Welcome again to our five-ingredient dinner collection! This week’s entry is from my good friend Brooks Reitz, who runs an empire of well-liked eating places in Charleston and can also be the steward of an exquisite way of life e-newsletter I learn religiously referred to as A Small and Easy Factor.
It was on that e-newsletter the place he just lately shared his recipe for ratatouille. However not your typical ratatouille. At this stage of life, he doesn’t have time for giant cooking tasks. “A meal requiring a number of steps, cautious measuring, or in depth planning just isn’t a meal I’m inquisitive about,” he writes. If he did have time for mission cooking, although, he concedes ratatouille can be one of many dishes that will make the minimize. “I’d like to take the time to rigorously fry the person substances in olive oil, every reaching peak doneness earlier than rigorously combining the elements into an excellent, symphonic entire.” However till that day, there’s Lazy Man’s Ratatouille, a vegetarian dinner that leans on jarred tomato sauce for a bit of help — and requires solely ONE pan within the kitchen.
Lazy Man’s Ratatouille
From Brooks: This can be a lovely stew, simplified for a straightforward weeknight dinner. I like this dish room temp (or chilly) with a scoop of ricotta and crusty bread. Serves 2-3, and might be scaled up or down. (The greens shrink significantly within the oven, so don’t fear in case your baking sheet or roasting pan seems actually crowded.)
2 medium zucchini, chopped into 1/2-inch items
2 Japanese eggplant (or any eggplant), chopped into 1/2 inch items
1/2 medium purple onion, chopped into wedges and layers separated
6-8 small tomatoes, quartered
olive oil*
kosher salt and freshly floor black pepper*
1 cup jarred tomato sauce, similar to Rao’s
Non-obligatory add-ins: 3 tablespoons capers, contemporary herbs like basil or parsley, contemporary ricotta or yogurt, hunk of crusty bread
Warmth oven to 400°F. Chuck the zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, and onion into a giant roasting pan or baking sheet and season the entire mess in plenty of olive oil (sufficient to coat, however not drench) and a bathe of kosher salt. After baking for quarter-hour, pull out the dish and add tomato sauce. (I exploit Rao’s as a result of I find it irresistible, it’s straightforward to seek out, and it’s obtained a number of easy substances.) Put this again into the oven and roast for an additional 35-45 minutes, till every little thing is tender however not collapsed. The zucchini ought to nonetheless have a little bit of life, and one of the simplest ways to verify is to try it out about half-hour in.
Let this cool on the stovetop, and when it has reached room temperature, you’ll be able to decide your add-ins (I’d argue the ricotta is a non-negotiable).
* We aren’t counting olive oil, salt, or pepper within the ingredient whole.
Thanks, Brooks!
P.S. Extra five-ingredient dinners, together with a tomato-feta tart.
