Barbecued Ratatouille is a modern British recipe (based on a French original) for a classic vegetable stew in a tomato base where the vegetables are lightly smoked on a barbecue before the dish is assembled. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic French version of: Barbecued Ratatouille.
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Ingredients:
1 medium-sized aubergine (eggplant), sliced into 1cm thick rounds
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
dried grape vines or chips from fruit wood (eg apples)
2 medium courgettes, cut lengthways into thirds and each strip halved crossways
2 large, ripe, tomatoes, cut crossways into 1cm thick slices
1 large onion, cut crossways into 1cm thick slices
1 medium red bell pepper
1 medium green bell pepper
80ml olive oil
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp freshly-ground black pepper
Method:
Sprinkle the aubergine slices with the salt, place in a colander and set aside to drain in the sink for 30 minutes.
In the meantime, pre-heat your barbecue until medium hot and soak the wood hips in water for 30 minutes.
Drain the wood chips and scatter over the hot coals. Grease the grill rack and set 12cm above the coals. Place the bell peppers on top and cook, turning every 5 minutes until the skin is blistered all over. Transfer to a plastic bag and set aside until cool enough to be handled.
In the meantime, place a frying pan on the barbecue. Heat a little oil in in and use to fry the garlic for 10 seconds. Take the pan off the heat. Lightly brush both sides of the vegetables with this garlic oil. Place on the barbecue and cook over the coals until crisp-tender (about 4 minutes for the aubergines and courgettes, 3 minutes for the onions and 1 minute for the tomatoes).
When all the vegetables are cooked transfer to a tray. Peel the cooled peppers, de-seed them and slice into strips. Dice the grilled tomatoes and coarsely chop the onions. Combine all the vegetables in the pan with any left-over garlic oil.
Place on the barbecue and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the basil and season with black pepper. Cut the aubergine slices into halves or quarters (depending on size) then add to the stew with the courgettes. Allow to heat through. Serve hot.
