Moussaka
Two things make a moussaka. The first is cinnamon and nutmeg in the meat: that warm, almost sweet note is what keeps the Greek dish from tasting like Italian lasagne. The second is a thick layer of béchamel that bakes to a golden crust rather than a thin film.
- Prep
- 50 min
- Cook
- 1 h
- Rest
- 25 min
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Servings
- 8
- Level
- Medium
- Per serving
- 480 kcal
Ingredients
Aubergines
Meat layer
Béchamel
Makes: a 25×30 cm dish, 8 portions
Shopping list
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Method
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Step 1: Salt the aubergines
Scatter the slices with salt and leave 30 minutes, then rinse and pat dry. Salt draws out bitterness and water — without it the aubergine drinks twice the oil.
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Step 2: Roast them
Lay them on a tray, brush with oil and roast 20 minutes at 200 °C until soft and patched with gold. Pan-fried, they take three times the oil and make the dish heavy.
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Step 3: Cook the meat layer
Soften the onion for 7 minutes, add the mince and brown it, then the garlic, spices, paste and tomatoes. Simmer 25 minutes until the sauce is thick and no longer runny.
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Step 4: Make the béchamel
Melt the butter, stir in the flour for 2 minutes, then add hot milk in stages, whisking smooth. Cook to the thickness of sour cream and add nutmeg and cheese.
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Step 5: Stir in the egg
Let the sauce cool 5 minutes and beat in the egg. It sets the top dense and golden, but in a hot sauce it would scramble.
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Step 6: Layer it up
Half the aubergines, all the meat, the rest of the aubergines, then the béchamel spread thickly right to the edges of the dish.
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Step 7: Bake
Thirty-five to forty minutes at 180 °C, until deeply golden on top. If it stays pale, three minutes under the grill — no more.
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Step 8: Let it rest
Leave the moussaka 25 minutes before cutting. Hot, it slides apart on the plate; rested, it holds clean layers.
Tips & variations
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Tip
The meat sauce should be thick, nearly dry. A wet one turns the moussaka into a puddle, and no amount of baking fixes it.
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Tip
Half a teaspoon of cinnamon is exactly right: more and the dish tips towards dessert, less and the Greek note disappears.
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Variation
With potatoes: a base layer of roasted potato slices makes it more filling, as it is often made in Crete. A meat-free version uses lentils.
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Storage
Three days in the fridge, and it cuts far better on day two. Reheat covered at 170 °C for 20 minutes.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 8 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 480 kcal | 3,840 kcal |
| Protein | 25 g | 200 g |
| Fat | 32 g | 256 g |
| Carbohydrates | 22 g | 176 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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