Red Ratatouille Risotto — a plant-based Italian recipe by BOSH!
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Red Ratatouille Risotto

This one is a proper weeknight hero and honestly one of our all-time favourites. It's got everything you want from a risotto, that creamy, glossy, stick-to-your-ribs comfort, but with all the smoky, sweet roasted veg of a classic ratatouille running through it. The sun dried tomatoes and tomato puree give it this deep, rich colour and a flavour that tastes like it's been cooking all day. We keep coming back to this one because it feels indulgent but it's completely plant-based and totally achievable on a weeknight. Make this tonight and you will not be disappointed.

Cook: 35 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 200°C
  • Large roasting tin
  • Large heavy-bottomed pan or risotto pan

Ingredients

  • 1 aubergine - chopped
  • 120g tomatoes
  • 1 large courgette - chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • Pinch of salt
  • 60ml olive oil
  • Pinch of pepper
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp rosemary
  • 1 tbsp thyme finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp plant-based butter
  • 2 red onions - sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves - minced
  • 30g sun-dried tomatoes - sliced
  • 120g risotto rice
  • 240ml red wine
  • 1 litre vegetable stock
  • 30g pine nuts
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 120g basil

Method

1

Roast the veg

  • Put all the roasted ratatouille vegetables in a roasting tin, season them & bake them for 30 minutes
2

Start the risotto

  • Warm the olive oil in a pan, add the red onions, fry them until they’re translucent
  • Then add the garlic, rosemary, thyme, sun dried tomatoes, tomato puree and the dairy free butter to the pan and stir them until you release the aroma of the garlic
  • Pour in the risotto rice, stir it into the onions & when you hear very subtle popping sounds pour in the red wine
  • Stir the red wine into the rice until it’s almost completely absorbed
  • Pour in one cup of vegetable stock & the tomato puree into the rice & stir it until it’s almost completely absorbed
  • Repeat this process until all the stock has been poured into the pan
3

Finish and serve

  • Pour the roasted ratatouille vegetables, basil leaves & pine nuts into the pan & fold them into rice (make sure the excess juices from the vegetables don’t go into the pan)
  • Serve immediately with fresh crusty bread. BOSH!

Tips & Variations

  • Stir it with love: Risotto needs attention, so don't walk away. Keep stirring and adding your stock a ladle at a time. It's what gives you that gorgeous creamy texture without any dairy.
  • Roast the veg properly: Make sure your ratatouille veg has space in the tin so it roasts rather than steams. Crowded veg goes soggy and you want those charred, sweet edges.
  • Finish it off: We always stir in an extra knob of dairy free butter right at the end and let it sit for a minute before serving. It makes the whole thing glossy and restaurant-worthy.

Why This Works

The trick here is roasting the ratatouille veg separately so they get properly caramelised and jammy before they go anywhere near the risotto. That's where all the flavour lives. The combination of rosemary, thyme and sun dried tomatoes in the base builds this incredible depth that makes the whole thing taste way more complex than a 35-minute dinner has any right to.