Ratatouille Niçoise

This Easy Ratatouille Niçoise Recipe is a classic French Vegetable Stew made with eggplant, zucchini, peppers, onions, and tomatoes, all cooked slowly in olive oil. It comes from Nice, in the South of France, and it is naturally vegan.

Ratatouille is a budget friendly dish to make when summer vegetables are in season. Serve it warm with crusty bread, or spoon it over rice or pasta for dinner. Leftovers keep for days and taste better every time you reheat them.

Jump to:

• What is Ratatouille Niçoise?
• Why This Recipe Works
• Ingredients You'll Need
• How to Make Ratatouille Niçoise?
• Recipe Tips From the Chef
• Ratatouille Variations
• Serving Suggestions
• Storage and Make Ahead Instructions
• Recipe FAQs
• Related Recipes
• Ratatouille Niçoise

What is Ratatouille Niçoise?

Ratatouille Niçoise is a chunky vegetable stew, and the name means ratatouille made the way they cook it in Nice. The full French name is ratatouille à la niçoise, and you will see both spellings in English.

The word comes from rata, an old French army word for a simple stew, and the verb touiller, which means to stir. The dish started as cheap summer food, made from whatever the garden gave that week.

Just like Türlü - Mediterranean Roasted Vegetables, it turns a pile of summer vegetables into one dish. The difference is in the pot: here each vegetable is cooked on its own first, then everything finishes together in tomato sauce.

In Nice the stew is seasoned with thyme and bay leaf while it simmers, and fresh basil goes in right at the end, torn by hand.

The layered dish from the animated movie is not this stew. That version is closer to a tian, where the vegetables are sliced thin and baked in neat rows. Real Ratatouille Niçoise is chunky, and everything cooks in the pot.

Why This Recipe Works

• You can make it a day ahead. Ratatouille actually tastes better the next day, once the flavors settle.

• Each vegetable is sautéed on its own, so nothing turns to mush and every bite still tastes of itself.

• One pot of this covers you as a side dish, a vegan main, or a topping for pasta and pizza.

• Summer vegetables are cheap in season, so this is a low cost dinner.

• Serve it hot, warm, or cold. In Nice it often goes to the table at room temperature.

• I think the leftovers are the best part. Spoon them over pizza dough or stir them through pasta and lunch is done.

Ingredients You'll Need

Please scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredients list with measurements, complete recipe method, recipe notes, and nutritional information.

• Olive oil - Use a few tablespoons, just enough to sauté the vegetables. Eggplants absorb lots of oil, so don't keep adding more.

• Eggplants - Pick slightly firm but not hard eggplants when buying them. They take longer to cook than other vegetables. Don't rush and undercook it and use a splash of water to help the cooking process.

• Zucchini - You can use any type of zucchini or yellow squash as long they are fresh and firm.

• Peppers - Red bell pepper or yellow bell pepper are my favorite but you can use your favorite sweet peppers of all different colors.

• Red onions - They have a sharper taste than normal onions. They also add some purple color to this colorful vegetable stew. Alternatively, you can use brown or yellow onion.

• Tomatoes - Use red and juicy summer tomatoes if you can or use tinned crushed tomatoes during the winter season.

• Thyme - It is one of the most popular herbs to use in Mediterranean cooking. You can use rosemary or oregano instead, and a teaspoon of herbes de Provence also works.

How to Make Ratatouille Niçoise?

Prepare Your Vegetables

First, cut the vegetables into square pieces of about 1 inch - 2 cm, not too big, not too small.

We want them to melt, but also to be able to recognize each vegetable in the final dish.

Sauté the Vegetables

Sauté each vegetable separately with olive oil before adding in a tomato and onion-based sauce. Cooking the vegetables separately keeps each one tasting of itself.

Heat a large saucepan or large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoon olive oil. Add the eggplants to the pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes until soft and starting to brown.

Transfer them to a plate and set them aside.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the same pan, add the zucchini, and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes until soft.

Transfer them to a plate along with the eggplants and set aside.

Add a drizzle of olive oil to the same pan, and sauté the peppers for 4 to 5 minutes until slightly cooked.

Transfer on a plate along with the eggplants and zucchini, and set them aside.

Prepare the Tomato Sauce

For the tomato sauce, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Sauté the onions, garlic, and thyme together for 5 minutes until soft.

Stir in the tomato paste then add the chopped fresh tomatoes, salt, black pepper, and sugar. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the tomatoes are soft. If using juicy and nicely ripened tomatoes, you don't need to use tomato paste for this recipe.

Cook the Vegetables in Tomato Sauce

Add the eggplants, zucchinis, and peppers into the pan and mix with the tomato sauce.

Gently simmer for 30 minutes or until it has a smooth and creamy consistency. Reduce the cooking time if you want your vegetables crunchy.

Check the seasoning, add more salt if necessary, and garnish the cooked ratatouille with chopped parsley or fresh basil before serving in a large bowl.

Recipe Tips From the Chef

• Use ripe seasonal vegetables. Firm eggplants and zucchini and juicy summer tomatoes make the biggest difference here.

• Some eggplants taste bitter. Peel them, cut them, and leave them in salty water for half an hour, then drain and dry them well before cooking.

• Cook the vegetables in batches. A crowded pan steams instead of browning.

• Let the pot rest for an hour before serving. The flavors settle as it cools, and ratatouille is just as good warm as hot.

• Once everything is combined, keep the heat low. A gentle simmer cooks the vegetables through without breaking them apart.

• Add the sautéed vegetables to the tomato sauce, not the other way around. If the tomatoes go in too early, they drown the rest of the pot.

• Tear the basil in by hand at the end, off the heat. Cooked basil loses its smell.

• The simmer time sets the texture. Around 30 minutes keeps the vegetable pieces distinct. If you like it softer and more melted together, give it 20 to 30 minutes longer on the lowest heat.

Ratatouille Variations

• For a baked version, slice the vegetables thin, arrange them in rows over a little of the tomato sauce, and bake until soft. That is the tian style most people know from the movie.

• Ratatouille with eggs makes a good lunch. Reheat a few spoonfuls in a pan, make small wells, and crack the eggs straight in.

• A handful of black olives stirred in near the end suits the dish. They are a Nice ingredient too.

• Some cooks in Nice add a small pinch of saffron to the tomato sauce.

• A small splash of red or white wine vinegar stirred in at the end brightens the sauce.

Serving Suggestions

Ratatouille Niçoise can be a side dish one night and a vegan main the next.

As a side, serve it with roast or grilled meat and fish, such as Rice Stuffed Chicken, Chicken Shish Kebab, Baked Salmon, or Turkish Beef Kofta.

As a main, spoon it over Bulgur Rice Pilaf, Turkish Rice, boiled pasta, or a bowl of Pomme Puree. Or keep it simple and scoop it up with crusty bread or Bazlama.

Storage and Make Ahead Instructions

Ratatouille Niçoise is a great dish to make ahead. Cook it a day early and keep it covered in the fridge. The flavors get deeper overnight.

Let leftovers cool completely before they go into an airtight container. They keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

For longer storage, place it in freezer safe containers or bags, leaving some headspace for expansion. It keeps in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Reheat it gently in a saucepan over low to medium heat, stirring now and then so it heats evenly.

The microwave works too: cover the dish loosely and heat in short bursts, stirring between them. The vegetables come out a little softer after reheating, and the taste does not suffer.

Recipe FAQs

Related Recipes

For other delicious classic French recipes why not try:

Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out! Leave a comment below and tag @cookingorgeous on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingorgeous.

I hope you enjoy the process of making this healthy and delicious Easy French Ratatouille Niçoise Recipe as much as you enjoy eating it! 🙂