Easy One-Pot Ratatouille

What is Ratatouille?

Ratatouille is a classic French vegetable stew that originated in Provence sometime in the 1700s. It is widely believed to have been invented by peasant farmers who needed a way to use up all of their fresh produce at the end of the season.

A traditional ratatouille recipe typically involves cooking each vegetable separately and then combining them all together. The fresh veggies, usually consisting of tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, red bell pepper, onion and garlic are seasoned with fresh herbs and slowly cooked down into a stew with a little olive oil.

The result is a colorful, flavorful and versatile dish capturing the essence of summer that can be served on its own with crusty bread or over your grain of choice, whether it be pasta, orzo, couscous, quinoa or rice.

Why You'll Love this Ratatouille Recipe

• Delicious - bursting with juicy, summertime flavor
• Nutritious - consists mainly of fresh seasonal veggies
• Quick and easy - cook all the veggies at once rather than each individually
• One-pot - no roasting required and easy cleanup!
• Flexible - can easily substitute, add or omit ingredients without compromising the dish
• Great for meal-prep - the flavors continue to develop when stored, making it even more flavorful as it sits
• Enjoy hot or at room temperature - enjoy immediately or save for later
• Family-friendly - kids truly enjoy this veggie dish!

Key Ingredients

The beauty of this easy ratatouille recipe is that you can throw in whatever seasonal veggies you wish! See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for quantities.

Fresh vegetables: Onion (red, white or yellow), garlic cloves, zucchini, sweet bell peppers (red, yellow and/or orange), eggplant and tomatoes (grape or cherry).

Canned diced tomatoes: In addition to the fresh tomatoes, I use canned tomatoes (including the juices) to get more tomato flavor and liquid.

Seasonings: Thyme, oregano, herbs de Provence, red pepper flakes are cooked with the veggies and fresh basil is stirred in at the end.

Maple syrup (optional): I like to add just a teaspoon of maple syrup to bring out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes and balance out the heat of the red pepper flakes.

How to Make Ratatouille

1. Prep the veggies. Chop the eggplant, zucchini, onion and bell peppers into ½-inch cubes (this vegetable chopper is a huge timesaver). Set veggies aside.

2. Sauté the onions. Heat a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add the extra virgin olive oil, onions and salt. Sauté for 10 minutes or longer to caramelize the onions slightly. If you have more time, feel free to sauté over low heat for 30 minutes to really bring out the sweetness.

3. Add seasonings and garlic. Add the thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes and minced garlic and sauté over low heat for 5 minutes.

4. Add the veggies. Add the chopped vegetables, canned diced tomatoes (including the juices) and fresh whole tomatoes to the pot. Add maple syrup here as well, if using.

5. Cook over medium heat. Cover the pot and cook for approximately 20 minutes until the veggies soften and the fresh tomatoes burst and release their juices.

6. Add the fresh basil. Just before serving, stir in the freshly chopped basil.

7. Serve. Serve overtop pasta, lentils, couscous, orzo or quinoa to make it a main course or serve on its own with crusty bread as a side dish. Garnish with fresh basil, fresh thyme, red pepper flakes, black pepper or a dash of heavy cream.

Recipe Tips

Save time by using a vegetable chopper. This recipe involves a lot of chopping, so there is no shame in saving those knife skills for another day. This veggie chopper does the job quickly and easily so I can get straight to cooking.

Cut the veggies into equal sizes. Chopping the veggies uniformly ensures that they will be cooked evenly. The last thing we want is for one of the veggies to be firm while the rest are soft and tender! I prefer ½-inch cubes best as it allows for enjoying multiple veggies in every bite rather than just one or two chunks at a time.

Use good quality veggies. Fresh vegetables are the star of this classic dish, so treat them as such! I love using veggies from my local farmers market best, and I aim for buying organic produce at the grocery store when possible. The better the ingredients, the better the taste!

The veggies will soften the longer it cooks. The vegetables will continue to get more flavorful and mushy as it stews while covered. If you prefer firmer and less tender veggies, cook for less time.

Modifications

This easy recipe is flexible in that you can adjust the ingredient list to your preferences. Personally, I am not an eggplant lover and actually prefer my ratatouille without it. However, the rest of my family enjoys it and I included it in this recipe because it is a fixture of authentic ratatouille.

Here are some modification ideas:

• Use yellow squash instead of zucchini.
• Swap canned tomatoes for fresh tomatoes. I definitely wouldn't omit tomatoes altogether as that is what makes the sauciness.
• Double up on one veggie if you omit another. I love adding red, orange and yellow peppers to boost the color profile as well!

Serving Suggestions

My family typically enjoys this as a main dish year-round, but especially during the summer months! It is such a versatile dish in terms of the delicious ways it can be served:

Over grains: I usually prepare both gluten-free pasta and quinoa to allow for each person to spoon the ratatouille over their grain of choice. Couscous and orzo are other good options, and recently I started serving it over this fluffy quinoa rice combo!

With protein: Lentils provide more bulk while also adding plant-based protein (brown or black lentils would pair well with this dish). These crispy roasted chickpeas pair perfectly with ratatouille as well and provides a satisfying crunch along with it.

With crusty bread: My husband loves ratatouille as a side dish along with a baguette or focaccia!

Storage and Reheating

Once fully cooled, store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days. The flavors are even better when enjoyed the next day.

This truly is a wonderful meal-prep dish because it is already stew-like and mushy, meaning there is no concern about losing any sort of crispiness from storing in the fridge.

Ratatouille can be enjoyed at room temperature, so it doesn't necessarily even need to be reheated if packing for lunch.

If serving leftovers warm, reheat over low heat on the stove top for a few minutes for best results. If microwaving, do so briefly as it does not need to get piping hot.

Nutritional Benefits

Ratatouille is vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free and refined sugar-free. As it consists of just vegetables, spices and herbs, it is an exceptionally healthy and nutritious dish!

This ratatouille contains many vitamins and minerals, highlighted by:

• Vitamin C
• Vitamin A
• Vitamin B6
• Iron
• Potassium
• Fiber

More Summer Recipes

• 15-Minute Lemon Spinach Pasta
• Colorful Tahini Pasta Salad
• Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Bowl
• Burst Cherry Tomato Pasta
• Easy Summer Basil Tomato Avocado Salad