Perfect ratatouille

Wonderful on its own, ratatouille can also be pressed into action as a hearty pasta sauce (thin it with some pasta cooking water), as a bruschetta topping (with crumbled feta, goat, or blue cheese, if you like), and as an accompaniment to shrimp, fish, chicken, red meats, or sausages of any stripe.

Ratatouille

Makes about 8 cups

Use the largest skillet you have, so you can cook the eggplant and zucchini in as few batches as possible. Some herbes de Provence mixtures do not include fennel seed; add ½ teaspoon if you miss the flavor (or if you just like it a lot).

2 medium eggplants (about 2½ pounds), cut into 1-inch cubes

Salt and black pepper

3 medium zucchini (about 1½ pounds), cut into 1-inch cubes

1/3 cup olive oil, or more as necessary

2 medium onions, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced (about 4 cups)

2 large bell peppers, preferably 1 red and 1 yellow, cored, seeded, and cut into ¾-inch-wide strips and halved crosswise (about 3 cups)

8 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon herbes de Provence ½ teaspoon fennel seeds, optional

4 medium tomatoes (about 2 pounds), halved and grated on the large holes of box grater (about 3 cups), skins discarded

½ cup chopped fresh parsley

In a large colander set over a bowl, toss the eggplant cubes with 1 tablespoon salt and set aside to drain, at least 1 hour. In a second colander over a bowl, toss the zucchini cubes with 2 teaspoons salt and set aside to drain, about 1 hour. Under running water, rinse the eggplant and zucchini well, and spread each to drain on paper towels. With more paper towels, press firmly on the eggplant and zucchini to dry them thoroughly (the pieces will become compressed, which is fine).