authentic moussaka

An authentic, delicious recipe for Eggplant Moussaka- with a Tomato lamb sauce, and creamy béchamel sauce. Vegetarian Adaptable! Can be made ahead and baked prior to serving. See notes for VEGAN.

Rustic Eggplant Moussaka

lbs Eggplant

T olive oil

olive oil

onion

garlic, rough chopped

lbs ground lamb, beef

tomato paste

½ Cup white wine

parsley

tsp sugar

cinnamon

tsp kosher salt

cracked pepper

butter oil

flour rice

milk

tsp nutmeg (use fresh grated if possible)

white pepper

grated Parmesan, Pecorino

Pre-heat oven to 400 F. Cut eggplant into ⅓- ¼ inch thick disks (no thinner), sprinkle with a little kosher salt and let sit in a colander or bowl for 20-60 minutes. Eggplant will start to release liquid (making it less bitter)

Rinse well, pat dry and brush each side with olive oil (or use spray oil).

Place on a greased sheet pan and roast in a 400 F oven until golden, about 20-30 minutes. Alternatively, you can grill the eggplant on each side ( getting nice deep grill marks) then wrapping it in foil after for 10-15 minutes, so it steams and cooks through.

While eggplant is roasting -make the tomato- meat sauce

In a large pan, saute diced onion in oil on med-high heat for 3-4 minutes, add garlic, turn heat down to med-low and saute for 8-10 minutes until onions are tender. Add the ground lamb ( or beef or vegetarian meat), turn heat up to medium and brown, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Drain fat if any. Add the rest of the ingredients -diced tomatoes, tomato paste, white wine, fresh chopped parsley, sugar, cinnamon, kosher salt and pepper. Stir and cover and let simmer on med-low heat for 20 minutes.

Make Bechamel Sauce

 In a small pot, heat the butter. Whisk in the flour and let cook for 2-3 minutes on med heat, stirring often. Whisk in the first cup of milk a little at a time. Whisk well, and add the 2nd cup. Stirring constantly bring to a boil, lower heat, and let simmer on low for an additional 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add nutmeg, cheese, salt, pepper. Set aside to cool. In a separate bowl, lightly beat an egg, but do not add it just yet.

Assemble

 Divide eggplant slices into three stacks, reserving the best looking largest pieces for the top and bottom layers. The others can be placed in the middle layer which will be concealed.

In a greased 8x 13 inch baking dish, place one layer of eggplant. Add half the meat sauce. Add another layer of eggplant and the remaining meat sauce. Add the third and final layer of eggplant. Whisk in 2-3 tablespoons of bechamel sauce, into the beaten egg (to temper it) then pour this into the bechamel sauce, whisking until nice and smooth. Spread the bechamel over the final eggplant layer.

Sprinkle with the remaining cheese ( optional)  and place in a 350F oven for 50-60 minutes, uncovered until beautifully golden. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

A family favourite that’s absolutely scrumptious! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!!!

I lost my Greek and Armenian cookbooks from my early years of marriage in a California wildfire, but had made moussaka often enough to do it well enough from memory. It had been nearly a year since I’d last made it, and now at age 79, I don’t trust my memory, so I went online to see what I could find. It seemed all the recipes did not grill (prefer) or oven roast the eggplant. Until I finally saw this, when I was already well into prep with the sauce. Yours is the ticket! There is understanding of the nature of eggplant here. We eat vegetarian often these days, so I may use your suggestion to do it that way next time. Thank you!

https://content.jwplatform.com/videos/VDXGBQtK.mp4

An authentic, delicious recipe for Eggplant Moussaka- perfect for entertaining or serving at a special gathering. Can be made ahead. Vegetarian adaptable!

Rustic Moussaka Recipe 

Greek cuisine&#39;s most famous dish, moussaka is in its best version here. This is the authentic Greek moussaka recipe, just like we make at home.

Moussaka-Greek Eggplant Potato Casserole

eggplants (Plus one extra in case it is needed)

potatoes

extra virgin olive oil

beef

onions (medium size, or one large, minced)

garlic

tomatoes

red wine

cinnamon stick (or one teaspoon ground cinnamon)

cumin

nutmeg

butter

all-purpose flour (plus more in case you need to thicken the sauce)

milk (plus one cup in case you need to thin the sauce)

bay leaf

yolks

Parmigiano Reggiano (grated)

sea salt

pepper

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a deep large saucepan and brown the ground meat over high heat, stirring and breaking it with a spoon. After it browns, add the onion, garlic, ground nutmeg, cumin, cinnamon stick, and cloves.Let the onion soften for a few minutes, and add the tomato paste. Stir and cook for two-three minutes and pour in the wine. Let the alcohol evaporate. Add the tomatoes and a teaspoon of sugar and stir. Simmer meat ragu for an hour on low heat.

Prepare the meat ragu

Cut the eggplants into slices about 1 cm / ⅓ inch thick.Sprinkle slices with sea salt, and place them on a colander to drain their liquids for 15 minutes. Pat the eggplants dry.Fry eggplant slices in hot olive oil until they take on color, about 2-3 minutes.Transfer to a wire rack and set aside.

Prepare the eggplants

Cut the potatoes into 6 mm / ¼ inch thick slices. Place slices into a bowl of water while you slice. When all are done, drain, and pat dry.Fry slices in hot olive oil until they take on color, about 1-2 minutes.Transfer to a wire rack and set aside.

Prepare the potatoes

Add a layer of potatoes to a baking pan—season with sea salt and pepper. Repeat with another layer of potatoes. Layer the eggplants.You can alternate with a layer of eggplants if you like or add another layer of potatoes and right after layers of eggplant.Remove the cinnamon stick from the meat sauce and pour it evenly over the eggplants.Next, sprinkle a generous amount of grated cheese.

Start the bechamel when your meat sauce is done cooking and layering all the other components to the pan.

Time to pre-heat the oven to 200°C / 390°F

Add the milk and the bay leaf to a saucepan and warm it on medium heat.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Pour in the flour and cook while stirring with a wooden spoon until the roux takes on a slightly blond color. Gradually pour in the warm milk. Use a which and stir continuously to dissolve any lumps and create a smooth sauce. Remove from heat.Season with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, and nutmeg. Add the yolks and one cup of grated Parmigiano cheese. Reserve the rest of the cheese. Whisk until smooth.

Make the béchamel

Pour the béchamel over the meat in an even layer. Sprinkle the reserved grated cheese on top.Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Let food cool for 15 minutes.Serve with a leafy green salad, feta cheese, and a glass of Cabernet. Enjoy!

Finish assembling and bake

I had this dish at a restaurant. I was craving it after a couple of weeks so I used this recipe and oh boy it is spot on! I actually think this recipe turns out better than the dish I had at the restaurant. 
I will definitely cooking this more often. 
Thanks!

Best Mousaka recipe ever! I'm a big fan of Mediterranean food; this casserole is everything you need to serve a one-dish meal. I served it with a green salad, and everybody asked if I had more. Big success!

This had simple ingredients that were transformed into an amazing dinner. Definitely making it again!

Since I have celiac, I replaced the all-purpose flour with King Arthur Measure for Measure. And it turned out amazing! The leftovers tasted even better then very next day.

This was a great meal! I love how I was able to get the protein and vegetables all in one dish. Thanks for the recipe share!

I love this moussaka recipe! I think I can eat half the pan myself!

I must admit that I do not use eggplant nearly as much as I should and this recipe was the perfect reason to use it! It came out so delicious and flavorful.

I am so glad I found this authentic moussaka recipe!  A neighbor used to make it all the time and I could never find any that tasted like hers, until now!  So good!

I'm glad I found this authentic Greek moussaka recipe. It takes a bit of time, but it's totally worth it

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Top 2 authentic moussaka recipes from across the web

The most viewed authentic moussaka recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

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The most viewed authentic moussaka recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine