Aubergine Moussaka

6/05/26

Watch the video

Ingredients

  • 6 eggplants / aubergines, thinly sliced lengthways
  • 1.5 kg of lamb or beef mince
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 3 carrots, finely chopped
  • 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
  • 800 g chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 rosemary sprig or 1 tsp of dried rosemary
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 100 ml red wine

Bechamel

  • 100 g butter
  • 3 tbsp plain flour
  • 600 ml milk
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 100 g grated Parmesan
  • 50 g cheddar (if you like your béchamel cheesy!)
  • Good pinch freshly grated nutmeg or 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg

Method

Heat a frying pan over medium heat with 1 tsp of oil. Add the eggplant slices in batches and fry on both sides until soft and slightly coloured. This is the slowest job and will take a few batches to cook all the eggplant.

In a large pan, brown your meat. Once finished, remove and add all of your chopped veg, onion and garlic to the pan. Allow the veg to soften for 10 mins, then add in the tomato paste, spices, herbs and wine. Stir well, then add the meat back in, followed by the chopped tomatoes and 1/2 cup of stock or water. Allow to simmer for 30 mins, adding extra water if it becomes dry.

For the béchamel, add the butter to a large saucepan and melt over medium-low heat. Add your flour, then stir quickly until it forms a paste. Next, add in your milk bit by bit, whisking well until all the liquid is added and there are no lumps. Continue to whisk until it comes to a simmer and thickens. Remove from the heat, stir in the cheese and season to taste.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC (180°C fan-forced). Next, layer your moussaka. Lay the eggplant slices in the bottom of a medium baking dish, followed by half of the meat. Follow with more eggplant, the rest of the meat, eggplant again and then top with the béchamel. Top with some more grated parmesan, nutmeg, and bake at 180°C for 35-45 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

The moussaka wants to cool a little before serving so it holds its shape, so set aside for 15-20 mins before serving yourself a nice big slab.

BOB DICKINSON