Moussaka

Moussaka is one of the most popular Greek dishes by far. It is layers of potatoes, eggplant, cinnamon infused meat sauce & creamy béchamel sauce. Some cooks also add sliced zucchini.

There are similar versions of it all over the Balkans and in the Middle East, making it a beloved dish shared among many nations. The recipes differ from country to country, as do the various use of spices.

The recipe is for a 9×12 pan.

You can eat this hot, but in the summer months I enjoy moussaka best at room temperature.

I actually halve the recipe because my husband is not a fan of eggplants, so I make an 8×8 pan for myself to enjoy for a few days.

The fried vegetables will release some liquid into the pan. This is perfect for soaking up with a bit of bread. Sort of like its own gravy.

Ingredients:

3-4 large eggplants

5-6 Idaho potatoes

Meat Sauce Ingredients:

16 oz ground beef 

16 oz tomato sauce (no salt added)

1 large white or yellow onion

3 cloves of garlic 

2 bay leaves 

1 1/2 tbsp of ground cinnamon 

1/2 tsp of ground cloves

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp of honey or sugar (balances the acidity of the tomato sauce)

1/2 cup of dry white wine 

1 tbsp dry parsley 

1 tsp dry oregano 

1 tsp salt

1/2 ground black pepper 

Bechamel Sauce:

8 tbsp of butter

8 tbsp of all purpose flour

6 cups of whole milk

8 oz freshly grated graviera (or gruyere)

1 tbs freshly grated nutmeg

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tbsp of sea salt

2 eggs

Directions:

Drizzle a little extra virgin olive in the bottom of a 9×12 in. lasagna pan and set aside.

Vegetable Layer:

Wash, peel & slice your potatoes into large rounds. The easiest way is to slice in half the long way and then slice each of those halves the same way. you are creating a flat bottom layer. Fry those until crispy in olive oil. Set aside to drain on a paper towel. Sprinkle with a little salt.

Slice the eggplants into 1 inch thick slices and fry them in olive oil and set aside. Drain on a paper towel and sprinkle with a little salt.

Layer the potatoes and then the eggplant slices in the pan.

As an option, I like to crumble some feta over the eggplants before adding the meat sauce on top.

Meat Sauce Layer

Drizzle some olive oil into a large pot. Add in your ground beef. And separate it with your wooden spoon and allow it to brown. Add a little bit of salt and pepper. When the meat has cooked, then add in finely diced onion and three cloves of garlic. I chop the onion & garlic in the food processor for a quick mince! 

When the onion is translucent, pour in the tomato sauce and a tsp of honey and stir together. The honey or sugar balances out the acidity of the tomato sauce. Add the cinnamon, clove & cumin, salt and pepper to taste. Add the wine. Continue to cook on low. For 30 minutes. At the end, stir in the parsley and oregano.

Ladle the meat sauce over the eggplants & potatoes. Crumble the rest of the feta cheese over that and set aside.

Béchamel Layer

Allow the milk to come to room temperature. It will make the cooking faster.

Make the roux by melting the butter in your large pot on low and then whisk in the flour for a few minutes. This will become golden brown.

Pour in the milk little by little while stirring, so that it will thicken as you go. When it has thickened and you can see the lines from the whisk in the mixture, turn off the heat. Add in the salt, pepper, nutmeg and gruyere. Whisk till thoroughly combined.

Temper the eggs with a little bit of the bechamel. Then add the egg mixture to the sauce & whisk thoroughly to combine. Tempering is an important step or else you will scramble the eggs and ruin your sauce.

Ladle this over the meat layer. At this point you can grate a little more nutmeg & black pepper on top, and a tablespoon or two of grated Parmesan or aged Mizithra cheeses. This layer of cheese with help give it a nice crust.

Bake at 350 F for 90 minutes. Wait 30 minutes before cutting into it.

This is perfect served with a simple salad like arugula with lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper. Or with a Greek horiatiki, which is a tomato and cucumber salad. Add a slice of feta on the side if you like. 

Truly this dish is the star of the show, so you don’t want a complicate whatever else you are serving with it.

Kali Oreksi!