Ratatouille is a fancy name for Aubergine (which is a fancy name for Eggplant) and Zucchini (a fancy name for Courgettes (a fancy name for little marrows)). This recipe is a simplified version, that I invented after tasting some at a restaurant in Melbourne.
| About half a large eggplant | Clean, and cut into lumps about 3cm cube. Some recipe books advocate sprinkling with salt, but I never bother. Put the lumps under water in a bowl, or they'll go brown. |
| A couple of tablespoons of fruity Olive Oil | |
| One medium onion (pref. purple), chopped roughly | |
| Two cloves garlic, crushed | Heat the oil in a pan, add onion and garlic; fry until they begin to smell a little cooked. They should not yet be brown |
| The cubed eggplant | Add to pan |
| Red sweet pepper (capsicum), cleaned and roughly chopped | Add to pan |
| One or two zuccchini, roughly chopped | Add to pan, and stir occasionally, until eggplant, pepper and zucchini begin to brown. They should not at this stage be anywhere near cooked. |
| Three tomatos (Roma, by choice) roughly chopped | Add to pan, plus a little water, |
| Cover and simmer until everything's cooked. You can leave the vegetables a little crunchy, or cook until everything loses its texture — your choice. Taste and correct seasoning before serving (if the tomatoes were very sour you may need to add a little honey or sugar; I like a generous dash of black pepper in the mix at this stage). |