Pastitsio Moussaka

Ingredients

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Method

1. This dish will take a little time and if you need to you can plan it out over a couple of days as opposed to trying ton get it all done at once, but it is a nice thing to make on an afternoon in the kitchen. Kick things off with the eggplant, you want to add the sliced eggplant to a large colander sat over a bowl and then salt the eggplant well. Allow to sit for a minimum 2 hours to draw out some of the moisture (at this point, jump ahead and make the meat sauce).
2. Remove eggplant and pat dry if needed.
3. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium–high heat and fry off the eggplant in batches until lightly golden. Remove to a resting rack or paper towels.
4. Make the meat sauce. Fry off onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat, once softened and aromatic increase the heat and add the beef mince. Brown off and then add in oregano and bay along with tomato paste and tinned tomatoes.
5. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and allow to cook until the sauce has reduced nicely (you don't want to have a wet sauce and reducing it will increase the flavour).
6. Once the sauce is done and the eggplant is fried off put the pasta on and make the béchamel. Start by melting butter, then add flour and cooking out for 1–2 minutes, then add the warmed, flavoured milk a little at a time working with a whisk to get a super smooth sauce. Add cheese and if needed any extra milk to ensure the correct silky smooth consistency.
7. When ready to cook, heat oven to 180°C fan-forced and then bring the dish together in layers. First up is the pasta, add to the bottom of your largest baking dish then pour over the egg and feta and toss and mix to combine. Then add the meat sauce in a solid layer, this needs to be nice and thick and rich.
8. Top with eggplant slices and finally pour over the silky béchamel sauce and grate over more parmesan. Place into the oven and cook for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven an allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.