Greek Moussaka - A delicious taste of Greece

Sun-kissed white stone buildings juxtaposed against a sea of sapphire blue, the sound of old church bells chiming through the air, ancient ruins, a rich and intriguing history. This is Greece! But you can't travel to Greece without embarking on a culinary adventure to explore Greece’s national dish – Moussaka! Moussaka is the best known of all Greek foods. Greeks believe that moussaka was introduced when the Arabs brought the eggplant to Greece, although Arabs, especially in Lebanon, think of it dish as a Greek dish.

Where ever the dish originated from it is awesome! Creamy and absolutely delicious.. Greek moussaka (mousaka) is served in almost every tavern and prepared in every household on special occasions and big family meals and for good reason! The Moussaka I first became aware of was from a thousand Shirley Valentine-esque Ionian holidays. Meat, aubergines and a wobbly bechamel sauce should be the principal ingredients – but in what combination?

To prepare a traditional Greek Moussaka recipe, luscious layers of juicy minced beef (or lamb) are cooked in a tomato based sauce, layered with sweet Aubergine and creamy béchamel sauce and baked together until golden perfection.. Simply irresistible! Please don't confuse this dish as a simply cottage pie, a good moussaka is a joy to behold with cinnamon spiced lamb mingling with aubergines and a delicious creamy sauce.

After three months sailing in Greece and eating in tavernas 3 times a day I have now tried my fare share of moussaka recipes  ---the traditional Greek moussaka usually has about 1 teaspoon cinnamon added to the meat mixture, and you "sweat" the Aubergine  slices with a bit of salt sprinkled on for 1 hour before using. These steps set the real moussaka's apart from the fakes!! 

Our friend Michalis from Michalis Taverna in Ermionni prepares the most wonderful Moussaka in the traditional way. He serves his Moussaka at the Greek Fest night we have as our first group meal on Flotilla. The Greek feast consists of 5 starters and 4 Mains of traditional Greek dishes to be shared by 4 guests .... The Moussaka dish is always empty with guests commenting on how beautiful it is ... 

The essence of this traditional Greek moussaka recipe can be summarised in four key stages: preparing the meat filling, preparing the béchamel sauce,  sweating and cooking the Aubergine  and layering the dish ready for baking.

Though I am not saying this recipe is as good as Michalis' and I was warned that I wouldn't be able to replicate the recipe in Australia .... Try this humble recipe and see if it will transport you back to the turquoise waters of the Greek Isles ....  Kali Orexi!" (Bon Appetit!)

Classic Greek Eggplant Moussaka

Ingredients

Vegetables layers

3 to 4 eggplants 

Salt

1.5kg potatoes

Olive oil (for greasing baking sheets)

8 large egg whites (reserving the yolks for the béchamel)

2 cups plain breadcrumbs

Meat Filling

1 1/2 pounds ground beef or lamb

2 large onions (finely diced)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1/2 cup dry red wine

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped)

2 tbs tomato paste

1 cup crushed tomatoes

1 tsp sugar

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

For the Béchamel Sauce:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 cups milk (warmed)

8 large egg yolks (lightly beaten)

Pinch of ground nutmeg

Assembly

Breadcrumbs (for the bottom of the pan)

2 cups grated Kefalotyri cheese 

Serve with a fresh Greek Salad and bread rolls

Vegetables

Using a peeler, partially peel the eggplants, leaving strips of peel about 2 cm wide down the eggplant. Slice the eggplant into 3 cm slices.
Place the eggplant slices in a colander and salt them liberally. Cover them with an inverted plate and weigh down the plate with a heavy can or jar. Place the colander in the sink and let it sit for at least 15 to 20 minutes, preferably 1 hour.
Peel the potatoes, place whole in a pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Cook until they are just done, about 10 minutes. They should not get too soft, just cooked enough so that they no longer crunch. Drain, cool, and slice them into thin slices. Set aside.
Heat the oven to 180. Line two baking sheets with alfoil and lightly grease with oil.
Add a splash of water to the egg whites and beat them lightly with a fork. Place breadcrumbs on a flat plate.
Rinse the eggplant slices and dry with paper towels. Dip the eggplant slices in the beaten egg whites and then dredge them in the breadcrumbs, coating both sides.
Place breaded eggplant slices on the foil-lined baking sheets and bake for 30 minutes, turning them over once during cooking.

When eggplant is finished cooking, set aside and lower the oven temperature to 160.

Meat Filling

In a large pan, brown the ground beef until the pink colour disappears. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add wine to the pan and allow it to simmer and reduce a bit before adding cinnamon, allspice, parsley, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and sugar.
Allow the sauce to simmer, uncovered, for approximately 15 minutes so that excess liquid can evaporate. It should be a drier, chunkier sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Béchamel Sauce

In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add flour to melted butter, whisking continuously to make a smooth paste. Let the flour cook for a minute but do not allow it to brown.
Add warmed milk to mixture in a steady stream, whisking continuously. Simmer over low heat until it thickens a bit but does not boil.
Remove from heat, and stir in beaten egg yolks and pinch of nutmeg. Return to the heat and stir until sauce thickens. Set aside.

Assemble the Moussaka

Lightly grease a large deep baking pan (I use a square spring form baking pan lined with baking paper). Sprinkle the bottom of the pan with breadcrumbs.
Leaving a 1 cm space around the edges of the pan, place the potatoes in a layer on the bottom. Top with a layer of half of the eggplant slices.
Add the meat sauce on top of the eggplant layer and sprinkle with 1/4 of the grated cheese. Top with another layer of eggplant slices and potato layer and sprinkle once again with 1/4 of the grated cheese.
Pour the béchamel sauce over all, being sure to allow the sauce to fill the sides and corners of the pan. Smooth the béchamel on top with a spatula and sprinkle with remaining grated cheese.
Bake for 45 minutes or until béchamel sauce is a nice golden brown colour. 

Allow it to cool for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing and serving. If you let it cool it will hold its shape.

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