Moussaka is a very well known Greek dish,
Layers of veg topped with mince meat and finished of with a creamy sauce is the basic foundation of Moussaka.
But, before we get into the best moussaka version that is a little bit healthier than your average, lets talk about how we actually pronounce it.
It is ‘Moussaka’ not ‘Moussakaar’
There is no ‘R’ at the end of it and the ‘ka’ sound at the end is a quick ‘ka’ as in ‘ka’ in ‘karate’.
Now that’s sorted lets get on to why my moussaka is the best one out there (“,)
First, I don’t fry my vegetables like many do, I like to grill mine so they are a little bit healthier.
I’m not saying this dish is super healthy but I try to do things as healthly as possible so when I add lots of cheeses or have a creamy sauce I don’t have to compromise the flavours and go all out. So I’m kind of balancing the healthy with the not so healthy but always keeping the flavour on point! Because with the flavour what’s the point of eating it?
Another healthy tip I have for you is don’t add oil when you fry your meat. The fat in the meat will render out and cook in it’s own oils and if you want to see it in action watch the video below and see how much oil comes out of my meat. When this happens I like to drain the excess oil out because it is not needed and makes everything greasy which I don’t like.
Every layer is topped with a layer of cheese and a sprinkling of cinnamon.
Imagine.
Cheesy potatoes,
Cheesy Courgettes and
Cheesy Aubergines
MMMMM….. MMMMM….. MMMMM…..
Don’t worry about adding cinnamon to your dish, the cinnamon adds a hint of sweetness but not dessert sweet. Trust me add it don’t skip it. You will thank me when you try it (“,)
Oh yeah and finally let me mention my favourite bit,
The cream.
This cream is so silky and creamy and the thin cheese layer on top add a delicious crispy element.
I always leave a little in the pot for all of us to eat whilst the moussaka cooks he he…..
It makes the dish the best of the best.
And to make sure your cream is as good as it gets make sure to use a whisk and a spoon whilst you make it. Watch my video below for a more detailed step by step version. Plus whenever you make any type of cream be it sweet or savoury always use a spoon and a whisk and you will have a silky lump free cream.
Ingredients
- 5 potatoes sliced 5mm thick or as may potatoes that will fill the base of your baking dish
- 4 courgettes sliced 5mm thick or as may courgettes that will fill the base of your baking dish
- 2 aubergines sliced 5mm thick or as may potatoes that will fill the base of your baking dish
- Olive oil
- Salt
- 100g cheese
- Ground cinnamon
- Olive oil
- 1kg beef mince
- 1 red onion chopped
- 1 beef stock cube
- 1 tablespoon dried mint
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 100g tomato puree
- 500g passata or chopped tomatoes
- A splash of red wine or red wine vinegar
- Salt and Pepper
- A handful of fresh parsley chopped
- 140g unsalted butter
- 120g plain flour
- 4 cups of whole milk
- 1 chicken stock cube
- Salt and Pepper
- 50g cheddar cheese
- A sprinkle of ground cinnamon
- Baking dish
- Baking tray
- Frying Pan
- Spoon
- Pot
- Whisk
- Wooden Spoon
- Spatula
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180C
- Sprinkle your aubergines with salt and leave them to one side whilst you grill your potatoes and courgettes
- Put your potatoes on your baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and rub the oil into your potatoes, sprinkle with some salt and grill until both sides are golden brown
- When golden lay them out onto your baking dish, grate over some cheese and sprinkle with some cinnamon
- Put your courgettes on your baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and rub the oil into your courgettes, sprinkle with some salt and grill until both sides are golden brown
- When golden lay them over your potatoes, grate some cheese on top and sprinkle with some cinnamon
- Put your aubergines on your baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and rub the oil into your aubergines, and grill until both sides are golden brown
- When golden lay them over yourcourgettes, grate some cheese on top and sprinkle with some cinnamon
- In a pan fry your meat until brown
- Add in your onions and stir them in well
- Add your beef stock cube and mash it into your meat
- Add your mint, cinnamon, salt and pepper and stir everything together
- Add in your tomato puree stir it in and leave it to sizzle for a few minutes
- Add your red wine or red wine vinegar stir it in and leave it to simmer for a minute
- Add in your passata or chopped tomatoes stir everything well and leave it to simmer for about 10 minutes
- Take your pan off of the heat, add in your chopped parsley, stir it all in and set it to one side until we need it to layer
- Add your butter to a pan and heat on a low heat until it is melted
- Add in your flour and stir until it's nice and golden and smooth
- Add in 1 cup of milk and whisk it in until everything starts to thicken. Use your spoon around the edges of your pan to get any lumpy bits of off the sides and continue to whisk until it thickens again.
- Add in another cup of milk and whisk and use your spoon around the edges to stop anything sticking and repeat this process until you have used 4 cups of milk in total (Watch the video below to see a more detailed version of how I make my cream and what it should look like at the end)
- When your cream is all silky and smooth cover it with cling film, making sure that the cling film is touching the cream so a skin doesn't form and set it to one side until we need it to layer
- Place your potatoes in the bottom of your baking tray making sure the base is covered
- Grate a nice layer of cheese over your potatoes and sprinkle with a little cinnamon
- Lay your courgettes on top of your potatoes in a single layer
- Grate a nice layer of cheese on top and sprinkle with a little cinnamon
- Layer your aubergines on top of your courgettes in a single layer
- Grate a layer of cheese on top and sprinkle with some cinnamon
- Add your meat and make sure all your veg is covered and your meat is evenly distributed, nice and flat
- Pour your cream over your meat. Try to let it dip out of the pan so you don't need to spread it, because if you spread it you may end up with meat in your cream, but we want our top to be as white as possible
- Grate a generous amount of cheese on top and sprinkle with a little more cinnamon
- Cook in the over for 25-30 minutes or until the top is nice and crispy and golden
- Leave to cool for about 30 minutes so you can have nice set layers or cut your pieces straight away and dig in like I do. It may not be as neat but it is still so tasty (",)
- Kali Orexi
Watch the video below to see how too make this delicious moussaka
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