Moussaka - Mediterranean Recipe

Moussaka

🌍 Mediterranean, Greece Difficulty: ●●●○○

Moussaka in its layered baked form was codified by Nikolaos Tselementes in the 1920s, though Arab precursors (musaqqa'a) are centuries older.

Ingredients

• 2 large eggplants sliced 1cm
• 500g ground lamb
• 1 onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 400g crushed tomatoes
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp allspice
• ½ cup red wine. Béchamel: 60g butter
• 60g flour
• 600ml milk
• 2 egg yolks
• pinch nutmeg

Method

1. Salting — Salt eggplant slices, rest 20 min, pat dry, fry or roast until golden.
2. Browning — Brown lamb with onion and garlic. Add wine, tomatoes, spices; simmer 20 min.
3. Making — Make béchamel: melt butter, whisk in flour, gradually add milk. Remove from heat, stir in yolks and nutmeg.
4. Layering — Layer in baking dish: eggplant → meat sauce → eggplant → béchamel.
5. Baking — Bake 190°C (375°F)/190°C (375°F) for 50 minutes until bubbling and browned on top.

Tags: eggplants sliced 1cm, ground lamb, onion, garlic cloves, crushed tomatoes · Source: Brittani's Almanac