Today I will show you how to make the best eggplant casserole recipe step by step. This aubergine’s moussaka is a summer recipe with Mediterranean influences but made in my style.
You probably wonder what the difference is between my recipe and the original Greek one? Well first of all the minced meat, I used minced pork instead of beef or lamb. That’s because pork is family favorite, and because I had it in the fridge.
Secondly, I did not use bechamel sauce or potatoes in this recipe but believe me that in my version it is especially delicious.
Contents
Let’s See the Ingredients for the Best Eggplant Casserole Recipe
Well, first of all we need the eggplant, I chose four pieces of medium size.
The second basic ingredient is minced meat, I used about a kilogram of minced pork with low fat content.
I also used in this recipe two medium onions, two tomatoes and a sweet red pepper.
And let’s not forget two canned chopped tomatoes, some sheep’s cheese and grated cheddar cheese.
These last two can be replaced with any type of cheese, mozzarella or Parmesan.
Let’s Prepare the Ingredients
We cleaned the two onions, washed the tomatoes and cut the sweet red pepper, removing the seeds from the inside.
I washed the eggplants and cut their tails.
We sliced the eggplants along them, seasoned with salt and let them stand for a while, leaving their juice, which is bitter.
Precooking Ingredients
Before assembling the best eggplant casserole recipe, we must precook the ingredients.
For this we chop the onions and fry them in a pan, in a little olive oil. When the onion has become translucent, we also put the mincemeat to fry.
I seasoned with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, a little marjoram and sweet pepper paste. For added flavor I added a little goulash paste, but this is not necessary.
Add a little water or vegetable soup and let it simmer for about half an hour. If you use beef or lamb meat, you can add a little red wine instead of water.
Until the meat is a little cool, let’s start with the eggplant. We drain the juice left by them and dry the eggplant slices with a paper towel.
After that, we start to fry them one by one in a little olive oil.
After I toasted the eggplant, I also fried the sliced sweet red pepper for added flavor.
How do we put the layers in the eggplant casserole?
First of all we need a slightly deeper oven tray, I chose one of the heat-resistant glass.
Pour on the bottom of the pan a little olive oil and put the first layer of slices of fried eggplant.
Over them we put the whole amount of minced meat.
The third layer is again eggplant.
Now I add sliced tomatoes and the fried sweet red pepper. I seasoned only with a little oregano, because the eggplant and meat were salted.
The fifth and final layer is again sliced eggplant.
I poured over the two canned tomatoes and put the tray in the oven heated to 200 degrees Celsius, for half an hour.
Now we put on top the grated cheese and sheep cheese, and bake everything for another half hour.
When the eggplant casserole gets a golden color, it is ready.
How we Serve the Eggplant Moussaka?
I served this great eggplant casserole, hot and with fresh bread.
But the truth is that when removing the moussaka from the oven, it is very difficult to cut and remove the slice from the pan as it is hot. Even if the appearance is not as expected, the taste is special.
I have shaved a little more Parmesan, but whoever wants it can put a tablespoon of Greek yogurt.
This is the best eggplant casserole recipe, cooked in my style.
Try this delicious recipe or and I wait your opinions. You can also try the tasty cabbage casserole recipe. Good appetite!
Best Eggplant Casserole Recipe-Timea’s Aubergine Moussaka
Ingredients
- 4 pieces medium size eggplants
- 1 kg pork mince
- 2 pieces medium size onions
- 2 pieces tomatoes
- 1 piece sweet red pepper
- 150 ml olive oil
- 2 pieces canned chopped tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon marjoram
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tbsp sweet pepper paste
- 1 teaspoon gulyas paste
- 100 g grated cheddar cheese
- 150 g sheep cheese
Instructions
- We cleaned the two onions, washed the tomatoes and cut the sweet red pepper, removing the seeds from the inside. I washed the eggplants and cut their tails. We sliced the eggplants along them, seasoned with salt and let them stand for a while, leaving their juice, which is bitter.
- For this, we chop the onions and fry them in a pan, in a little olive oil. When the onion has become translucent, we also put the mincemeat to fry. I seasoned with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, a little marjoram and sweet pepper paste. For added flavour, I added a little gulyas paste, but this is not necessary. Add a little water or vegetable soup and let it simmer for about half an hour.
- We drain the juice left by the eggplant slice and dry them with a paper towel. After that, we start to fry them one by one in a little olive oil. After I toasted the eggplant, I also fried the sliced sweet red pepper for added flavour.
- Pour on the bottom of the pan a little olive oil and put the first layer of slices of fried eggplant. Over them, we put the whole amount of minced meat. The third layer is again eggplant. Now I add sliced tomatoes and the fried sweet red pepper. I seasoned only with a little oregano because the eggplant and meat were salted.
- The fifth and final layer is again sliced eggplant. I poured over the two canned tomatoes and put the tray in the oven heated to 200 degrees Celsius, for half an hour. Now we put on top the grated cheese and sheep cheese and bake everything for another half hour.
