Old ratatouille in new edition

Milica as inspiration

I check other blogs too, not just mine. I love reading what kinds of stews and soups other great cooks prepare and for whom. It’s not exactly that I stick my nose into everything, but I am all for the new horizons.

It’s been some time since I’ve seen in Mila’s cookbook her ratatouille recipe. The photos were so great that they simply made me grab a spoon and taste it from the pot.

That Mila’s ratatouille reminded me of again such a long gone time when we were just kids… winter… snow… our red cheeks… red noses… we’re crashing on our sledges in the snow… and at one point there’s a woman’s voice breaking the silence, calling us… calling us to have lunce.

And for lunch…ratatouille similar to the Mila’s one… just like in the pictures.

I have to admit… I thought it was yuck back then… and right now, I would trade anything if I could bring back those moments with ratatouille….

Mila, this time you’ve really touched and inspired me, to make one myself and try to bring back those old times and share them with my family.

Ratatouille

Ratatouille is actually the name of a dish made of mud, and the name in Serbian language originates from the Turkish ‘güveç’ .

It was named after the dish made of mud. The same name would be assigned to more different dishes, but that’s not the way to go. Imagine naming five completely different dishes the same name, for example ratatouille. You make podvarak (sour cabbage) in the same pot.

Our traditional Serbian ratatouille is a dish made of rice with addition of vegetables (tomato, eggplant, pepper, onion and garlic). In other countries (Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania) it is prepared with meat, be that chicken, pork, lamb, or less commonly fish or beef. They also add some other vegetables, such as mushrooms and olives.

Well, precisely that vegetable stew is even compared with the French ratatouille which we have also prepared, you remember it, here.

Although I find this one even more savory, and I love stronger flavors.

Crock Pot ratatouille

This is exactly our old ratatouille, just in a new edition, prepared in Crock Pot.

As I decided to do nothing after getting my Crock Pot, I was persistent in that. In case you’re tired of cooking and preparing meals, and got a stiff back like I do for the past 4 days, this is a great solution for the decision to ‘not cook today, but still have something warm and homemade’.

I went grocery shopping in my own fridge and cellar.

This is everything that I had in my house and that could become a part of my ratatouille. Instead of a regular potato, I put sweet potato, in order to add a sweeter note to the entire dish, because I would need it since I used canned tomato. Zucchini was the green one.

Spices play an important role, so you can add anything that you already have… I used fresh spices, oregano, basil and sage for meat.

My job was simply to chop it all and put it into the Crock Pot.

Here is our future Crock Pot ratatouille like this.

I poured canned tomato and a glass of water and covered it all to cook.

After it’s been cooked enough, your ratatouille should look something like this:

I added spices, basil and oregano.

And now, why it’s important to pick a great Crock Pot, well, because you no longer have to use so many dishes.

And here is why…

In order to roast the ratatouille in the oven, I simply pulled the dish from its base and put it into the preheated oven. I didn’t have to replace the dish, change it or use anything else.

Take care, not every Crock Pot dish can be put into the oven!

In the meantime

In the meantime, I am roasting Crock Pot ratatouille as a side dish to the roasted pork fillets enriched with some sage.

Sage is an amazing spice which gives special aroma to pork.

Its taste is a bit spicier, hot. It is used in all cuisines.

Italian saltimbocca is unthinkable without sage. It is also quite often used in Balkan and European cuisines. It is interesting that they don’t have a special place for it in French cuisine.

The oven has done its job

It was roasting in the oven for some time, just enough to create crust at the top layer, and the excess water evaporates.

Complete finale

And then, a spoon, and everyone can join 🙂

I got amazing reviews by everyone present, and I expect some of yours as well

You can also try Mila’s ratatouille, and the recipe is here.