Cumin Zucchini Ratatouille Food

THE BEST RATATOUILLE

Steps:

• Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat until shimmering, about 1 minute. Add the bell peppers, onion and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent and the bell peppers have softened slightly, about 10 minutes. Add the eggplant, the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until the eggplant is very soft, about 8 minutes. Add the zucchini and continue to cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and red pepper flakes, if using. Cook, stirring often, until the zucchini has softened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the ratatouille has reached a thick stew-like consistency, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley and basil with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into a bowl and sprinkle with more fresh parsley and basil before serving.

CUMIN ZUCCHINI 'RATATOUILLE'

Steps:

• Set a wide pan over a low heat. Once hot, add the olive oil, garlic, onion, cumin seeds and chili or cayenne and gently fry for 12 minutes or until the onion is soft and golden.
• Meanwhile, put the tomatoes in a large bowl. Cover with boiling water and prick each tomato with a sharp knife. Leave for a minute then drain and peel off and discard the skin. Roughly chop the tomatoes and mix into the softened onions. Season and fry briskly for about 8 minutes or until the mixture forms a thick paste.
• Cut the zucchini into chunks or slices. Mix into the tomatoes and fry briskly for 4 minutes or until very lightly cooked. Season to taste and stir in the parsley. Tip into a bowl and serve hot, warm or cold.

RATATOUILLE OF ZUCCHINI, TOMATOES, EGGPLANT, AND PEPPERS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the onions, the garlic, and the salt, and cook over medium-high heat until the onions are just translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove three-quarters of the onions to a bowl. Add the zucchini to the pan with the remaining quarter of the onions, season with a little salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, and cook for a few minutes, until the zucchini begin to brown. Transfer the zucchini-and-onion mixture to an 8-inch square or circular baking pan.
• Sauté the red and green peppers separately just until they begin to brown, with a third of the remaining onions, then the eggplant with another third of the onions, and then the tomatoes with the remaining onions. Transfer each vegetable to its own baking pan.
• Cover the four pans with aluminum foil, and bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour. Uncover the pans, sprinkle each with a teaspoon of the sugar and a bit of hot pepper, and stir. Cook for an additional hour, uncovered. If there is any liquid in the pans after the second hour, drain the vegetables and reserve that liquid. Gently toss the vegetables together.
• Place the reserved liquid in a small saucepan, bring to a boil, and reduce until it is thick and can coat the back of a wooden spoon. Stir this reduction into the ratatouille. Taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Serve at room temperature.

RATATOUILLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat bottom and sides of a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir garlic until lightly browned. Mix in parsley and eggplant. Cook and stir until eggplant is soft, about 10 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
• Spread eggplant mixture evenly across bottom of prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with a few tablespoons of Parmesan cheese. Spread zucchini in an even layer over top. Lightly salt and sprinkle with a little more cheese. Continue layering in this fashion, with onion, mushrooms, bell pepper, and tomatoes, covering each layer with a sprinkling of salt and cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes.

ZUCCHINI WITH CUMIN

Steps:

• Wash and slice zucchini quarter-inch thick. Saute in hot oil until golden, turning.
• Add tomato puree, cumin and season with salt and pepper (if fresh tomato is used, chop coarsely.
• Reduce heat; cover and cook about 10 minutes. Serve.

RATATOUILLE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Prepare the vegetables: Smash and peel 3 garlic cloves, reserving the 4th. Halve onions through their roots, and slice halves into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Slice zucchini into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Cut eggplant into 1-inch cubes or spears. Seed peppers, and cut them into 1/4-inch-thick strips.
• Spread each vegetable on a separate rimmed baking sheet (use extra sheets as necessary). Add the 3 cloves of smashed garlic to the onion pan. Add 1 sprig rosemary and 2 sprigs thyme to each of the pepper, eggplant and zucchini pans. Sprinkle salt lightly over vegetables. Drizzle 3 tablespoons olive oil on each of the pans.
• Place all the pans in the oven (or work in batches if they don't fit at once). Cook until vegetables are very tender and lightly browned at the edges. This will take about 35 to 40 minutes for the peppers (their skins should shrivel), 40 to 45 minutes for the eggplant and zucchini (the eggplant should crisp slightly and the zucchini should be well cooked, so let them go 3 to 5 minutes longer than you normally might), and 60 to 65 minutes for the onions. Don't worry about the vegetables being pretty; they will meld into the ratatouille. Shake or stir the pans every 15 to 20 minutes or so, especially the onions.
• In the meantime, prepare the tomatoes: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add tomatoes and blanch until the skins split, about 10 seconds. Use a slotted spoon to quickly transfer the tomatoes to a bowl filled with ice water.
• Using a paring knife, peel the cooled tomatoes (the skins should slip right off). Halve tomatoes across their equators. Set a sieve over a bowl. Working over the bowl, use your fingers to seed the tomatoes, letting the seeds catch in the sieve and the juice run into the bowl. Discard seeds but save juices. Dice tomatoes and add to the reserved juices in bowl.
• Finely grate or mince remaining garlic clove. Add garlic to tomatoes along with bay leaves and a large pinch of salt. Set aside.
• Once vegetables are done cooking, combine them on one baking sheet or a large shallow baking dish and add ingredients from tomato bowl. Toss well. Vegetables will be stacked, and that's O.K. Cover generously with olive oil, using remaining ¼ cup oil or more, and sprinkle with salt. Everything should have a good coat of oil, but should not be drowning in it. Cook at least 1 hour, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes, until vegetables are very tender and imbued with juices and oil. Add salt and pepper to taste, then serve warm, or let cool.

ZUCCHINI RATATOUILLE

Steps:

• Dégorger les légumes -- sprinkle coarse salt on the diced zucchini in a sieve, and let sit in the sink for 30 mins to drain them of excess water.
• Heat olive oil over medium heat in a thick-bottomed, oven-proof, sauce pan (I use Le Creuset).
• Add garlic and onions and sauté 5 minutes, or until garlic is just starting to brown (don't let it burn!).
• Add zucchini; cover and cook until tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes.
• Add tomatoes and rosemary; cover and simmer on low heat, stirring occasionally, at least 30 minutes to allow the flavours to integrate.
• Uncover and simmer until excess water evaporates or add your favourite protein to the pan, cover, and bake it in the oven (see below).
• Serve as a stew, side dish or sauce with your favourite protein, or my new favourite -- a filling for omelette. In the future, I am also going to try serving it for brunch with baked eggs by making 4 shallow indentations in the sauce, cracking 1 egg into each indentation, and baking at 400°F until eggs are softly set, about 10 minutes. I'd also like to try baking some chicken breast in it.