Rustic Ratatouille in Wood-Fired Oven
Servings: 15
Calories: 75kcal
Cost: $22
This is the ratatouille version I really enjoy making for my family during hot summer days…
Equipment
- 1 Pizza oven
- 3 Baking trays
- 1 Large skillet
- 1 Large sautoir
- 1 Large shallow roasting pan
- 3 Medium size roasting pans
- 3 large bowls
- 1 Kitchen tongs
- 1 Large wooden spoon
- 1 Rubber spatula
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Infrared thermometer
Ingredients
Roasted Garlic
- 200 g Olive oil
- 2 each Garlic bulbs
- 2 each Bay leaves
- 2 each Thyme sprigs
Red of Florence Onions & Eggplants
- 1 kg Red of Florence onions
- 1 kg Eggplants
Zucchinis
- 1 kg Zucchini
- 30 g Olive oil from the roasted garlic
- 8 g Celtic grey salt
- 2 g Ground black pepper
Tomatoes
- 1 kg Beefsteak or Roma tomatoes
- 30 g Olive oil from the roasted garlic
- 20 each Basil leaves
- 30 g Peeled garlic
- 2 each Thyme sprigs
- 8 g Celtic grey salt
- 3 g Ground black pepper
- 2 each Bay leaves
- 5 g Smoked paprika
- 2 g Chili pepper to taste
- 2 g Herb de Provence to taste
Braised Bell Peppers
- 1 kg Assortment of bell peppers or Corno di toro rosso chopped
- 800 g Yellow onions chopped
- 40 g Olive oil from the roasted garlic
- 10 g Grey salt
- 3 each Bay leaves
- 2 g Ground black pepper
Instructions
Braising in a Wood Oven
- Utilizing Residual Heat "chaleur tombante" (fallen heat). After preheating the oven for a few hours, I use the oven's slowly declining residual heat to cook some of the vegetables I need for the ratatouille (eggplants and onions) slowly and gently over many hours.
- This low-and-slow method breaks down the vegetables' fibers resulting in incredible softness and concentrated flavor. You could also do half of the onions cooked that way and the remaining cooked with the bell peppers later.
Roasted Garlic
- Halve garlic bulbs and cook them slowly in olive oil and herbs for about 45 minutes. Let cool. At that point, roasted garlic in oil can be refrigerated and be used later. It will anyway, be reheated in your wood-fired oven and served along with the ratatouille.
Red of Florence Onions & Eggplants
- So, when your wood-fired oven has gone through the preheating phase for 3 or 4 hours a day ahead, spread out the ambers all around the floor and shut the door. Let cool it off for an hour (fallen heat). Then remove the ambers. Wrap the onions and eggplants individually in aluminum foil. Place them in shallow dish or baking tray or throw them straight onto the wood-fired oven floor which should be at 480ºF/250ºC. Shut the oven door and leave them in all night. Otherwise bake them in your fan oven set at the same temp. Then after 45 minutes, turn the oven off and leave your veggies in all night.
- Next, remove the foil wrapped around the onions. With your serrated knife, cut through it and remove the flesh.
- Stalk the cooked red of Florence onions flesh in a roasting pan. Season with a good drizzle of garlic oil, salt and pepper; set aside to get roasted later in the wood-fire oven.
- Do likewise with the cooked eggplants. Add more spices if desired. Top eggplant caviar with the red of Florence onions; set aside to be roasted in the wood-fired oven later.
Tomato & Zucchini
- Rinse and hull tomatoes and cut them into chunks; reserve in a large bowl. Rinse zucchinis and trim off ends. Cut them into chunks and reserve in a large bowl. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and cook zucchinis on medium-high heat for 35 minutes stirring every so often (add salt and pepper during cooking). Transfer zucchinis to a large bowl. For the tomatoes: Use the same skillet, heat olive oil and basil leaves until fragrant. Add tomatoes along with the remaining ingredients. Cook for 45 minutes on medium heat; uncovered. Turn the heat off and leave them there.
Braised Bell Peppers
- Clean pepper under cool running water. Use your hands to gently rub off any dirt. Place the pepper on its side on the cutting board. Slice about ½ inch off the top (stem end). Make a straight cut down one side. Cut off white membranes and remove the seeds. Cut into strips and squares. Peel and chop onions. In the sautoire, braise the onions and bell peppers with the remaining ingredients on medium-low heat for an hour.
Tomato-Zucchini Mixture
- In the large shallow roasting pan, combine the cooked tomatoes with the zucchinis. Squeeze out some of the roasted garlic in, and add more chopped basil if desired. A this juncture, the bell pepper-onion mixture can be folded into the tomato-zucchini.
The Roasting & Broiling Technique for Your Wood-Fired Oven
- Approximately 5 hours before eating, fire up your wood-fire oven. If you plan to eat a 1pm, start at 7am. Stop adding wood at 11am. Around noon, push the entire bed of glowing embers and coals to the very back wall of the oven and left side. Clean oven floor with a wire brush. Now, the oven floor (center) should be at 570ºF/300ºC. The back of the oven becomes the hottest zone, while the middle and front are progressively cooler. This allows you to control cooking by moving items closer to or further from the heat source.
Adding Wood to Keep it Alive
- After 45 minutes of roasting, the oven may need a little boost. If needed, flare it up with a small log. Gently place the log directly onto the bed of embers at the back side. Do not throw it forcefully, as this can spark and scatter ash onto your food.
- Begin with the tomato-zucchini mixture which takes about 75 minutes to roast and broil accordingly–it should end up confit!. The other preparations take about 30 minutes extra roasting time to get them properly seared from the bottom and caramelized on top.
Barbecuing Meat Afterward
- As soon as the ratatouille is confit and ready to be served, leave it to rest for 30 minutes. Immediately so, spread embers back to the center of the oven and fire it up with a bunch of vine branches or Mesquite wood chunks. After 10 minutes or so, spread embers and grill your meat.
- Bon appétit!
Nutrition
Serving: 150g | Calories: 75kcal
