Recipe Wed May 07 2008
Ratatouille, Not Rat-Tat-Tooey
With all this talk about mice and rats having the run of O'Hare, I decided it was a good opportunity to talk about ratatouille, the summery, stewed vegetable dish of French origins ("ratatouille" literally means "toss food"). A colorful mix of peppers, eggplant, zucchini, tomato and spices cooked in a dutch oven, it's a good use of healthy food, and with Farmer's Market season just around the corner (Green City Market kicks off on May 14!), keeping a recipe handy is a good idea; Smitten Kitchen has a nice photo of her delicious-looking ratatouille experiment, and you can find a range of recipes online.
- Robyn Nisi
KM Wed May 07 2008, 3:45PM +
"Ratatouille" derives from "rata," French Army slang for an unappealing stew, and "touiller," which means "stir," or "mix." This is according to Larousse Gastronomique. "Toss food" is not the word's literal meaning.