Moussaka (Greek Eggplant Lasagna)

Recipe video above. A traditional recipe for an iconic Greek dish from a wonderful cookbook called The Food And Cooking Of Greece by Sara Nassopoulos. Layers of soft eggplant, rich beef or lamb filling lightly spiced with oregano and cinnamon, topped with a thick layer of bechamel sauce. It looks like a lot of steps but the recipe has a nice flow to it - I've popped prompts in the steps. 🙂

Prep time: PT40M

Cook time: PT30M

Total time: PT70M

Rating

4.94 stars (299 reviews)

Keywords

greek moussaka, Moussaka, traditional moussaka recipe

Ingredients

1 kg / 2 lb eggplant (aubergines) (, 0.75cm / 0.3" thick slices)
1 tsp salt
2 - 3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion (, diced (brown, white, yellow))
3 garlic cloves (, minced)
1.4 lb / 700 g ground beef or lamb (mince) ((Note 1))
1/2 cup red wine (, dry (optional))
14 oz /400g crushed tomatoes
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup beef broth/stock ((Note 2))
1 beef bouillon cube (, crumbled (or 1 tsp powder))
2 bay leaves
1.5 tsp sugar (any)
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp cinnamon ((or 1 stick, use whole))
3/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp (60g) butter
5 tbsp plain flour
2 1/2 cups milk ((any fat %))
1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated (optional)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated ((or Kefalotiri Cheese) (Note 3))
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 1/4 tsp Vegeta, vegetable or chicken stock powder ((or salt) (Note 4))
1/4 tsp pepper
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs ((Note 5))

Cuisine

Greek

Steps

Eggplant (Note 6)
- Place eggplant slightly overlapping in a large colander. Sprinkle with some salt. Repeat with remaining eggplant.
- Leave to sweat for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make Meat Sauce and Béchamel Sauce.
- Preheat oven to 240C/450F. 
- Pat eggplant dry - make sure to do this well, otherwise it's too salty. Lay on parchment paper lined trays (you might need 3 trays, work in batches), brush with oil.
- Bake 15 - 20 minutes or until lightly browned and softened . Remove and set aside to cool slightly.
Meat Sauce
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet or pot over high heat, then cook the garlic and onion for 2 minutes. 
- Add the beef or lamb and cook until it changes from pink to brown, breaking it up as you go.
- Add wine, cook for 1.5 minutes or until alcohol smell is gone.
- Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Bring to a simmer, then lower heat to medium low and cook for 15 minutes, or until reduced to a thick sauce.
Bechamel Sauce
- Melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
- Stirring constantly, slowly add the milk. Then stir regularly for 3 to 5 minutes or until it thickens so that it thickly coats the back of a wooden spoon (see video / step photos).
- Remove from the stove and whisk in cheese, nutmeg, Vegeta/stock powder (or salt) and pepper.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then whisk the eggs in. Cover with lid until required.
Assemble
- Lower oven to 180C/350F (all oven types).
- Place half the eggplant in the bottom of a baking dish (I used my 26cm/9" Lodge skillet), then top with all the Filling.
- Top with remaining eggplant, then pour over the Béchamel Sauce, sprinkle with breadcrumbs. 
- Bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Nutitrion

Serving Size: 587 g
Calories: 434 kcal
Carbohydrates: 20 g
Protein: 32 g
Fat: 24 g
Saturated Fat: 10 g
Cholesterol: 158 mg
Sodium: 1317 mg
Sugar: 7 g

Reviews

Sam on 2026-07-23 (5 stars):
I love moussaka - made this without red wine, or the chicken/beef buillion or stock, added mushrooms to the meat sauce and layered potatoes at the bottom of a baking dish to cook before I added the eggplant. So much flavour, the next day as well a delight. If I could give this recipe a 10/5 I would!
Fiona Marshall on 2026-06-19 (5 stars):
delicious! well worth the effort! I cook my meat sauce for a few hours in low or make the day before
Estelle Palmer on 2026-05-19 (5 stars):
Delicious I added chopped potato & half a red onion to my eggplant ( I didn’t have quite enough eggplant ) Will definitely make again . Thanks Nagi xx
Elizabeth Cross on 2026-05-18 (5 stars):
I Love this recipe I often make it,💯
Joe on 2026-05-07 (5 stars):
This was absolutely delicious and, to my surprise - although why should I have been surprised, it's RTE - has managed to dethrone my long-held previous go-to moussaka recipe. The filling is delicious and the topping is generous, just how I like it!
Eric Ryter on 2026-04-13 (4 stars):
It’s a good recipe but it does NOT take 1 hr and 10 mins to make. The eggplant alone takes prep, salt and 30 mins of rest, 15 min to bake, then assembly and then bake the lasagna for 30-40 mins. I’d say the appropriate time to make is an hour and 40 mins and that’s if you’re really booking it, or 2 hours if you’re not rushing.
Jane on 2026-04-03 (5 stars):
Easy and delicious recipe. Thank you.
Steve T on 2026-03-24 (5 stars):
Sorry - 5 stars by the way
Steve T on 2026-03-24 (5 stars):
I made this the other night - haven't made a Moussaka for a while - I think I used to make the one in the old Delia Smith book. Was really good - I had two large eggplants but I think I could have used more or maybe sliced slightly thicker. I used oat milk in the bechamel (wife is dairy intolerant) and I think this contributed to a slight lack of fluffiness but still great. I used lamb mince (didn't want the mousakka police paying me a visit haha). I could tell it was going to be one of those meals where the leftovers were probably better than on the day - like you see with a lasagna - maybe because it firms up a little and the falvours intensify.
Janet on 2026-03-17 (5 stars):
This was tasty! I think I cut the eggplant too thin because it didn’t hold together very well. But plates were still cleaned!
Marie Belcourt on 2026-03-15 (5 stars):
My mother always added a layer of sliced boiled potatoes in her Moussaka, so I did with this recipe. It was delicious. My husband keeps raving!! A little time consuming but well worth it.
Stephen Branley on 2026-03-10 (5 stars):
I made this last night and it was absolutely stunning. The meat was more aromatic than a ragù, the sauce was luscious, and when I cut into the finished dish it stayed together. I made this because my darlin' said she'd not had one for many years. She loved it and said I nailed it. So thank you Nagi for this wonderful recipe...
Stephen Branley on 2026-03-10 (5 stars):
I made this last night and it was absolutely stunning. The meat was more aromatic than a ragù, the sauce was luscious, and when I cut into the finished dish it stayed together. I made this because my darlin' said she'd not had one for many years. She loved it and said I nailed it. So thank you Nagi for this wonderful recipe...
Janine W on 2026-02-21 (5 stars):
Yum! The recipe is easy to follow and the result was the best moussaka I've made. Thank you Nagi! This is added to my list of Recipe Tin crowd pleasers. I paced myself on this one, prepping and cooking the eggplant on the BBQ in the morning. I made the meat sauce mid-afternoon. Last thing was the bechamel, assembly and pop it in the oven. Dinner on the table at 6pm.