How to Cook Perfect Moussaka

What Is Moussaka?

Moussaka is a layered oven casserole dish made with vegetables and meat. The most well-known version of moussaka is made with layers of eggplant slices, cheese, and a meat sauce, topped with a thick béchamel sauce; however, other favourites call for potatoes, zucchini, or a combination of vegetables. More recently, a meatless (vegetarian) version has also become widely available.

Until the early 1900s, moussaka was a simpler dish, using just vegetables and meats. The addition of béchamel sauce is attributed to Nikos Tselementes, a Greek chef who trained in France, and this newer version quickly became a favourite in Greece.

But it’s not just a Greek dish – the name is Arabic, and it's known, in various forms, from Egypt to Romania. But the moussaka we know best is the one we brought back with us from a thousand Shirley Valentine-esque Ionian holidays. Meat, aubergines and a wobbly béchamel sauce should be the principal ingredients – but in what combination?

The Meat

Whatever meat is used, it must be minced. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, never one to shy away from some hard work, suggests using up cold roast lamb: indeed, "the roasting of the meat gives a depth of flavour that is hard to achieve with raw meat". Minced meat gives the dish more body. Flavourwise, however, there doesn't seem to be a vast amount of difference, so although you'll definitely keep this in mind as a vehicle for leftovers, you might want to stick with the ready minced.

The Sauce

What most, if not all moussakas have in common is a tomato sauce – indeed, according to the Oxford Companion to Food, the name comes from Arabic "to moisten", referring to this very ingredient. You can stick close to tradition, and use tomato passata, or perasti, as it's known in Greece, or you can opt for tomato purée.

The All-important Aubergine

The other principal ingredient is, of course, aubergine. This is what really sets it apart from others of its ilk such as the shepherd's pie or the lasagne: layers of meltingly soft, ever so slightly bitter purple and pale green slices, which all too often sadly, exude oil with every bite.

Aubergines are notorious for their sponge-like qualities – You could pour in most of a bottle of oil during cooking, and end up with none left in the pan – and indeed, Theodore's are notably greasy, even when patted dry before use. What is more off-putting, however, is the frying most recipes demand: given the meat is simmering away in another at the same time, this necessitates the use of two frying pans.

The Top

A simple béchamel – butter, flour, milk with hot milk whisked into eggs and bulked out with Greek yoghurt to make it a bit grainy. Stirring the beaten eggs into a finished béchamel will make them puffed up beautifully in the oven along with grated cheese.