Moussaka Recipe
Moussaka is a yummy eggplant dish that's kind of built like lasagna. It's a bit time consuming, and might take longer if it's your first doing it, but it's worth it!
Ingredients
- 1 medium eggplants peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick slices
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 1 1/2 tsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1/2 cup feta
- 1/4 cup bread crumbs
- 1 -1 1/2 glove crushed garlic to preference
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- Cinnamon
- -Bechamel Sauce-
- 2 cups milk
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup semolina
Instructions
- Take sliced eggplant and place them in a bow with water and salt to soak for 15min.
- Pre-heat oven to 350ºF
- Take eggplant slices and place them on baking tray. Drizzle oilve oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in oven for 10-12min, or until tender. Remove and set aside.
- In large skillet, add olive oil and chopped onions and cook for 5min, or until tender.
- Add beef and brown.
- Once brown, add: wine, tomato paste, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and garlic.
- Simmer and reduce all liquid.
- Once reduced, add bread crumbs and feta cheese. Remove from heat.
- Sprinkle bottom of oiled baking dish with bread crumbs.
- Line bottom of dish with 1/2 of eggplant, cut to make even and make sure entire bottom is covered.
- Add mead mixture on top and spread evenly.
- Add remaining eggplant slices to cover top.
-Bechamel Sauce:
- Heat milk in pan.
- Add butter and melt.
- once, hot - slowly stir in semolina.
- Stir continually over low-med heat until thick.
- Once thick, remove from heat and pour over eggplant/meat mixture.
- Spread bechamel evenly over top
- Sprinkle with cinnamon and feta
- Bake for 30min at 350ºF, until golden brown
Notes
Moussaka is an interesting dish. It can be made many different ways. Some people substitute eggplant for potatoes or zucchini. The specific blend of herbs are even debated and or changed. If anything, use this as a base and experiment. You'll get it different ways depending on where you have it in Greece. So make it your own!