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Ratatouille Pappardelle is a combination of eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers and tomatoes are slowly simmered in spices to create a beautiful late summer sauce that is tossed with pappardelle and topped with freshly chopped parsley and crumbled feta cheese.
Ratatouille mixes together eggplant, zucchini bell peppers and tomatoes with onion, garlic and spices and simmers them into a delicious stew. The vegetables really absorb and soak in all the flavor from the herbs and spices. For those of you with a garden that produces a lot of vegetables over the summer months, Ratatouille recipe is a great recipe to have on hand. I like to pair ratatouille with pasta or even serve it alongside quinoa or rice.
My family love eggplant, so I like to use it in a variety of different dishes. You can learn how to air fry a whole eggplant here. Or try my Mediterranean Eggplant Salad, Easy Eggplant Curry, Air Fryer Eggplant Fries or this delicious Baba Ghanoush Dip.
Why We Love this Ratatouille Pappardelle
Here are more reasons it’s a must-try dish:
•Easy Preparation: This sauce is really easy to prepare and can be made up ahead of time and stored in the fridge. Then all you need to do is cook some fresh pasta when it’s time to eat.
• Versatile: This recipe can be easily adapted to suit your tastes. Add in other vegetables and fresh herbs that you and your family enjoy eating.
• Great for Summer: If you have summer garden produce or farmers market vegetables and herbs this is the recipe for you! It mixes those fresh summer flavors and makes it into an easy vegetarian meal paired with pasta.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s an overview of the simple ingredients we’re using. Jump to the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts and printable instructions.
- Garlic: I recommend using fresh garlic for the best flavor, but you can use garlic puree or frozen garlic in a pinch.
- Vegetables: I use a combination of veggies which are eggplant, zucchini, onion and red bell pepper in this sauce.
- Tomato: I use both a can of diced tomatoes and tomato paste in this recipe to give the sauce a depth of tomato flavor. You also can use fresh tomatoes if you want.
- Herbs: I use oregano, basil, parsley and bay leaves to flavor the sauce. You can use either dried or fresh herbs and I give the quantities of each in the recipe card below. Fresh thyme would be another great herb to add.
- Seasoning: I season the sauce with sea salt and black pepper, also adding paprika and red pepper flakes for extra flavor.
- Pasta: I use pappardelle pasta, but you can use any variety of pasta.
Recipe Variations
- Vegetables – You can use other vegetables that you have on hand, try carrots, celery or mushrooms.
- Cheese – I love adding feta cheese to the finished dish. I also really like goat cheese or Parmesan cheese.
- Leafy Greens – If you have greens to use up I like to add spinach, kale or Swiss chard to this dish. You can add them towards the end of the cooking process and just simmer them until wilted.
- Olives – Add a handful of your favorite olives to the ratatouille. Any color of olive would work.
- Beans – If you are feeling adventurous add in a can of chickpeas or white beans. It won’t be the traditional Ratatouille you are used to but it is a nice addition and adds protein to create a full meal for lunch or dinner that will keep you satisfied.
- Protein – Add extra protein with some shredded chicken, cooked bacon, or ham. For a plant based protein you can use tofu or tempeh.
How to Make Ratatouille Pappardelle
Step 1. Sauté the Onion & Garlic: Heat the 3 Tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes, until onion starts to soften.
Step 2. Add the Vegetables & Flavourings: Add the eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, basil, parsley, paprika,salt, pepper and bay leaves. Continue to sauté for 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
Step 3. Cook the Sauce: Turn the heat down to medium low or low and simmer for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Step 4. Cook the Pasta: While the ratatouille simmers cook the pasta according to the package directions {making sure to cook it al dente}.
Step 5. Garnish & Serve: Once the pasta is done cooking drain and add the pasta to the ratatouille and gently toss to combine. Remove the bay leaves from the dish. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and feta cheese. Serve warm with crusty bread and a side salad.
Storage Tips
- Leftovers: Store leftover ratatouille in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, after that it starts to get a bit mushy.
- Freezing: Once cooked and cooled the ratatouille sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you are ready to eat the ratatouille thaw it in the fridge overnight. While you cook fresh pasta, heat the sauce up on the stove or in the microwave and add some fresh herbs to pep up the sauce.
Recipe FAQs
A traditional ratatouille recipe is a dish that originated in Provence, France and is sometimes referred to as Ratatouille niçoise. Ratatouille is a sauce made with eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, onions and garlic, simmered in a tomato based sauce with spices and fresh leafy herbs.
Ratatouille is a great make ahead sauce and can be made 1 or 2 days ahead of time. It’s one of those sauces that gets better after sitting for a couple of days, as the flavors meld together and intensify. Then all you need to do is cook some fresh pasta, warm up the sauce and serve.
Reserve some of the water when you cook the pasta and use that to thin out the sauce if you want. The starch from the water will also the sauce coat the pasta better. For a thinner sauce you also can add 1 cup of tomato sauce when you simmer the vegetables. I prefer the sauce to be thicker so I leave the sauce out.
More Vegetable Based Pasta Recipes
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Ratatouille Pappardelle
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups eggplant, roughly 1 medium eggplant, chopped
- 2 cups zucchini, roughly 1 large zucchini, chopped
- 1 cup red bell pepper, chopped
- 14.5 ounces can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano, or 1 tablespoon fresh oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil, or 1 tablespoon fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley, or 3 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 8 ounces pappardelle pasta, or pasta of choice
- 1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley, garnish
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese, garnish
Instructions
- Heat the 3 Tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes, until onion starts to soften.
- Add the eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, basil, parsley, paprika,salt, pepper and bay leaves. Continue to sauté for 10 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
- Turn the heat down to medium low or low and simmer for another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- While the ratatouille simmers cook the pasta according to the package directions {making sure to cook it al dente}.
- Once the pasta is done cooking drain and add the pasta to the ratatouille and gently toss to combine. Remove the bay leaves from the dish.
- Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and feta cheese. Serve warm with crusty bread and a side salad.
Notes
- Substitute or eliminate vegetables to your liking in this dish.
- For a thinner sauce, I suggest adding 1 cup of tomato sauce when you simmer the vegetables. I prefer the sauce to be thicker so I leave the sauce out.
- When reheating this dish I recommend adding a bit of olive oil or tomato sauce, as a lot of the juices get soaked into the pasta after being refrigerated.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Yum, I love making ratatouille, your version sounds wonderful, plus I have a couple of eggplants from my neighbors’ garden to use up, so I may have to give this a try!
Give it a try and let me know how you like it. I just had another eggplant today so I might be making a version of this next week. Enjoy!
LOOKS WONDERFUL! IT IS MY BIRTHDAY TODAY AND I DECREE THAT THIS IS THE DISH!! I AM PINNING AND PRINTING. GRAZIE MILLE!
Happy Birthday! You should eat a big bowl of this. 😉
Love ratatouille. And combining it with pasta is brilliant. Looks divine!
I love it too. Thanks so much Susan!
I’ve been drooling over this pasta ever since seeing it on Snap Chat! Love all the veggies going on here!
Thanks Taylor! 😉 The veggies make this such a great dish. P.S. Love seeing your little one. Such a cutie.
Julia, your plating is like straight out of a magazine! It’s making me so hungry for this pappardelle! And I wish I could grow anything.. #blackthumb
Thanks Beth. That is so sweet of you to say.
There really is nothing like growing your own food. Your garden is beautiful!! All the work that goes into it definitely pays off. I’m loving this ratatouille pasta! HUGE fan of eggplant over here! And can you believe I’ve never had pappardelle?? Feeling like I need to make this thing happen asap!
I also love growing my own food. You are so right that there is nothing like it. I love it because it teaches my kid about where food comes from, they get to help me tend to the garden and we get to eat what we grow!! Eggplant is the best and I just started growing it this year. It is doing really well so now I plan to plant that every year. And yes, you need to eat pappardelle ASAP! It is the best. 🙂
What a great way to use those late summer veggies! This pasta looks amazing!
Thanks Jessica!
I love that gorgeous eggplant on the vine. I’ve never grown eggplant before. Such an amazing vegetable. Love this dish and have never tried papparadelle before. Such a pretty pasta and beautiful dish.
I was so amazed at how easily it grew in my garden. Some vegetables are more difficult, especially the first time you grow it but eggplant has worked great for me. Thanks so much for the nice words!
This is a stunning dish- so many delicious fresh veggies! Pinning 🙂
Thanks so much Medha! And thanks for pinning.
Dear Julia, what a beautiful garden! This ratatouille looks hearty and delicious…it is such a perfect end of season treat. All those home grown veggies make it taste so much better too. xo, Catherine
Thanks Catherine! It really is the perfect way to enjoy your end of season veggies!