Ratatouille Provençale

• doses: 2-3

Ingredientes

2 tablespoons of olive oil (the actual spoon, not the U.S measurement unit which varies from one country to another)

2-3 garlic cloves

2-3 oignons

2 eggplants

2 big zucchinis

2 big bellpeppers (red or green)

3 tomatoes with tomato paste OR just tomato sauce (300 mL)

Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary (Herbes de Provence mix) and 2 bay leaves.

Salt and pepper

Instruções

All ingredients should be at room temperature

Dice the onions and finely chop the garlic cloves

Over medium heat, add oil and wait to come to temperature. Add the onion and garlic, stir so that the oil evenly coats all the bits, put the lid on, let it cook until it becomes translucent (3-5 min).

Reduce heat to low. Add the tomato sauce (or tomatoes + paste) and all the herbs

Let it cook 10-15 minutes (with the lid on), the goal here is to remove the acidity from the tomato to keep things sweet. If you want to cheat, you can add a pinch of sugar.

Wash and dice the eggplants in 1.5 cm parts (don't peel it) then add it into the mix.

Wash, seed, and dice the bellpeppers in 1.5 cm parts then add it into the mix.

Wash and dice the zucchinis in 1,5 cm parts (don't peel it) then add it in to the mix.

Add pepper and coarse salt (it'll make the vegetables sweat) and stir the ingredients a bit to avoid having layers.

Let it cook with the lid on long enough for all the ingredients to soften and sweat the water out (25 min?)

Remove the lid. There should be quite a lot of water in the saucepan.

Put it on low heat and let it cook for a while, just checking from time to time if nothing is burning. If the water is evaporating too fast, lower the heat or put the lid back on for a few minutes (30-40 min).

Taste for texture and season to test, then put the whole thing on high heat.

Let the ingredients caramelize a bit but not burn, you should hear them fry for 30-40 secs then stir the whole thing so that all ingredients are evenly caramelized.

You should notice the ratatouille going from a colourful arrangement of distinct colours to a more uniform and creamy brown-red color. The whole thing should look like a messy mushy working-class dish, which it exactly is. You should be able to taste all the ingredients yet it should feel like a uniform, slightly sweetened taste. This recipe makes 2-3 servings.