Oven-Baked Ratatouille Risotto with Bacon Lardons
with Charred Courgettes and Cheese
This Oven-Baked Ratatouille Risotto with Bacon Lardons is bursting full of flavours and makes the perfect dinner night option from HelloFresh. Cook up a fresh start!
Boxes and ingredients are packed in facilities that handles Peanut, Nuts, Sesame, Fish, Crustaceans, Milk, Egg, Mustard, Celery, Soya, Gluten and Sulphites. Due to the war in Ukraine, it has been necessary to substitute sunflower oil with rapeseed oil in some products without a label change. The FSA have advised that allergic reactions to rapeseed oil are rare.
Ingredients
1
Aubergine
(May contain Celery)
1
Green Pepper
(May contain Celery)
½
Red Onion
1
Courgette
(May contain Celery)
1
Garlic Clove
½
Lemon
1
Italian Style Herbs
30
Tomato Puree
175
Risotto Rice
20
Vegetable Stock Paste
(Contains Celery)
40
Grated Hard Italian Style Cheese
(Contains Milk, Egg)
30
Unsalted Butter
90
Bacon Lardons
Not included in your delivery
450
Water for the Risotto
Nutritional information
Utensils
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 200°C. Fill and boil your kettle. Trim the aubergine then halve lengthways. Chop each half into four long strips, then chop widthways into roughly 2cm pieces. Halve the peppers and discard the core and seeds. Slice into thin strips. Halve, peel and chop the red onion into small pieces. Trim the courgette then slice into rounds about 1cm thick. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press). Zest the lemon and cut in half.
Pop the aubergine and pepper onto a baking tray. Drizzle with oil, season with salt and pepper, then sprinkle over half the Italian style herbs. Use your hands to rub the flavours all over the veg, then spread out in a single layer. When the oven is hot, roast on the top shelf until soft and golden, 20-25 mins. Turn halfway through.
Heat a drizzle of oil in a large ovenproof pan on medium heat (if you don't have one, use a normal saucepan and transfer to an ovenproof dish later). Add the onion and fry until soft, 4-5 mins. Add the tomato puree, garlic and remaining Italian style herbs and cook for 1 min, then stir in the risotto rice. Cook until the edges of the rice are translucent, 1-2 mins.
Add the boiled water for the risotto (see ingredients for amount) and veg stock paste. Stir to combine. Bring back up to the boil, then pop a lid on the pan (or cover with foil) and bake on the middle shelf of your oven until the rice is cooked and the water has been absorbed, 20-25 mins.
While the risotto bakes, heat a large frying pan on high heat (no oil). When hot, add the courgetteslices and cook until charred, 3-4 mins on each side. Turn only every couple of mins - this will result in the courgette picking up some nice colour. Once cooked, season with salt and pepper, then remove from the heat.
When the risotto is cooked, remove it from the oven and mix in the butter and hard Italian style cheese. Stir through the roasted aubergine, pepper, lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. Season to taste with salt, pepper and more lemon juice if needed. TIP: Add a splash of water if it's a little dry. Share the risotto between your bowls and top with the charred courgettes. Cut the remaining lemon into wedges and serve alongside. Enjoy!
STEP 3 MOD: If you've chosen to add bacon to your meal, add it to the pan before the onion. Stir-fry until golden, 4-5 mins. Add the onion to the lardons and continue as instructed. IMPORTANT: Wash your hands and equipment after handling raw meat. Cook lardons thoroughly.
