Slow Cooker or Instant Pot Lemon Basil Ratatouille

Throw your favorite fresh garden vegetables in your slow cooker or Instant Pot, and top with a super easy lemon basil sauce for a healthy weeknight ratatouille! Only 10 minutes of prep time before you have delicious vegetables on your table. Lemon Basil Ratatouille is impressive and so deliciously flavorful using nature’s best.

A twist on classic Ratatouille

It’s summertime! Which means, let’s eat our weight in summer produce. My favorite summer activities include eating dinner outside, spending time at the pool, and shopping all the delicious produce at my Farmer’s market. As a nutritionist, I know the importance of eating in season vegetables! We get the opportunity to load up on nutrients and get more vitamins and minerals from the produce.

Besides eating a ton of summer salads, I also love finding ways to use up these vegetables. So on a whim, I decided to toss all of my farmer’s market finds in my slow cooker. My goodness it was absolutely fantastic!! The vegetables tenderized perfectly, and the tomatoes softened to make a delicious sauce with the lemon, garlic, and basil.

How to make Slow Cooker Ratatouille:

• I used zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, onion, and tomatoes. Chop up the veggies (not the tomatoes) and toss into your slow cooker. Chop of your veggies (not the tomatoes) and throw in the slow cooker.

• In a food processor, blend lemon, basil, tomato paste, garlic, a little olive oil, and white wine vinegar. Pour over top of the veggies, and let cook for 5-6 hours on low.
• Serve hot on top of pasta or all on its own. Add parmesan, salt, and fresh basil for a bit of more flavor.

Variations:

• Feel free to customize with your own favorite vegetables! I am sure a bell pepper would be delicious, or the use of fall or winter squash would also be super yummy.
• Looking to add protein? Try this alongside Grilled Chicken or Lemon Pepper Salmon

Can you make this in the Instant Pot?

Absolutely!! I have added instructions for the Instant Pot because this is a recipe I make all the time! It works perfectly in either the slow cooker or Instant Pot. This is the Instant Pot I use for all of my recipes

Serving:

This delicious Ratatouille tastes amazing in a bowl on it’s own with extra basil. For my kids, I serve over pasta with some parmesan cheese. You can also serve over spaghetti squash!

I also love this dish paired with my Easy House Salad.

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Slow Cooker Lemon Basil Ratatouille

10 minutes of prep time is all you need to make this summertime Lemon Basil Ratatouille! Use your slow cooker or Instant Pot for ultimate ease.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 5 hours

Total Time 5 hours 10 minutes

Servings 8 servings

Author Amy Rains

5 from 4 votes

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Ingredients

• 1 small eggplant*
• 2 medium sized zucchini
• 2 medium sized summer squash
• 1 large white onion
• 2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1 cup loosely packed basil
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp salt plus more to taste

Instructions

1. Begin by chopping your vegetables into small chunks. Keep the tomatoes whole.
2. For the Slow Cooker:
3. Place all vegetables inside the bottom of your slow cooker.
4. Blend together, basil, olive oil, lemon, garlic, tomato paste, vinegar, and salt in a food processor or blender until the basil is completely pureed and incorporated. Toss on top of the vegetables.
5. Cook on low for 5-6 hours.
6. Serve hot with extra basil for garnish, and salt to taste.
7. For the Instant Pot:
8. Place all vegetables inside the bottom of your Instant Pot.
9. Blend together, basil, olive oil, lemon, garlic, tomato paste, vinegar, and salt in a food processor or blender until the basil is completely pureed and incorporated. Toss on top of the vegetables.
10. Secure the lid on your Instant Pot. Select the manual function. Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. Once complete, use a natural release.
11. Serve hot with extra basil for garnish and salt to taste. Serve as a side dish, or over your favorite pasta or spiralized vegetable noodles.

Recipe Notes

Eggplant can be bitter. Once you slice the eggplant into chunks, sprinkle with a little sea salt and let sit for a few minutes. The eggplant will “sweat”. Use a paper towel to soak up the “sweat”, and this will prevent the bitter taste.