(Inspired by the cute promos of the Pixar movie – Ratatouille (Rat-a-too-ee) in the papers. This movie releases in India on August 24)
We all have a slight hesitation when it comes to cooking foreign foods in our kitchen especially because of the unavailability of some ingredients and also doubting its acceptance by the people we are cooking for. But there are some dishes like Ratatouille that can be tried in any world kitchen due to its simple ingredients and procedure.
It is a traditional French Provencal stewed vegetable dish that originated in Nice. You can either have it as a meal by itself or serve it with simple bread, rice or mashed potatoes. I’ve discovered that using it as a chunky hearty sauce with your favourite pasta will make it an unforgettable meal. The people you serve this to, will want to kiss your hands for the rest of their lives. So be careful, whom you serve it to!!
Ratatouille with pasta
Category: French-Italian fusion
Time Taken: 30 minutes
Serves: 3 or two really hungry people
Ratatouille with Cochiglie Rigate - Dinner last night !
Ingredients
Method
- Recipe for Pasta:
- Take 1 xbd cups of your favourite pasta (short variety like penne, spirals, conchiglie ).
- A large pot of salted boiling water.
- Cook pasta according to pack instructions, drain and keep aside.
- Recipe for Ratatouille:
- In a large soup pot / saucepan, heat 1-2 tbsp of olive oil. Start with the smashed, chopped garlic, saute for a few seconds. Do not brown. Add the sliced onions with a fat pinch of salt and stir it on a low flame for 3-4 minutes till soft.
- Put it in the diced eggplant and bell pepper strips. Stir this occasionally until they are half done. This will take about 4-5 minutes. Next, add the zucchini, mushrooms and tomatoes. Season with chilli powder, remaining salt and cook for 5 minutes till vegetables are cooked. Lastly throw in shredded spinach, stir for 2 minutes until the leaves wilt and blend with the rest of the vegetables. Add spices and dried herbs, torn basil leaves, black pepper powder and give it a good stir.
- Add the cooked pasta and combine well with ratatouille. Serve hot garnished with some more shredded fresh basil.
I’m going to try this ASAP 🙂
Sounds and looks very delicious!!! Will try it soon!!
looks yummy.. really want to watch that movie, by the way :)thanks for stopping by once in a while and for your encouragement 🙂
looks awesome, I will be trying it soon.
true, i did make tortellini with eggplant from my garden & the outcome was pretty good, similar recipe w/o spinach :)looks very appetising 🙂
This is a famous dish. And nandita, we are experts in Indianising everything! I add turmeric and hing even in Mexican and Italian dishes:)).
And it’s raining ratatoullie too all over the blogosphere! It’s the vegetables that just seem to suggest this dish!Looking great and healthy! 😉
This dish looks great, Nandita. Very nice recipe too. I like your 3rd pic 🙂
Bale! Did you see the ratatouille recipe on the New York Times? It was by the chef they hired to create all the dishes so they could animate it exactly.I can’t wait for Shankar to try this out…not that he needs me to kiss his hands any more. Thank god you said hands btw.Kanch
Ratatouille looks good!
Oh yeah baby! I love ratatouille however I’ve never done it with pasta before!! Looks great – I like seeing “foreign” foods on your blog!
loved the movie clip , cannot wait to watch it. Naditha this seems such a comfy food. will have to try it
if you’re recommending eggplant, it ought to be good. i know you don’t like it generally. ratatouille is packed with flavour. and it’s healthy and omforting.
Looks fantastic. But I have never used coriander seeds/pdr in pasta.
Sreelu, Priya, Cinnamon, Nags, Saju – Do let me know how it turns out please!Richa- its a great taste right, combining this with pasta!!Latha / Suganya- What you say is right, but if you check the link of the original recipe, it mentions coriander seeds and fennel seeds, my addition was the chilli flakes because the addition of pasta would make it very bland :)Anita- it sure is raining Ratatouilles, the movie is turning out to be very inspiring, in my case even before I’ve seen it.TBC-3rd pic? You mean the Pooris?? LOLKanch- hey I haven’t seen that, can you please mail me the link, if its not a trouble!Meeta-I see more demand for Tambram cuisine on the blog, but I’m all for eating glocal (global yet local)Bee- I’m quite touched that you’ve read me so well, just by reading my blog! I could only eat Baba Ganouj earlier, now my horizons are expanding as far as eggplant is concerned and trust me you’ll love this too!
Wonderful! It looks delicious. I love eggplant with pasta–a great combo.I haven’t seen the movie yet either, but I am looking forward to it.
I definitely like your version.
Hey nanditaCool stuff.. i make something similar to this.. and as i said my uncle this time brot loads of Wheat pasta from usa.. so me all kicked about it.. keep experimenting..jus wish i had time and patience to jot down what i make and put it on my blog…:)
This is surely a comforting platter, Nandita. Quite a looker! i have some small eggplants, so this is one yummy idea for this week. i still haven’t seen the movie 🙁
Oh ! i’m in love with your blog Nandita 🙂 cannot help it. I never am afraid to experiment with food, and will definitely try ur recipe in the coming days 🙂 Great blogging girl !! keep it up.www.monaafzal.wordpress.com
Hey Nandita!I tried out your Ratatouille, its was great! I have started a blog very recently, I will post my ratatouille experience soon :)Shweta