In this classic Greek moussaka recipe, ground meat, rich tomato sauce, potatoes and creamy white sauce come together in a bubbling bake.
Moussaka is one of my favourite dishes in the entire universe. If you come around here much, you may roll your eyes at that. I admit I show a lot of enthusiasm for many foods. I love a lot of foods.
But there are very few I would commit to calling a favourite. Moussaka merits “favourite” status.
Here’s why.
Moussaka is hard core comfort food. Ground meat, rich tomato sauce, potatoes and creamy white sauce. Piping hot, and browned with crispy edges. It’s your mom’s shepherd’s pie meets your mom’s lasagna.
That is a lot of comfort in one dish.
Also, it intriguing. There is lamb. There’s cinnamon. There is nutmeg. There is roasted eggplant, and nutty kefalotyri (or parmesan) cheese.
It’s familiar, but it’s got interest.
Comfort food, elevated.
I have a pearl of wisdom to share with you.
Salt your eggplant.
I know it is an extra step, but this is exactly the step that turns “I hate eggplant” people into “I want my wedding cake made of eggplant” people.
Too far? Okay, maybe.
Salting the sliced eggplant and letting it stand serves to draw out the moisture, so that it will brown properly and have crispy edges with a gorgeous silken interior when cooked. Failure to perform this step will result in pale eggplant sponges that slurp up oil and are oily, soggy and slimy in a finished dish.
I think that’s a pretty compelling argument for the extra step.
I used a combination of eggplant and zucchini in my moussaka. Partially because, yes, they are a natural pair, and partly because I got a MONSTER zucchini at the farmers market for only TWO bucks! It is more than 2 feet tall. That means it was less than a buck a foot! Unfortunately, it’s skin is about 1/2 inch think and tough as nails, and I could only actually cut through the top 1/4.
Ah well. It made an awesome pretend guitar.
Feel free to use all eggplant and skip the zucchini if you prefer.
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Table of Contents
Homemade Greek Moussaka
Ingredients
- 2 large potatoes
- 2 medium eggplants
- salt
- 1 large zucchini
- 2 tbsp olive oil
For Meat Sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 lb ground lamb
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 cinnamon sticks or 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- â…› tsp ground cloves
- 2 cups diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup red wine or 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- salt to taste
For white sauce
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 cups milk
- â…” cup grated kefalotyri or parmesan cheese
- pinch nutmeg
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Peel and boil the potatoes until just tender. When cool enough to handle, slice into 1/4 inch rounds. Set aside.
- While potatoes are boiling, slice the eggplants crosswise into 1/2 inch rounds and spread on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle generously with salt on both sides, then top with another baking sheet weighted down (with cans, or a jug of milk – be creative; you just want weight). Set aside 15 minutes, while preheating broiler.
- Pat and gently squeeze eggplant slices with paper towel to remove as much moisture as possible. Rinse under running water, and dry once again. Slice zucchini into 1/4 inch rounds. Toss zucchini and eggplant slices on baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, then arrange in a single layer. Broil on highest oven rack for 6 minutes, or until slightly charred, then flip slices and repeat on the other side. Set pan aside.
- Make meat sauce: Heat the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and cook until softened, then add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add ground lamb and cook until browned, stirring often and breaking up any large pieces with a metal spoon. Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 minute, then stir in diced tomatoes and red wine, or red wine vinegar. Add the bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, and cloves. Reduce heat to low and simmer, about 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Make white sauce: Melt butter over moderate heat in a medium saucepan. Stir in flour and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly (the goal is to cook out the starch, but you don’t want to brown it – reduce the heat if necessary). Whisk in 1/4 cup of the milk until fully blended, then very gradually whisk in remaining milk. Stir frequently until sauce is thickened. Slowly sprinkle in cheese and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and nutmeg. Reduce heat to minimum, and continue to stir now and then while you assemble the moussaka.
- Assemble the moussaka: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large baking dish, arrange a bottom layer of overlapping eggplant and zucchini slices (alternating). Spread the meat sauce over top. Add another overlapping layer of eggplant/zucchini, followed by the potato slices. Pour the white sauce over top and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until bubbly and browned.
Oooooh my gosh.. I have no words for this Moussaka. I had never had it before. It was worth every single step. I need to make this again and again so that I get faster at it, because it was amazing. Such a different casserole. Thanks for the recipe! I blogged about it over here http://thefoodcharlatan.com/2013/11/04/moussaka/
SO glad you enjoyed, Karen! 🙂
Oooooh my gosh.. I have no words for this Moussaka. I had never had it before. It was worth every single step. I need to make this again and again so that I get faster at it, because it was amazing. Such a different casserole. Thanks for the recipe! I blogged about it over here http://thefoodcharlatan.com/2013/11/04/moussaka/
SO glad you enjoyed, Karen! 🙂
I suffer from the same over-enthusiasm for too many foods!   This does look wonderful, though.  But the 2 foot zucchini sounds positively terrifying!
Not terrifying, beautiful! 🙂
We made a double batch of this for Christmas dinner along with some cut up tomatoes and cucumbers on the side and Tiramisu for dessert. Fantastic! We have made Moussaka before but this recipe is the best we’ve tried. It will be our Christmas dinner tradition.
Thank you so much, Darcie, I’m honoured to be part of your Christmas dinner!
This looks so comforting! Yummy.
can I come over for dinner?
Any time!
Any time!
Another Vancouver mousaka lover here, this looks divine! I want to premake it Friday, leave the house for 2 hours then come home and bake it. Do you think putting it all together then leaving it in the fridge for a couple of hours will be ok>
OOPS, hope it’s not too late, but yes, absolutely, it will be delicious. I sometimes assemble it a day in advance.
OOPS, hope it’s not too late, but yes, absolutely, it will be delicious. I sometimes assemble it a day in advance.
This is so lovely. I have always been daunted by making moussaka but this recipe certainly looks inviting and super comforting this time of year!
This is absolutely delicious! The salting of the eggplants is time well spent:) So tasty, and so hearty! Thanks Jen!
Mhhhmmmhhh … not fair to share this so close to lunch time 😉 …I know now what I will make with the ground lamb we bought on Salt Spring 🙂
Good idea! Let me know if you need any help eating it… 😉
Good idea! Let me know if you need any help eating it… 😉