A healthy recipe with French origin
Of Provenzal origin, the tian is a garden vegetables gratin. These vegetables are cutted into slices and mounted in successive layers forming a colorful cake, as if it were a rainbow.
As with the tajine, a popular dish from North Africa and that gives its name to the container, the tian designates the oval-shaped ceramic tableware in which several recipes are arranged and then finished in the oven.
The French city of Carpentras, located in the Venaissin County, is the cradle of this elaboration, in fact, the town celebrates a festival where a tian contest is included. This tian is far from the most international, vegetable-based elaboration, the traditional Tian of this area is made with fresh spinach and desalted cod.
Its ingredients include zucchini, tomatoes, eggplants, onions, etc., but the most important thing is that they also use seasonal products, such as artichokes, turnips or sweet potatoes.
Learn to prepare a vegetable tian and surprise your guests with a healthy dish.
Ingredients for 6 portions
- 2 small eggplants, as thin as possible
- 1 zucchini
- 3 pear tomatoes
- 2 purple onions
- 50 g homemade tomato or fried tomato sauce
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Provencal herbs
Step by step elaboration
- Wash the eggplants well, dry and cut them into layers of approximately 1/2 cm thick.
- Place the layers on a grill rack and sprinkle them with a little bit of salt. Reserve them for 30 minutes to let them release their bitter juices.
- Meanwhile, peel the onions and wash the zucchini and tomatoes. Cut the three vegetables in layers of the same thickness as the eggplants.
- After the resting time of the eggplants, dry them with absorbent paper towels and proceed to assemble the tian.
- Cover the base of a 22-24 cm baking dish with tomato sauce.
- Place the rolled vegetables in the spiral-shaped dish. Alternate each other in the desired order.
- Add a good dash of extra virgin olive oil.
- Sprinkle with salt, pepper and Provencal herbs as desired
- Introduce the dish in the oven, preheated to 200º C, and cook it for 30-40 minutes or until the vegetables gain a tender and lightly browned on the surface.
- Remove the dish from the oven and wait a few minutes before serving.
‘Harmonies in Flavors and Fragrances’ by Juan Muñoz Ramos.
The autumn and the vegetables create a unique color palette, where the blend between green, ocher, pale brown and reddish colors expresses a special landscape that warns us of the impending winter. How nice. Well, this recipe concentrates all this singularity, a vegan dish with a lot of flavor, a varied dish where the diversity of fragrances is very wide, and of course in flavors, by incorporating the aromatic herbs and where the baking ends with a perfect gear. So are these dishes, which are simply wonderful. Some people say that these dishes do not have to put anything, but I disagree because, as you can see, the couple we propose is fenomenal.
We start with a water whose finesse and softness will respect all the primary flavors of vegetables. This is Acqua Panna and next to it, it could not be less, one of the most famous wines in Spain, a Fransola Sauvignon Blanc; calcareous and Mediterranean, rich in wild aromas combined with tropical fruits and the unctuousness that provides partial aging in barrel.
The unctuousness of the wine balances the vegetables, giving them a more marked flavor, and the Acqua Panna softens the intake, bringing happiness.
Tips
In order to cut the vegetables with the same thickness, it is convenient to use a mandolin, so the task is much simpler. Failing that, a sharp knife can be used.
The zucchini spreads more than the rest of vegetables, so, when forming the spiral in the fountain, you can place two slices of zucchini, one of tomato, one of eggplant and one of onion.
Herbs can be adapted to taste or those available at home. Oregano, sage, rosemary, parsley, among others, are good options.
Make it a perfect meal with our Wellington Turkey, here you can find the step by step recipe.
End this amazing meal with a Browny of Caramel and Toffee Sauce, click here to see the complete recipe.