SUMMER VEGETABLE SOLUTIONS
Ratatouille perfect for bounty of tomatoes, zucchini
Courage. It makes the muskrat guard its musk. It puts the “ape” in apricot. Now, studies suggest that it also puts the “rat” in ratatouille.
So, loin up your girds, kids, because it’s summer, and scary vegetables abound. Tomatoes explode on the vine and purple eggplants drop like drowsy grackles from the tall, tall eggplant trees. Today, though, we are fearless. Today, we make ratatouille.
Why you need to learn this
Look, I know I’m spilling some mad tea here, but, Madge told me you’re a little off your game lately, knife-skills-wise. “Cuts like a hobo,” were her exact words.
Be honest. If Madge has a point, ratatouille’s a perfect and perfectly delicious opportunity for you to sharpen those skills.
The steps you take
The first thing to remember is that there are exactly 9 bajillion and 12 recipes for ratatouille. This means there’s no one “right” way of doing it. Sure, there are plenty of wrong ways — scorched onions, not enough seasoning, too much dog — but it’s such a common preparation that pretty much every cook has his or her own way of doing it.
Now, in case the only ratatouille you’ve ever encountered is that capital “R” Pixar jobber — the one with the actual rat — it’s a vegetable dish, a stew of sorts, a “melange,” if you will, a medley, a sun-ripened party in your piehole, and it’s associated with Provence, a region in the southwest of France known for delicious vegetables, Julia Child and bats. Lots and lots of bats.
Typically — but not exclusively — ratatouille consists of roughly equal amounts of eggplant, zucchini and bell pepper, flavored with onion, garlic and herbs. Tomato is added in direct proportion to the cook’s tastes (see be