This Instant Pot Ratatouille recipe is a delicious satisfying vegetarian and vegan dish made with summer’s bounty of zucchini, bell pepper, eggplant, tomato and fresh herbs. This pressure cooker ratatouille recipe was inspired by Julia Child’s stovetop ratatouille recipe. Stovetop directions included too!

Introduction

I’m embarrassed to admit that my family’s favorite ratatouille (pronounced rat-ah-too-ee) was the Disney movie with the same name! That was until I made this recipe for the first time and we fell in love with it.

Ratatouille is a hearty French stew made with eggplants, zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, and onions. It’s vegan, healthy, and delicious.

I ended up making this Instant Pot Ratatouille purely by chance. I came across an article in the Wall Street Journal about the Instant Pot, and it included a ratatouille recipe that was based on Julia Child’s classic cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

I love to serve this ratatouille on toasted crostini, with goat cheese, drizzled with balsamic vinegar. It is the best recipe and you won’t believe that something so healthy can taste so good.

Even if you’re not a big fan of eggplant I urge you to give this Instant Pot eggplant stew a try. My kids are not eggplant lovers, but they love this dish.

The main work involved with this recipe is chopping the vegetables into 1/4-inch pieces and then sauteing them to get them slightly brown. The Instant Pot does the remaining work: just pressure cook and saute at the end to let the liquid evaporate.

So the next time you go to the farmer’s market and pick up fresh summer vegetables, consider making this tasty and healthy dish. It tastes even better the next day, so make it ahead and serve it at your next gathering.

Here are some other Instant Pot vegetarian recipes you might also enjoy:

– Instant Pot Moroccan Vegetarian Stew

– Instant Pot Vegetarian Rigatoni Bolognese

– Instant Pot Middle Eastern Style Green Beans

Tips and Substitutions Liquid Yes, the recipe is correct: you don’t add any liquid because the vegetables release enough liquid to bring the Instant Pot to pressure. If you have an 8 quart Instant Pot, you might need to add a tablespoon or two of water. However, make sure that there are no browned bits stuck to the bottom of the Instant Pot after cooking the eggplant and before you begin pressure cooking. Otherwise, your Instant Pot won’t come to pressure (been there, done that). Add a bit of water or white wine if needed, to deglaze the pot. Consistency The ratatouille will have quite a bit of liquid when the pressure cooking is complete. In order to thicken it up, cook it in Saute mode to allow the liquid to evaporate. The ratatouille will be quite soft and tender. If you want it to be cooked a bit firmer, decrease the pressure cooking time by a couple of minutes. Some readers have suggested draining the tomatoes before pressure cooking. I don’t do this, but feel free to drain the tomatoes if they have a lot of liquid after you chop them up. Flavor Be sure to use a good quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar for drizzling on the ratatouille before serving. Don’t skip the balsamic vinegar drizzle at the end; it adds a nice finish to the ratatouille. And be sure to add salt to taste. To give the ratatouille more flavor, you can add a tablespoon of tomato paste over the vegetables before pressure cooking, and stir the tomato paste in once cooking is complete. Feel free to add your choice of spices along with the pepper. Rosemary, thyme, herbes de Provence are all good options. If you’re not opposed to using more olive oil, I recommend using a couple of extra tablespoons of olive oil when you’re sauteing the vegetables, particularly the eggplant which drinks up the olive oil! How to Serve Make it an appetizer by topping crostini with ratatouille and goat cheese. Make it a side dish with roast chicken or lamb (try Instant Pot Coq au Vin), or a main dish served over pasta or polenta.



If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.

– Instant Pot DUO Beginner’s Manual

– Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual

– Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual

– Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual

Instant Pot Ratatouille Ingredients

Eggplant

Tomatoes

Zucchini

Onions

Bell peppers

Garlic

Red pepper Basil

Parsley

Olive oil

Balsamic vinegar

capers

Black pepper

How to Make Ratatouille in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)

Drain eggplant Turn on Saute mode Saute onions, zucchini and garlic Saute bell peppers and set aside Saute eggplant and add vegetables, spices Pressure cook Release pressure Reduce to thicken ratatouille

Drain Eggplant Sprinkle kosher salt on the eggplant, toss to coat and allow to drain in a colander set over a bowl.

Turn on Saute Mode

Instant Pot DUO: Select the Saute function.

Select the function. Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the Saute function and press Start.

Saute Onions, Zucchini and Garlic

Allow Instant Pot to heat up. Once the inner pot is hot, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Add onion, and cook until translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Add zucchini and garlic, saute 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Saute Bell Peppers and Set Aside

Add bell pepper, saute 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add whole basil leaves and stir.

Press Cancel and transfer contents of inner pot to a large bowl and set aside.

Saute Eggplant and Add Vegetables, Spices

Select Saute again.

again. Add 2 more tablespoons olive oil to the inner pot.

Add drained eggplant and saute until lightly browned, stirring frequently. Make sure it doesn’t burn. Add more olive oil as needed.

Add back in reserved vegetables, crushed red pepper, black pepper, and capers.

Stir gently, allowing the reserved vegetables to deglaze the pan. (If there are brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pot, add a tablespoon of water or white wine.)

Top with tomatoes.

Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 8 minutes

Close the lid and make sure steam release handle is in ‘Sealing’ position

Press ‘Manual’ (or ‘Pressure Cook’) and ‘+’ or ‘-‘ until the display reads ‘8′ (8 minutes).

Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 8 minutes

Close the lid.

Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 8 minutes (00:08).

Press ‘Start’.

Pressure Cooking Process (Duo and Ultra)

Instant Pot display will change to ‘On’.

Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.

The display will count down to 0; it will then switch to ‘Keep Warm’ mode and display ‘L0:00’ or ’00 00′ and begin to count up the number of minutes since pressure cooking completed.

How to Quick Release Pressure (QR) on the DUO

Move the steam release handle to Venting . Steam will come out of the steam release handle.

. Steam will come out of the steam release handle. When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.

Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.

How to Quick Release Pressure (QR) on the ULTRA

Press down on the Steam Release Button until it locks into place, and steam begins to come out of the Steam Release Valve.

When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.

Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.

[Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]

Reduce to Thicken Ratatouille

The ratatouille will have some liquid.

Select Saute mode.

mode. Simmer until the ratatouille has thickened up, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Drizzle with balsamic vinegar.

Stovetop Directions for Ratatouille To make this recipe on the stovetop, saute each set of vegetables separately in a large heavy-bottomed skillet and set aside. Combine the sauteed vegetables and simmer until all vegetables are cooked through. If there’s extra liquid, open the lid and increase the heat to medium, allowing the liquid to evaporate. See the recipe card below for detailed instructions.

I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use. If you loved this recipe, please give it a five ⭐ rating in the comment section below and please share it on social media using the social media share buttons at the top and bottom of this post. Thank you so much! BACK TO TOP

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