Ratatouille
 Ratatouille served with buckwheat | |
| Alternative names | Ratatouille niçoise |
|---|---|
| Type | Stew |
| Course | Main course |
| Place of origin | France |
| Region or state | Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur |
| Main ingredients | Vegetables(tomatoes,onions,courgette,aubergine(eggplant, brinjal),bell peppers,garlic,marjoram,fennelandbasilorbay leavesandthyme |
| Variations | Confit byaldi |
Ratatouille(/ˌrætəˈtuːi/RAT-ə-TOO-ee,French:[ʁatatuj];Occitan:ratatolha[ʀataˈtuʎɔ]) is aFrenchProvençaldish ofstewedvegetablesthat originated inNiceand is sometimes referred to asratatouille niçoise(French:[niswaz]).[1]Recipes and cooking times differ widely, but common ingredients includetomato,garlic,onion,courgette(zucchini),aubergine(eggplant, brinjal),capsicum(bell pepper), and some combination of leafy greenherbscommon to the region, such aschivesorfennel.
Etymology
[edit]The wordratatouillederives from theOccitanratatolha[2]and is related to the Frenchratouillerandtatouiller,expressive forms of the verbtouiller,meaning "to stir up".[3][4]From the late 18th century, in French, it merely indicated a coarse stew. Modern ratatouille usestomatoesas a foundation forsautéedgarlic,onion,zucchini(courgette),aubergine(eggplant),bell pepper,marjoram,fennelandbasil.Instead of basil,bay leafandthyme,or a mix of green herbs likeherbes de Provencecan be used. The modern version does not appear in print until c.1930.[5]
Preparation
[edit]The Guardian's food and drink writerFelicity Cloakewrote in 2016 that, considering ratatouille's relatively recent origins (it first appeared in 1877[unreliable source]), there exists a great variety of methods of preparation for it.[6]TheLarousse Gastronomiqueclaims "according to the purists, the different vegetables should be cooked separately, then combined and cooked slowly together until they attain a smooth, creamy consistency", so that (according to the chair of the Larousse's committee,Joël Robuchon) "each [vegetable] will taste truly of itself."[7]
-
Ratatouille niçoise -
Raw ingredients -
Heavily simmered and garnished with fresh parsley -
Small pyramid (Confit byaldi)
Related dishes
[edit]Similar dishes exist in many cuisines. These include:piperade(South-West of France), bohémienne (Vaucluse), chichoumeille (Languedoc),tian(South east of France),Confit byaldi(created byMichel Guérard),pisto(Castilian-Manchego, Spain),samfaina(Catalan, Spain),tombet(Majorcan),ciambotta,caponataandpeperonata(Italy),briámandtourloú(Greek),şakşukaandtürlü(Turkish),ajapsandali(Georgian),lecsó(Hungarian),pinakbet(Filipino),ghiveci(Romanian) andzaalouk(Moroccan). Different parts of theIndian subcontinenthave their own versions of winter vegetable stew.Gujaratmakesundhiyu,Keralaavial(with coconut and local spices), and Bengalshukto.
In popular culture
[edit]In 2007,Walt Disney PicturesandPixar Animation Studiosreleased the filmRatatouille.The film features Remy, a youngratwith an exceptional sense of taste and smell who dreams of becoming a chef. The climax of the film sees Remy prepare the titular dish in the form ofconfit byaldifor the notoriously harshfood criticAnton Ego, who unexpectedly loves the dish due tonostalgiafor his mother's cooking of traditional ratatouille. The movie gave widespread exposure to this dish around the world.
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^"Ratatouille".Oxford English Dictionary,2nd edition (1989)
- ^«ratatouio»,Lou tresor dou Felibrige,Frédéric Mistral
- ^Alan Davidson (2014).The Oxford Companion to Food.Oxford University Press. p. 655.ISBN978-0-19-967733-7.
- ^"Chef Brian Discusses The Origin of Ratatouille Nicoise".LADC. Archived fromthe originalon 2015-10-09.
- ^Scotto, E., and Marianne Comolli. "Vegetables: A Garden of Eden."France, the Beautiful Cookbook: Authentic Recipes from the Regions of France.San Francisco: Collins, 1989. 195. Print. "
- ^Cloake, Felicity (15 July 2010)."How to make perfect ratatouille".The Guardian.Retrieved9 September2016.
- ^Robuchon, Joël(2008).The Complete Robuchon.New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 597.ISBN978-0-307-26719-1.
External links
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