Pork Sausage with Ratatouille

Pork Sausage with Ratatouille

This might seem like cheating, using grilled red peppers and aubergines from a jar, but there’s no way you could have ratatouille cooked in anything less than half an hour if making it from scratch, and I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the jar versions.

Serves: 2
Takes: 10 minutes
3-4 Italian-style pork sausages
large handful cherry tomatoes
3 grilled red peppers from a jar, sliced into ribbons
4 slices grilled aubergine (eggplant) from the deli
small bunch flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked

1. Heat two tablespoons olive oil in a large frying pan. Remove sausage skins and crumble the meat into the pan. Cook for a few minutes, stirring, until the sausage starts to brown.

2. Add tomatoes, peppers and aubergine. Cook for 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are starting to wrinkle and the sausage is cooked.

3. Remove from the heat. Toss in parsley. Taste, season and serve.

Variations

vegetarian – skip the sausages and serve with some cheese crumbled over at the end. A salty feta or creamy goat’s cheese would be my first choice. Tempeh, halloumi or eggs would also be nice.

vegan – replace the sausages with crumbled tofu or seitan.

leafy – toss in a generous handful of mixed salad leaves or baby spinach for a lighter, healthier ratatouille.

more substantial (carb lovers) – toss in some cooked pasta or canned beans, or serve with a good rustic sourdough and lashings of butter.

more substantial (low carb) – mayo. Extra veg. Walnuts.

keto / ultra low carb – replace cherry tomatoes with mayo.

more veg – extra peppers, aubergine (eggplant) and tomato.

home roasted peppers – try the smoky red peppers recipe over here.

fresh eggplant – will take much longer than 10 minutes. But slice 1 large eggplant into 1cm (1/2in) slices and layer on a baking tray. Drizzle generously with olive oil and bake for 30-45 minutes or until soft and starting to brown. Then use as per the recipe.

short on time – dice eggplant and pan fry until soft instead of baking.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

sausages – freeze ’em

cherry tomatoes – use for another meal. or dry in the oven like these roast tomatoes.

grilled red peppers & aubergine – if you buy them in a jar they will keep unopened in the pantry for months. If from the deli will keep for a few weeks in the fridge or can be frozen.

parsley – will keep for at least 2 weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. Can be frozen or pop in a jar and cover with oil to make parsley oil. Or use instead of basil to make a parsley pesto.