Moussaka recipe
Maris Piper potatoes work particularly well for this recipe as they are firm enough to hold their shape while remaining soft enough to soak up lots of flavour, but any potato variety will do. Try and choose potatoes that are similar in size if you can. They’ll need to be cut into roughly 5mm/¼in slices and you can leave the peel on if you wash them well. After bringing to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer so they don’t bash together in the pan and fall apart. You can freeze any leftover lamb mince from the packet. Wrap tightly in foil or place in a freezer bag and squeeze out as much of the excess air as possible. Seal, label and freeze for up to 3 months. Remove the wrapping and thaw overnight in a covered bowl in the fridge. Use the same day. If your lamb is very fatty, you can spoon off any excess that rises to the surface with a spoon once the meat sauce is cooked. A large serving or spoon works best for this. If you aren’t keen on the flavour of lamb, you can make the moussaka with beef mince instead. It won’t be as traditional, but it will still taste great. You can add 200ml/7fl oz lamb or beef stock instead of the wine if you like. Instead of Parmesan, you can use any other hard cheese – both pecorino and grana pandano work. Swap the aubergines for slices cut from 3–4 large courgettes instead – you don’t need to salt them before frying, just trim off each end. A great way to use up homegrown courgettes if you have a glut and you can skip the frying stage if you are stuck for time. You can use courgette in addition to the aubergine too if you like and make the moussaka go further. The bechamel sauce doesn’t need to be completely cold when you stir in the egg, but leaving it for around 10 minutes means the egg will mix in smoothly (with no risk of it scrambling). You could leave the egg out altogether, but the sauce won’t be quite as light. Use a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to stir the milk into the sauce, and don’t forget to add just a little milk at a time, stirring hard until it is all absorbed and the mixture thickens. If you add too much milk too quickly, your sauce could go lumpy. Most lumps will disappear if you whisk vigorously enough with a metal whisk, but if there are any very stubborn ones, simply pass the sauce through a sieve and into a clean pan. You could also use a stick blender to help rescue the sauce. Don’t forget to use a silicone covered whisk if you are using a non-stick saucepan to make the sauce – if you don’t have one, you can pour the lumpy sauce into a bowl, whisk hard with a metal whisk to remove the lumps and then transfer to a clean pan before adding the cheeses. How make ahead You can assemble the moussaka up to 48 hours ahead of baking. Allow it to cool thoroughly before covering the surface with foil and placing in the fridge. Take out of the fridge 60 minutes before baking. How to freeze As all the ingredients are already cooked before assembling, the moussaka can also be frozen before baking. Make sure you use a freezer-proof dish and leave to cool once assembled. Once cold, cover the surface with baking paper then wrap in a double layer of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Remove the foil and thaw in the fridge for 24 hours before baking, adding an extra 10 minutes to the cooking time. Make sure it is piping hot throughout.