Go Back
Classic Greek Eggplant Moussaka: A Hearty Mediterranean Dish! taken with iphone 15 pro max --iw 2 --ar 4:5 --v 6.0 --raw

Egyptian Moussaka (Eggplant and Beef Casserole)

Egyptian Moussaka is a lighter take on the classic eggplant casserole, with a spiced meat sauce, pine nuts, and no béchamel. Gluten free!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Soup
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 4 people
Calories 111 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Pressure cooker

Ingredients
  

Ingredients

  • 3 small globe eggplants about 2 pounds, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
  • Kosher salt for salting the eggplants and seasoning
  • 1 large yellow onion chopped
  • 2 green bell peppers diced
  • 3 to 4 large garlic cloves minced
  • Extra virgin olive oil for sautéing
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 1 teaspoon coriander
  • ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or Aleppo pepper
  • Black pepper freshly ground to taste
  • 1 can whole San Marzano tomatoes 28 ounces with juices
  • ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • ¼ cup pine nuts or sliced almonds optional
  • Pita bread or rice for serving, optional

Instructions
 

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 375°F. This step gets your casserole dish ready for the finish line later. You do this while the eggplants rest with salt.
  • Slice your eggplants into ¼-inch rounds. Sprinkle kosher salt liberally and let them sit for about 30 minutes. This draws out bitterness and moisture.
  • Rinse off the salt and pat dry those eggplant slices real good with paper towels so they don’t steam instead of roast.
  • Grab your pressure cooker and heat some olive oil. Sauté onions and bell peppers until they’re soft and smell amazing. Toss in the garlic last and cook up just a minute more.
  • Stir in the ground beef and cook it till browned and crumbly. Add your coriander, paprika, red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Let it all cook and mingle for about 5 minutes.
  • Layer your eggplant and beef mixture in a greased casserole dish. Do a layer of eggplant then beef, repeat until it’s all in. Pour those whole San Marzano tomatoes over the top with juices. If you’ve got pine nuts or almonds, sprinkle them now. Bake for 30 minutes till eggplant is tender and edges get a little brown. When you take it out, you’ll feel that tender pull you love.

Notes

Serve hot or warm with pita bread or rice.