some burrata. Absolutely divine! Thank you!!!!
Amazing! I’m so glad your ratatouille turned out great, especially with a side of burrata.
This recipe was so fun to make and equally delicious! I LOVE your site Lisa.
I have borrowed your cookbook from the library and then I bought one for my daughter Lisa‘s birthday. Thank you!
Thrilled to hear you enjoyed this ratatouille recipe, Carole! I hope you and your daughter love the cookbook as well.
Bon appetite 🍽 Yummy is the perfect word for this amazing dish. Easy to make and in my family there isn’t leftovers because it gets gobbled up. I usually make it as a side dish. Thank you for sharing another wonderful recipe.
Happy to hear this ratatouille has done wonders as a delicious side dish for dinners!
Could l use more zucchini instead of egg plant for this recipe?
Diana
Sure, that’s fine!
Lisa is so confident and entertaining while presenting amazing recipes. She makes it look so easy. I was tempted to try them at home. The ratatouille was a crowd pleaser.
Thrilled to hear this ratatouille was a hit!
The ratatouille was excellent, bursting with delicious flavors!
The insturactions were accurate as always👌🏻
Thank you, Lisa🙏🏻
Thrilled to hear you enjoyed this ratatouille recipe!
Great!!!!!!