Recipe

Moussaka A Nibble For Greekgirrrl Recipe

Add Step-by-Step Photos	Rescue_ranger / All my dishes 1 year ago Feel the warm ocean breeze on you skin on a warm Greek summer evening, as you sip a glass of Robola of Cephalonia islands and nibble on feta cheese and salted olives with crusty bread as you enjoy good conversation as you wait for your Moussaka to ... More Prep:360m Cook:60m Servings:8	Rescue_rang
	spiced lamb egg plant tomatoesparmesan kefalotiri

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Ingredients

2 pounds aubergines {eggplant} (large and elongated variety)

½ Cup vegetable oil

1 large onion, finely sliced

1 pound minced lamb

1 glass white wine (not retsina, but aretsinoto)

1 pound fresh plum tomatoes,

Teaspoon ground cinnamon

Teaspoon ground allspice

Salt and black pepper

1 teaspoon oregano

1 oz. grated parmesan, kefalotiri, or Gruyere cheese

Some chopped parsley

Béchamel Sauce

3 oz. butter

¾ Cup flour

2 ½ C warm milk

Salt and white pepper

1 oz. grated Parmesan or Gruyere cheese

2 egg yolks

topping

2 Oz gr. grated Parmesan, Gruyere or kefalotiri cheese

4 tablespoons toasted breadcrumbs

Directions

PLEASE NOTE:

Primarily, Moussaka relies on the taste and flavor of the aubergines; if the aubergines are not fresh enough; it is not worth embarking on making Moussaka, as it involves a lot of work. People wrongly assume that dubious aubergines can be disguised with a layer of minced meat and a milky white sauce and served as”glorious" Moussaka; it will be a waste of time.

Moussaka should be baked in the oven. Use a roasting container, either square or oblong, approximately 9 ½ x 13. It is recommended that you spread the work involved over two days for your convenience; one can easily cook the meat the day before, without the Moussaka suffering at all. Do not do the same with the aubergines; they should be fried on the day.

Aubergines:

Top and tail the aubergines, without peeling them. Rinse them, cut them lengthways in ¼ inch thick slices and immerse them in salted water, for 30 minutes. Take them out, squeeze gently, rinse, and then squeeze them again. Drain them in a colander and pat dry. Fry them in hot vegetable oil until they become pale golden on both sides; you can either deep-fry them, which is easier but they absorb a lot of oil, or shallow-fry them. In either case, drain them on absorbent paper on a flat platter before serving, so that most of their oil will dribble away.

Lamb:

Sautee the sliced onion in 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, until it looks glistening. Add the meat and sauté together, stirring, until all the lumps are broken down and the meat starts to change color. Pour in the wine, add tomatoes, sliced finely, the spices, salt and pepper and the oregano. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring from time to time in case it sticks. Then mix in the grated cheese and parsley.

Béchamel Sauce:

Melt the butter and, away from the heat, gradually add the flour and stir to mix. Return to the heat and gradually add the milk and seasoning, stirring continuously. Simmer for 9-10 minutes, stirring, until it has thickened considerably. Withdraw the pan from the heat, let it stand briefly, and then add the cheese and the egg yolks. Stir to blend them. Do not let the sauce boil after this. It should by now be a thick béchamel, to enable it to sit on top of the meat mixture and form a kind of crust.

To assemble:

Cover the base of the roasting dish with half of the fried aubergines, then spread half of the meat mixture evenly on top of them and cover neatly with the remaining aubergines. Spread the remaining meat and sauce evenly over the top and cover neatly with the béchamel sauce. Sprinkle the grated cheese all over the top, and the breadcrumbs. Moussaka from Macedonia may contain a layer of thinly sliced round potatoes which have been fried first. Bake in a pre-heated oven, 350 F for 1 hour, until a golden crust is formed all over the top. Let it stand for 5 minutes before serving, in order to be able to cut it more easily. To serve, cut into square or oblong-shaped pieces, about 3 inches thick. It should be quite dry by then and the pieces should ideally stay intact.

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Comments

binky67 1 year ago said:
Love love love the way you describe your dishes. Almost had me thinking that I was on the beach in Greece.

cookingforfun 1 year ago said:
Kill me with the goodness. 10, oh sorry 5 from me

luisascatering 1 year ago said:
I love Moussaka! I have a recipe on my page as well. I also loved the way you described it :-)

ttaaccoo 1 year ago said:
How would you substitute lamb? I'd like to make it but won't do lamb. trish

greekgirrrl 1 year ago said:
OMG, I am humbled!! This is an excellent version of Moussaka.You are quite right about the quality of the eggplants. I've used japanese eggplant in the 2 last moussakas I've baked. They have great flavor and texture. And I prefer gruyere over parmesan.
Your description made me weak in the knees..I may just go book a flight to Greece for next summer right now. Thanks, Mike! Wanna come?

You ROCK!

rescue_ranger 1 year ago said:
Lets go to the outer islands then I will start to pack

lunasea 1 year ago said:
Ohhhh yeah - I love moussaka and have been thinking about making it all week. I do that sometimes. I love your recipe and description - and I totally agree with your eggplant assessment. I wouldn't waste my time with a lesser eggplant and have been finding some gorgeous Asian eggplants that I love. They make all the difference.

Love the pic and intro, too. Bravissimo! :)

merlin 11 months ago said:
It's this kind of dish that distinguishes a "chef" from a "cook".

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