recipe for ratatouille Drome Provencale style

Ratatouille de Drome Provencale

Ratatouille is as provençal as lavender and its blue sky above.

It simply combines all the delicious vegetables which are ripe in the summer, allowing for the full flavor to develop by letting it simmer for almost two hours. Best served in the pot, along with some fresh country bread: in the Provence bread is eaten along the main course and to soak up the sauce on the plate.

serving 4 - 6

heavy pot like Le Creusset, with fitting lid to trap the vapor during cooking

500g potatoes

5 medium-sized carrots

1 red or yellow large onion

1 large courgettes

200g string beans

3 medium-sized or 5 small tomatoes, ripe and juicy

4 cloves of garlic

5 sprigs of thyme or 1 full teaspoon dried

1 cube of biological vegetable broth, dissolved in 500ml of water

fresh bread (about 2 slices per person) or lightly toasted in a pan

Cut up all vegetables in bite-sized pieces and layer them according to the list of ingredients above, with the hardest vegetable on the bottom. Add hot broth at the end and let cook covered on gas mark 2 for 1 hour, then reduce to gas mark 1 for another 45 minutes. Stir only occasionally and very gently.

Serve with fresh bread and enjoy!