bThis Ratatouille Stir fry is a tasty Mediterranean alternative to the more traditional Oriental versions. I like experimenting with Mediterranean herbs and ingredients like basil, oregano and tomato. Instead of soy sauce, the base of this Ratatouille Stir fry recipe is made up of chopped tomatoes and balsamic vinegar which gives the vegetables a lovely sweet and sticky flavour (scroll down to skip to the recipe).
Ratatouille usually takes over 30 minutes to cook but this stir fried version takes half the time! I’ve included it in my Healthy Week Recipe collection as it’s super quick and packed with veggies so provides at 2 of your 5 a day!
For more information about my National Healthy Eating Week Recipe Collection visit my previous post here.
I usually make this Ratatouille Stir fry as a way of using up soggy tomatoes that I’ve forgotten about in the fridge as I hate wasting food!
Vegan tip 4: Plan your meals as much as you can in advance (I usually write down all my dinners and lunches at the beginning of the week before my food shop) so that you buy the right amount of food that you’ll need for the week.
This prevents you from over buying fresh fruit/vegetables which you would probably end up wasting. This prevents food waste and saves you a bit of money too!
I still use tofu in this recipe even though it’s not commonly added to Mediterranean foods, to add some extra protein to this vegan Ratatouille Stir fry. As it’s quite bland I find that it soaks up the flavour of the sauce nicely, but if you’re not convinced, I reckon a handful of chickpeas (tinned) would be a nice alternative! If you’re interested, I use the tofu brand Tofoo, which you can find here
Ratatouille Stir fry
You can be as creative as you like with the vegetables that you use, I usually throw in whatever i have in the fridge! I recommend adding aubergine and courgette though as they really go well with Italian flavours
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 5 button mushrooms, sliced
- 1 pepper, sliced
- 1 large handful spinach
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 100g firm tofu, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 10 cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 0.5 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 0.5 courgette, sliced
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp tomato purée
- 0.5 vegetable stock cube
- 1/4 cup water
- 0.5 tsp sugar
To Serve
- 0.5 avocado, sliced (optional)
- Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
- Drizzle of glazed baslamic vinegar (optional)
- pasta, rice or quinoa
Instructions
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Add the oil to a pan or wok on medium heat. Once heated add the onion and stir until slightly translucent.
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Add the garlic and stir until slightly brown. Then add the mushrooms, courgette, tofu and pepper and continue to stir until they start to cook
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Stir through all the seasoning, then add the chopped tomatoes and the tomato purée. Dissolve the stock cube in water and add to the hot pan (the water should bubble up.
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Add the sugar, spinach and balsamic vinegar and continue to stir until the water evaporates and balsamic vinegar caramelises
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Serve with brown rice, brown spaghetti or quinoa. Top with avocado, glazed balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper to taste.
Recipe Notes
I served mine with a couscous/quinoa mix, but brown rice or even pasta would go well too!