| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 45 min |
| Active: | 50 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds eggplant, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 1 pound ground beef (or 8 ounces ground beef and 8 ounces ground lamb)
- 1 large yellow or red onion, peeled and diced
- 5 cloves garlic, sliced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup red wine
- 2 fresh bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- Small bunch fresh oregano
- One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 cup grated pecorino
- 2 large egg yolks
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Pecorino, for serving
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Prepare a grill for indirect heat. If using a charcoal grill, build the hot coals on one side only. If using a gas grill, heat one side only to medium-high heat.
- For the eggplant and meat sauce: Season the eggplant slices on both sides with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Turn to coat. Grill the eggplant slices straight over direct heat, flipping once, until tender and lightly golden brown on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes. You can move them from direct to indirect heat as needed. Transfer the eggplant slices to a baking sheet or a plate and set aside.
- Place a 6-quart heavy bottomed saucepan over direct heat. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil along with the ground meat to the saucepot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring to break up the meat, until well browned and caramelized, about 5 minutes. Then add the onions and garlic with a pinch of salt and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook until rust colored, another minute. Add the wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost completely evaporated, about 5 minutes. Using butcher’s twine, tie the bay leaves, cinnamon stick and oregano into a bundle. Add the crushed tomatoes and the spice bundle to the pot. Move the pot over indirect heat and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and discard the spice bundle.
- For the bechamel sauce: In a heavy bottomed saucepot over direct heat, melt the butter. When butter has melted, whisk in the flour and cook until it forms a smooth paste, 3 to 4 minutes. Slowly whisk in half of the milk and once the mixture is smooth with no lumps, whisk in the remaining half and the nutmeg. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring often, until thick and velvety, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the pecorino. Set aside to cool slightly, then whisk in the egg yolks and lemon zest.
- To assemble: Place the eggplant slices on the bottom of an enameled dish or cast-iron and cover with the meat sauce. Pour the bechamel all over the top, spreading it out into an even layer. Place over indirect heat, cover the grill and cook until light golden brown and bubbly on top, about 40 minutes.
- Remove from the grill and let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Grate pecorino over the top and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
- (Alternatively, you can bake the moussaka in a 400 degrees F oven for 45 minutes.)
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 718 |
| Total Fat | 47 g |
| Saturated Fat | 21 g |
| Carbohydrates | 39 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 9 g |
| Sugar | 17 g |
| Protein | 31 g |
| Cholesterol | 184 mg |
| Sodium | 1324 mg |
Reviews
Michael Symon, you have outdone yourself!!! This is a FANTASTIC dish….which can be made on the grill or in the kitchen. Love that he gave us that option at the end. This is a great way to introduce eggplant to those who say “I hate it”….and lick their clean with this one. I LOVED the show where you demonstrated this with your wife and daughter. <3
I’ve made this a couple of times, always in my oven. It comes out great, however a bit labor intensive.
Made this in the oven. Turned out great
This recipe was great. I made the recipe like it was written except not on my grill. My husband and I really enjoyed this dish and it maked enough that we froze 1/2 for another meal. It was just as great the second time.
I made it, I had to substitute a few items, because I didn’t have them on hand, Boy was this good!
This was a huge hit with my family. The lemon zest in the bechamel put it over the top,
This turned out really great! Especially considering all of the subs I had to make to accommodate what I had on hand vs what was in the recipe! I’m excited to try this as written, but what I ended up making was the kindergarten version lol. I didn’t have red wine or pecorino cheese! or even the real parmesan, so the cheese I used was your run of the mill already finely grated cheddar jack blend (I know, I know…that’s sac relig), and maybe 1/2 cup of dregs of cooking sherry. I also didn’t have eggplant…as I mentioned…just using what’s in the fridge and pantry…so I subbed in for zucchini and yellow summer squash, and yellow onions. Despite cooking inside rather than on the grill and all these subs…and lack lustre ones at that, the recipe still turned out delicious.
This was my first attempt at this … my niece loves moussaka .. it was fantastic! I grilled eggplant on a grill indoors (it is 10 degrees here in MI) and only used beef (since my sister will not eat lamb and can notice 2 grains of it in anything) the meat sauce was delicious … my first béchamel sauce broke, but redid it and it was fantastic. I love Michael … he is so real … I would love to cook with him someday.. I wish he could have tried it, because I would love to know what he thought, but my whole family (even my picky husband went back for seconds and thirds! I will definitely do this again! thanks Michael I am sure you are just as nice in person as you see on TV.
This was very good. I’d definitely make again. I loved the lemon in the bechamel sauce!!
Michael Symon has done it again!!! This was awesome!!!