Ratatouille with Aniseed Myrtle
Prep time: 5 mins
Cook time: 40 mins
Serves: 6 (as a main or 10-12 as a side)
This is one of our all time favourite dishes when we have a bunch of vegetables we need to use up in the fridge, or we just took a trip to the market. A lot of ratatouille recipes call for fennel, but we’ve opted for Australian grown Anise Myrtle, which has a lovely liquorice flavour like fennel, and is a good source of lutein, folate, vitamin E, and vitamin C.
- 2 eggplants
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 2 red onions
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 red capsicums, or 1 red and 1 yellow
- ½ cup aniseed myrtle
- 3 large zucchinis
- 400g can of whole tomatoes
- 2 tsp herbs de Provence
This is one of our all time favourite dishes when we have a bunch of vegetables we need to use up in the fridge, or we just took a trip to the market. A lot of ratatouille recipes call for fennel, but we’ve opted for Australian grown Anise Myrtle, which has a lovely liquorice flavour like fennel, and is a good source of lutein, folate, vitamin E, and vitamin C.
- Preheat the grill to high.
- Cut the eggplants into 1cm slices, then place on a baking tray and brush with 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Grill for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Turn the slices over, brush with another tablespoon of oil and grill for 5 to 8 minutes, until golden.
- Peel and finely slice the onions widthways, peel and grate or slice the garlic, then deseed and slice the capsicums. Cut the zucchinis into 1cm rounds.
- In a large frying pan, heat the remaining oil over a medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes, until they begin to soften and turn golden.
- Add the garlic and cook for a few minutes, then add the peppers, anise myrtle and courgettes, and cook for 5 to 8 minutes until they begin to soften.
- Add canned tomatoes, eggplant and herbes de Provence to the pan. Use a spoon to break up the tomatoes in the pan.
- Lower the heat, cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes or so, until the vegetables are cooked through. Season to taste.
- Serve with some crusty bread to soak up all the delicious juices!