Oriental cuisine has long won worldwide fame and love. It intertwines the gastronomic traditions of different countries, opposite in taste preferences and customs. Dishes abound in spicy spices, pungency and meat delicacies. One of the revered treats is the eggplant and potato moussaka. The recipe migrated to us from Greece.

In the Russian sense, this casserole of meat and vegetables under the Greek delicacy is known far beyond the borders of our country. The dish does not need advertising and praise, it is loved for the harmonious combination of ingredients, high nutritional value and satiety. Chefs from different countries interpret the food at their own discretion. However, regardless of the constituent components, the cooking technology remains unchanged.

Eggplant and minced meat recipe

Most often, this variation is served in local restaurants and cafes in Russia. The recipe is pretty simple and straightforward. It contains the following ingredients:

• half a kilogram of minced meat (from any meat);
• hard cheese - 200 g;
• two potatoes;
• two medium-sized eggplants;
• heavy cream - 350 ml.

You will definitely need tomato paste (50 g), an onion, three cloves of garlic, flour (50 g), butter (30 g) and salt.

Technological process

Before preparing the moussaka, peel the blue ones, cut them into thin plates, fill them with salted water and leave them to soak for an hour. This way you get rid of the bitterness. Chop the onion, sauté in sunflower oil, then squeeze out the garlic, add the minced meat - simmer under the lid. After about 20 minutes, put tomato paste in a frying pan, add a little salt. Turn off the hotplate.

Prepare the Béchamel sauce: put butter in a preheated container, add flour and fry. Pour the cream in a thin stream, constantly stirring the mixture. Add salt, when the sauce becomes thick, turn it off.

Putting the dish together

We take a rectangular baking sheet, cover with parchment, grease with oil. Lay out the mugs of peeled potatoes with the first layer (you can add salt). Cover with minced meat, put blue ones on top. Pour in the creamy sauce, put in the oven for 40 minutes. A minute before turning off, cover with grated cheese. Garnish with dill or parsley when serving. Greek and potatoes, the recipe of which will delight you with ease, will surprise you with an exquisite and original taste.

Balkan recipe

On the menus of many establishments, you will be offered another stunning dish of minced beef with a hint of white wine. If you don't want to visit restaurants, you can make your own treats. Purchase these products:

• 400-500 g of beef tenderloin;
• 3-4 pcs. blue;
• five potato tubers;
• vegetables - an onion, three tomatoes, two cloves of garlic;
• a glass of white wine (dry);
• parsley;
• two hundred grams of cheese;
• 30 g butter.

To add a piquant taste, you will need spices: a pinch of thyme, rosemary, white pepper.

Ingredients for the gravy: half a liter of milk, 50 g flour, a large spoonful of butter, salt.

How to cook moussaka? Where to begin?

We immerse the cleaned blue ones in water for 30-50 minutes. During this time, fry the chopped onion. Cut the beef into small pieces, like for goulash, and add to the onion. We give the meat to brown, pour in the wine, chop the parsley. Cover with a lid and do not touch for 10 minutes.

Blanch the tomatoes, peel and cut into cubes. We send the tomatoes to the meat pan along with chopped garlic and the specified spices. We simmer for about 30 minutes. Cut the blue ones into circles, fry on both sides.

Let's prepare a sauce from milk, flour and butter according to the previous analogy. Now let's start forming on the bottom of the baking sheet, lay out the potato mugs, half of the blue ones, beef stewed with tomatoes and spices. Immerse the second part of the eggplant on the meat, pour over the sauce.

Goes to the moussaka oven with eggplant and potatoes. The recipe can be combined with zucchini, chicken fillet. At the end of baking, cheese must be added. An excellent dish for everyday and festive feast.

Moussaka classic lamb

In Greece, this treat is prepared only from young lamb. The type of meat gives a special flavor to the dish. In this option, there is no potato, since the treat is already high-calorie and satisfying. If you decide to make a traditional moussaka, then stock up on the necessary products:

• a kilogram of lamb meat;
• four blue ones;
• onion, three cloves of garlic;
• three tomatoes;
• dry wine in a volume of 100 ml.

You can't do without cloves, coriander, nutmeg - take a pinch of all the spices, as well as a bunch of cilantro.

For the sauce: a glass of grated cheese, an egg, 100 g flour, 300 ml of milk, 30 g of butter.

Step-by-step instruction

Making moussaka shouldn't take more than an hour and a half. To begin with, make minced meat from lamb or cut into small pieces. Remove the peel from the blue ones, fill it with water and leave it alone for half an hour. Then we dry, cut into rings and fry.

Saute onion with garlic, add meat. Put out the mass for 5 minutes. We spread the peeled tomatoes, add all the seasonings and chopped cilantro. Cover with a lid, simmer for 10 minutes. Fill with wine, simmer for another 5 minutes.

We cover the bottom of the baking sheet with fried blue ones (1/2 part), cover with lamb on top (half). The third layer is eggplant, the final fourth is meat. Pour everything with milk gravy: pour flour into the heated butter, saute a little, pour in milk, add an egg.

With constant stirring, bring to a thickening and add grated cheese. Pour the products in the baking sheet with this mixture. Moussaka is baked in the oven for at least half an hour. Then we put the casserole on the table, cut into neat squares. Instead of a side dish, you can serve fresh vegetables, herbs and a glass of red wine.

This is how easy it is to prepare moussaka with eggplant and potatoes. The recipe can be interpreted at your own discretion: combine with mushrooms, seafood, fish.

The ancient and eternally young Hellas not only generously shares with its guests a rich and unique history, picturesque seascapes, wonderful resorts, the good nature and hospitality of its inhabitants, but also the tastes and aromas of its national dishes.

And everyone who has been here dreams of returning, at least for a short time, to once again enjoy the unique charm of this wonderful country and the magnificent "holiday of taste" of Greek cuisine.

For those who have not yet been to Greece, and for those who, after visiting this wondrous country, have retained fond memories of small cozy taverns, I propose to make an exciting journey in the form of a small culinary adventure called “Traditional Greek Moussaka Dish”.

Let's join the celebration of the taste together as we explore the history of the famous Greek dish and the way it is prepared.

A bit of history

What is moussaka?
Moussaka (the emphasis is on the last syllable) is a casserole of eggplant and lamb, sometimes beef, pork or chicken mince, topped with a thick layer of béchamel sauce, which becomes hard and golden during the cooking process.

I do not at all think that Socrates or Demosthenes tried moussaka. It was not served either in ancient Athens or in glorious Sparta. And she could not appear in those ancient times. However, this dish has an interesting history..

Its main components are eggplants, having passed their winding path from East India to ancient China, and simultaneously to Central Asia and Egypt, only in the 13th century do they get from the Arab countries to Italy, and then to Spain and Greece.

Europeans did not eat them for a long time, thinking that they were poisonous. The Greeks began to cultivate and consume eggplants only at the end of the 19th century. The very name "moussaka" first appears in an ancient Arab book of the thirteenth century known as the "Cookbook of Baghdad".

But the method of preparing the ancient Arabian moussaka is not much like the Greek one, just as the culinary recipes of dishes with the same name, which are prepared in Libya, Turkey and Moldova, are not similar to it.

Which has become the culinary hallmark of greece moussaka, which is so loved by gourmets from many countries of the world, was invented by the famous chef Nikos Tselemendis at the beginning of the twentieth century.

The renowned Greek culinary specialist studied his art in Vienna, and then, returning to Greece, worked as a cook in various foreign embassies.
In 1919 he became the general director of the large hotel "Ermis", but in the same year, leaving this prestigious post for unknown reasons, he left for America.

There, he worked in many of the most famous and most expensive American restaurants, while simultaneously graduating in three specialties: chef, pastry chef and nutritionist.

Returning to Greece in 1932, Nikos founded a small pastry school, and at the same time, he wrote a cookbook in which he published his own recipes. The cookbook quickly became immensely popular and was reprinted 15 times in one decade.
It is still used as a table for many famous Greek chefs.

As Tselemendis himself explains, in his culinary creations, he wanted to combine traditional Greek products with the best inventions of gourmet European cuisine, of which he was an ardent admirer.
It was successfully done in moussaka!

From the combination of vegetables and lamb, familiar to every Greek peasant, with French béchamel sauce, Greek moussaka really became a world culinary masterpiece and gained immense popularity, first among the Greeks themselves, and then in the world.

Is there a lobster moussaka

Just two or three decades ago, the world knew almost nothing about Greek cuisine.

There is a certain stereotype that Greek cuisine is very simple dishes without any frills, and Greek chefs prepare them according to the recipes of their grandmothers or aunts - these dishes will definitely not surprise gourmets with their variety and taste.
Just think, a simple Greek moussaka, what is there to be surprised at?

However, I will give a few examples of the incredible popularity of Greek dishes..

Young greek chef Nikos Karvelas, who currently lives in New York, opened his own family restaurant there, which has become a very fashionable establishment among the finest and most expensive restaurants in America.
It is visited by many world celebrities such as Chris Cornell - vocalist of Soundgarden, famous singer Rihanna, David Blaine - famous magician and magician, Brazilian football king Pele, pop diva Madonna and many others.

As you know, world stars are very capricious in their choice of products. For example, Madonna does not eat meat, but only fish or seafood, and Pele hates eggplant. But meat and eggplant are the main ingredients of Greek moussaka, and nevertheless celebrities order it among other Greek dishes. How so?

Nikos believes that everyone has a right to their quirks, both world celebrities and ordinary visitors, so he tries to please any client. Upon learning that Madonna wanted to try Greek moussaka, he replaced lamb for lobster meat for the pop diva, and eggplant for papaya for Pele. And then, I observed surprise and delight on the faces of my clients when they tried his creations.

Charalambos Nikolaidisprobably the only Greek living in distant northern Alaska. He taught the Eskimos and Aleuts to eat moussaka, tzatziki, spanakopita and other Greek dishes.... Surprisingly, this is true!

Haralambos, having come to the Ice Sculpture Festival held annually in the small town of Fairbanks, was fascinated by its rugged northern beauty and decided to stay here. He bought himself a small wooden blockhouse, where he settled with his wife.

Here they opened a Greek restaurant, which is in constant demand among the locals, who enjoyed all Greek dishes, especially moussaka. They consider it to be the best delicacy in the world..

And on the other side of the world, in distant Australia, in 2012, a book was published that became the bestseller of the year and this is not a detective story, not an adventure, not a fashionable fantasy or an essay on psychology.

The book is called "My Greek Cuisine", and its author is an Australian of Greek descent Maria Balewho was born in Melbourne. Her mother is Greek from the Peloponnese peninsula.
Maria explains the success of her book very simply:

“I really wanted to give my children the treasure left by my mother for me - recipes for traditional Greek dishes that she has been collecting for many years.

When I wrote it, I realized that this is a gift not only to them, but to all my readers who adore Greek cuisine. "

And the recipe that flaunts on the first page of her book is Greek moussaka.

Well, the time has come for us to arrange this little holiday of taste, to cook and pamper ourselves and our loved ones with this wonderful dish!

Classic Greek moussaka recipe with eggplant, potatoes and minced meat

Since childhood, I remember that cooking mousaka in our house began with arguments between my grandmother and her girlfriends whether potatoes were put into the moussaka or not. Some argued that it was necessary to put it, others that real moussaka was prepared only with eggplants.

I think that such disputes arose not only in our kitchen, but also in many other Greek houses. They continue to this day. But nevertheless, whether or not my grandmother put potatoes in the dish, it has always been for me one of the most favorite, cooked by her. I cook moussaka with potatoes for my family. My husband and kids prefer this option.

To make moussaka, we need:

• 1 kg eggplant (about 6-7 medium fruits);
• 400-450 grams of potatoes (about 5 medium-sized pieces);
• 100 grams of grated parmesan cheese;
• 2-3 tablespoons of bread crumbs;
• 2 tablespoons .

For meat filling:

• 500 grams of ground beef;
• 250 grams of minced pork (who does not eat pork, you can replace it with chicken or lamb);
• half a teacup of olive oil;
• 2 medium-sized onions;
• 3-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped;
• some parsley:
• 400 gr. fresh tomatoes;
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• half a glass of dry white;
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick;
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg;
• 1 bay leaf;
• 4 allspice peas, salt and black pepper to taste.

For the béchamel sauce:

• 5 tablespoons of butter;
• 5 tablespoons flour;
• ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg;
• 150 grams of grated hard low-melting cheese;
• half a teaspoon of salt;
• 1 liter of milk;
• some olive oil 1-2 tablespoons.

Preparation of all components

1. First of all, let's prepare the eggplant. Mine, peel the stalks and cut them into medium-sized slices of about 1 cm.In a bowl, make salt brine for 0.5 liters of water, 1 tablespoon of coarse salt, and soak the eggplants in it for 1 hour so that all the bitterness comes out of them. While the eggplants are “taking a salt bath,” we put a deep frying pan on the fire and add 2 tablespoons of oil to it.

2. Grate 2 medium onions on a coarse grater, and fry them until golden brown, then put the mixed minced meat in a pan and mix well with the fried onions. Add chopped garlic, and then dry wine and mix everything well again.

3. While the wine is evaporating, peel the tomatoes and three of them on a fine grater, put the resulting mass in a pan to the minced meat and mix everything well again. Dissolve tomato paste in water and pour into a frying pan.

4. We put our spices: nutmeg, bay leaf, allspice, cinnamon. Salt, pepper and add sugar to taste, reduce the heat to a minimum and leave the mixture to simmer until all the liquid has evaporated.

5. Before turning off the fire, remove the cinnamon, bay leaf and allspice from the mixture, sprinkle with finely chopped parsley and mix the mixture again.

6. We take out the eggplants, rinse them in cold water, put them in a colander and let the water drain.

7. Clean, wash and cut the potatoes into medium-sized circles and place the potatoes on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and lightly oiled with olive oil. We put a baking sheet in an oven preheated to 180 degrees for 10 minutes.

8. We do the same procedure with pre-dried eggplants with a paper towel.

Attention! Many Greek housewives fry eggplants and potatoes in a frying pan in a little oil on both sides for several minutes.
In any case, whichever method you choose, remember: the vegetables must be half-cooked so that they do not fall apart during the assembly process of the casserole itself.

Now you can start preparing the béchamel sauce.

How to make béchamel sauce

Moussaka is one of the most popular Greek dishes. And this popularity is not accidental. She is the most famous dish in Greece, a kind of visiting card. Anyone who has visited Greece at least once has certainly tried this delicious dish. And I am sure that I have become a fan of this dish forever.

Moussaka is a type of vegetable casserole with meat, common in the Mediterranean and Balkan countries. Everywhere this dish is prepared in different ways, but in any case, it always turns out to be delicious. It is not at all difficult to prepare it, all the products for its preparation are always sold in the store. Therefore, learning how to cook such a dish is simply necessary. After all, sometimes you really want to please your loved ones with a delicious unusual dish.

History has not preserved to us information about who and when invented this dish. For the first time, a description of a dish similar to it appeared in the 13th century, and it was called "maguma", a dish of Arab origin. Now in Arab countries, a cold salad is called moussaka, which is made from tomatoes and eggplants.

In all other countries, it is a hot dish. There are different options for its preparation, even in Greece, each housewife prepares it in her own way. Just like our housewives do not have a single recipe for borscht. How much borsch you eat in every house, you will not find the same.

Modern moussaka, the one so loved by gourmets in many countries of the world, was invented by the famous chef Nikos Tselemendis at the beginning of the twentieth century. In this wonderful dish, he managed to combine the traditional Greek recipes of the peasants with the sophistication of European cuisine.

We need:

• beef + lamb 700 gr.
• eggplant - 1 kg.
• potatoes - 4-5 pcs.
• tomatoes -3-4 pcs.
• onion -2 pcs.
• garlic 3-4 teeth.
• hard cheese - 250 gr. (original parmesan)
• olive oil
• dry white wine - 0.5 tbsp.
• bread crumbs
• parsley
• red capsicum
• salt, ground black pepper

For the Bechamel sauce:

• milk - 1 liter
• butter - 100-120 gr. butter
• flour -3/4 cup
• nutmeg
• salt - 0.5 tsp

Cut the eggplants into long 1 cm thick plates, sprinkle them generously with salt. Mix gently and leave for 30 minutes.

Cooking minced meat

1. Prepare mixed minced beef and lamb.

2. Cut the onion into small cubes. Fry it in a little oil until golden brown, add minced meat. Fry well, stirring constantly.

3. Add garlic and pour in wine. Stir occasionally and wait until it evaporates.

4. Meanwhile, pour boiling water over the tomatoes and peel them off. Then chop and add to the minced meat.

5. Simmer over low heat. Then add spices and a piece of red capsicum. Do not forget to salt and pepper.

6. You can add a little hot water to make the minced meat more juicy.

7. Simmer the minced meat until it becomes homogeneous, without lumps. Then add chopped parsley. Stir and cover.

The next step is to prepare the eggplant

1. Rinse the eggplants in cold water. Put them in a colander to drain excess liquid. Then place on paper towels.

2. Peel the potatoes, cut into 0.5 cm thick plates. Place on a baking sheet on greased baking paper.

3. Preheat the oven, bake the potatoes for 10-15 minutes.

4. During this time, portions fry the eggplants in oil in a frying pan. If you like dishes with less oil, then eggplant can also be baked in the oven.

5. If you fry the eggplants, place them on the wire rack after frying so that the glass will have excess oil.

Cooking Bechamel sauce

1 In a saucepan, melt the butter, gradually add the flour, stirring constantly. Fry lightly, make sure not to burn.

2. Gradually pour in hot milk, stirring constantly (use a whisk).

3. Add a pinch of nutmeg, it gives a pleasant nutty flavor to the whole dish.

4. Simmer the sauce over low heat until it thickens. At the same time, do not forget to stir constantly. Then remove from heat.

Cooking moussaka

We begin to collect it in the form. It is better to use a glass form with large sides.

1. Grease the mold with oil, sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

2. Put potatoes, sprinkle with grated cheese.

3. Then a layer of eggplant, and sprinkle with cheese too.

4. Now it is the turn of the minced meat, put it out and distribute evenly.

5. Top with Bechamel sauce and sprinkle with grated cheese.

6. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

7. Cover the form with foil, cover the edges more tightly. And put it in the oven.

8. Bake for 40 minutes, then remove the foil.

9. Bake for another 15 minutes, during this time the moussaka will be covered with a beautiful, ruddy, fragrant crust on top.

10. Remove from the oven, cover with a towel and leave to rest for 10-15 minutes.

Here is our delicious Greek-style moussaka and ready. Place on plates in portions, making sure that all layers are in the portion. And taste this deliciously delicious dish!

Features of cooking

How to make meat-free moussaka

Moussaka can be cooked not only with minced meat. It turns out very tasty without adding it. Moreover, if you cook it deliciously, then it will turn out to be no worse.

We need:

• eggplant - 500 gr
• potatoes - 2 pieces
• tomatoes - 2 pieces
• onion -1 pc
• garlic - 2 cloves
• hard cheese - 130 gr. (original parmesan)
• olive oil
• breadcrumbs
• parsley
• spices - basil, rosemary, dried ginger, nutmeg, paprika
• red capsicum
• salt, ground black pepper

For the Bechamel sauce:

• milk - 0.5 liter
• butter - 60 gr. butter
• flour - a little less than 0.5 cups
• nutmeg
• salt - a pinch

Preparation:

Prepare vegetarian moussaka in the same way as meat moussaka. There is not much difference in cooking.

There are only two distinguishing points. First, we simply ignore everything related to meat. That is, we just skip these points.

Secondly, vegetarians are often against wine. Therefore, we exclude it as well. And add water instead.

And at the moment when the tomatoes are fried, you can add bell peppers, cut into slices, which will give the missing aroma and sweet taste.

Everything else is unchanged. Try it, it's delicious!

Enjoy your meal!

2017-07-15

Date: 15 07 2017

Tags:

Hello my dear readers! “Local” eggplants are now on sale. I usually start the eggplant season with my favorite caviar. But this time I really wanted moussaka. Moreover, for my birthday I received wonderful ceramic baking dishes. Today we have on the agenda the recipe for Greek moussaka with eggplant.

Last year, at this time, I dreamed of a trip to sunny Greece. Not sued! I wanted to go spontaneously and the easiest way was to get a Shangen at the Hungarian Consulate in Beregovo. Moreover, I have never had any problems with obtaining visas.

However, the Hungarian consul this time considered that five days in the Shangen zone is quite enough for me - just to get to Greece, plunge into the blue waves of the Aegean Sea and back to my native land. And I was already dreaming about how, after swimming in the sea in a nearby coastal tavern, I would eat the famous Greek moussaka with eggplant and wash it down with wonderful local wine.

My husband tried to comfort me as best he could - we went to our thermal pool almost every day, and in the evening he arranged a “gastronomic paradise” for me. Vova cooked incomparable Transcarpathian baked potatoes, grilled fish, Turkish gözleme cakes and absolutely amazing moussaka with eggplant and minced meat from the most tender mutton.

And why do we need Greece? The water at the end of September there is already quite cool, and our thermal waters are warm all year round - 33-35 ° С. We spent the whole autumn and all winter basking in various pools and hot tubs, invariably repeating with a laugh the phrase, which I fell in love with: "And why do we need this Greece?" But back to the moussaka recipe - you are probably tired of waiting.

Moussaka in Greek with eggplant - a classic recipe in my adaptation

Ingredients for a mold with a diameter of 20 cm

• 5 medium sized eggplants.
• 750-800 g minced meat.
• 6-7 large tomatoes with sugar pulp.
• A handful of hard goat cheese (ideally kefalotyri).
• 1-2 heads of onions.
• 3-4 cloves of garlic.
• Ground black pepper.
• 0.5 teaspoon of oregano (thyme, savory).
• 0.25 teaspoon of ground cinnamon (optional).
• A glass of red or white dry wine.
• Olive oil (for making eggplant and meat sauce).
• Salt.

Bechamel ingredients

• 50-65 g of butter.
• 85 g flour.
• 750 ml of milk.
• A pinch of finely grated nutmeg.

How to make meat sauce

How to make bechamel

1. Let's start cooking. Heat milk to almost boiling point. In a skillet with a multi-layered bottom, heat the butter, add flour, fry together for about thirty seconds. The flour should not change color.
2. Pour in a little milk (about 4-5 tablespoons), stir in good faith with a whisk, add the remaining milk in three or four steps, stir again.
3. Cook, stirring occasionally, over low heat for about half an hour, season with grated nutmeg. Remove from heat and start cooking the eggplant.

How to prepare eggplant

1. Greek-style eggplants for moussaka are usually lightly fried in olive oil. I rarely use this method of preparation. Before frying, I grease each slice with oil with a brush - this way it will take much less.
2. Another way is to bake eggplants on a grill or grill pan. I heat up the skillet, bake eggplant slices, pre-dried on a clean cloth, for about two minutes on each side. Vegetables should be almost cooked, but not creep - they still have to be baked in the oven.

How to collect moussaka and bake

My remarks

My recipe for moussaka with a photo explains almost step by step all the moments of preparation. I can only add that I usually divide the cooking over two days. In the first, I cook the meat part and bechamel, and in the second, I bake or fry the eggplants and put the Greek moussaka together.

The number of products must be "adjusted" to fit your shape. There are no exact proportions - there is a general principle. Nobody forbids you to add a layer of zucchini or zucchini. It will turn out not quite Greek, but also delicious! I really liked even the marrow moussaka instead of eggplant.

I cook meat sauce for a long time, like. Then it has a delicate taste and the desired consistency.

Moussaka is also cooked with potatoes, eggplant and minced meat. I spied the recipe from my friend Lena Meteleva, who worked in a real tavern for many years. She knows exactly how to make Greek moussaka.

Moussaka with potatoes and minced meat

Ingredients

• 4-5 eggplants.
• 5 large potatoes.
• About a kilogram of minced meat (any mixed meat).
• One and a half cups grated tomatoes (fresh or canned in their own juice).
• 3 tablespoons of good tomato sauce.
• 100 g of dry white wine or retsina.
• 70-80 ml of olive oil.
• One large onion.
• 5 cloves of garlic.
• 100 g of kefalotiri cheese or other hard goat cheese.
• Parsley (oregano, basil).
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• A quarter teaspoon of hot ground red pepper.
• A third of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon and cloves.
• A couple of small pinches of sugar.
• Salt.

Bechamel sauce ingredients

• 800 ml of milk.
• 120 g butter.
• 120 g flour.
• A quarter teaspoon of grated nutmeg.
• A quarter teaspoon of ground black pepper.
• 2 tablespoons of grated mullet or any other hard cheese.

How to cook

Usually moussaka is instantly addictive and love from the first bite. After mastering the dish, there is often an ineradicable urge to cook moussaka again and again, to experiment with the composition and spices. Very tasty, for example, add a layer of toasted or baked bell peppers, boiled pasta or rice. And let it turn out already another casserole, but her own "grandmother" is still Greek moussaka.

Finishing for today. Write, I am glad to read your comments. Share information on social networks if it is useful in your opinion. Good luck, health and love to everyone!

Always yours Irina.

Who remembers these lines: "Melina Mercury sings, Melina Mercury calls - Hellas fearless daughter!"? And in these old shots, she's just a woman. Immensely and passionately loving.

Melina Mercury - "Love" has become a double-edged sword "

Real Greek moussaka
If you will be in the church, please light a candle for the repose of the soul of Nikolai Tselementes. He was a kind man: he lived a long time, did a lot of good things, but most importantly, he invented the moussaka!

That is, the moussaka existed before - mainly in Arab countries. A cold salad made from fried eggplants, spices, herbs, and a variety of fresh vegetables was moderately popular with the locals. Visiting Europeans did not like Arab moussaka - until the creative thought of Nikolai Tselementes turned an ordinary oriental dish into a masterpiece of ... Greek cuisine!

A young but already experienced chef decided to ennoble the Arabian moussaka by mixing French culinary traditions. And if it's French, then with sauce; and if the sauce is bechamel!

The use of bechamel as a filling implied the transfer of salad from cold (which, in fact, is what the name of the dish says: musaqqa - "cooked cold") into hot dishes. The focus on French satiety helped introduce meat into the moussaka recipe. Well, and cheese ... Let's face it: cheeseless versions of bechamel have gone out of fashion long ago and firmly, although they were still eaten a hundred years ago.

It took the master twenty-two years to perfect the recipe for the new dish. In any case, such a period of time separates the first journal experiments of Celementes from his famous tome Odigos Mageirikis - "The Guide to Cooking". Even greater success awaited a book summarizing the maestro's experience in cooking. In the English-language "Greek Cookery", an honorable place was also given to moussaka - by that time it was already a full-fledged Greek dish.

In Greece, they say: "Every mother has her own moussaka." Do not be upset if Greek eggplant moussaka seems excessive to you. Cook moussaka with Bulgarian potatoes, or Moldavian gogoshary, or even vegetarian soy. We will remember the behests of the great Celementes, who left the blessed Sifnos in order to eat deliciously for us, and cook moussaka in Greek.

beef - 1 kg;
potatoes - 2-3 tubers;
onion - one onion;
eggplant - 1-2 pcs.;
bread crumbs - 2-3 tablespoons;
garlic - 2 cloves;
egg - 1 pc.;
carrots - one small;
tomatoes - 1-2 pcs.;
cream - 100 ml;
hard cheese - 200 g;
olive oil - 50 ml;
salt, pepper, marjoram, nutmeg - to taste;
greens (parsley, cilantro, arugula) - for decoration.

1. Chop the beef into minced meat, salt and pepper, add a little marjoram and one shavings of nutmeg. Stir, refrigerate for one hour.
2. Cut the eggplants into slices, dip in ice, roll in breadcrumbs, quickly fry in a hot skillet.
3. Grease the bottom of the baking dish with oil, put the potatoes cut into half circles, on top of the potatoes - chopped onions. Smooth the minced meat with a third layer. Put grated carrots on the meat. Place fried eggplants on top of the carrots. Place tomato circles on the eggplants.
4. Grate the cheese on a fine grater, add a little black pepper and nutmeg shavings, cream. Stir, lay out in the topmost layer.
5. Place the container in the oven (temperature 180 ° C) for one hour.