Vegan Moussaka, a vegan take on a classic Greek Moussaka. A rich tomato sauce made with mushrooms and lentils layered with aubergines, potatoes and a creamy bechamel sauce.
Serving Vegan Moussaka
Vegan Moussaka is a delicious warming dish that can be eaten all year round. It’s wonderfully rich so a fresh Greek side salad is perfect to cut through the richness.
To make a quick Greek salad dice up equal quantities of cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onion and green pepper. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and dress with 1 teaspoon of dried oregano and 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Mix well then drizzle over 1 tablespoon of Greek extra virgin olive oil. Optionally you can add kalamata olive, fresh mint and vegan feta.
Cooking Tips
- Larger aubergines can have a bitter taste, we recommend that before cooking that you use salt to remove excess liquid. Smaller aubergines sometimes aren’t as bitter so if you are using smaller aubergines you can skip the salting step.
- Minced mushrooms are a good alternative when making vegan moussaka. If you don’t want to use mushrooms or you want to speed up the recipe you can use a faux meat mince alternative or use 2 tins of lentils or beans.
- Make sure to cook out the tomato purée and the passata when making your vegan moussaka. This deepens the umami flavour that comes from tomatoes and reduces the acidity. You can instead counter the acidity with 1 teaspoon of sugar. However, cooking them for longer creates the best rich umami flavour in your vegan moussaka.
Vegan Mushroom and Lentil Moussaka
A vegan take on a classic Greek Moussaka. A rich tomato sauce made with mushrooms and lentils layered with aubergines, potatoes and a creamy bechamel sauce.
Ingredients
- 2 large aubergines
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 medium potatoes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
Red sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 400 g chestnut mushrooms minced
- 1 brown onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato purée
- 150 ml red wine
- 2 bay leaves
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 500 ml passata
- 300 g cooked brown lentils 1 tin, drained and rinsed
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
- 50 g melting vegan cheese
Bechamel sauce
- 100 g all-purpose flour
- 100 g vegan butter
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 800 ml plant-based milk we used cashew
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
Instructions
- Cut the aubergine into 1cm thick disks. Place in a bowl and coat well with 1 teaspoon of salt. Set aside for 15 minutes then rinse off the salt and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel.
- Preheat an oven to 180 °C
- Place the aubergines in a single layer on a baking tray. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Turn over and do the same on the other side.
- Cut the potatoes into 1cm thick disks. Season well and coat in 1 tablespoon olive oil. Spread out on a baking tray in a single layer.
- Place the aubergines and potatoes in the preheated oven. Roast until they are golden all over. This will take around 25 minutes.
- Remove the aubergines and potatoes from the oven and set them aside.
- The red sauce and bechamel can be made while the aubergine and potatoes are roasting. When they are removed keep the oven heated to 180 °C
Red Sauce
- Heat a large pot over medium heat. Once hot add the olive oil and minced chestnut mushrooms with a pinch of salt.
- Sauté until the mushrooms have released all of their liquid and are turning golden, around 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the diced onions and the minced garlic. Sauté until the onions are soft and translucent, around 6 minutes.
- Add the tomato purée and sauté until it’s a deep red colour, around 2 minutes.
- Add the red wine and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer until the red wine has mostly cooked down, around 4 minutes.
- Add the ground cloves, ground cinnamon and dried oregano, and sauté for a further 1 minute.
- Add the passata, bring to a boil then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook for 5 minutes then add the cooked brown lentils then turn off the heat.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. We added ½ teaspoon salt and a good pinch of freshly cracked black pepper.
- Set aside.
Bechamel sauce
- Melt the butter in a pan over medium-low heat. Once melted gradually whisk in the flour until combined without any lumps. Cook off for 1 minute then add the mustard, nutritional yeast and ground nutmeg.
- Evenly combine everything then gradually pour in the milk while continuously whisking.
- Once all the milk has been added and the sauce is smooth. Season with salt and pepper and taste and adjust the seasoning.
Assembly
- Cover the bottom of a large casserole dish with an even layer of potatoes.
- Layer over half the red sauce then a layer of the aubergine using half of them. Layer the remaining red sauce then a final layer of the aubergines.
- Carefully pour over the bechamel then sprinkle over the grated vegan cheese.
- Cover with kitchen foil then place in the centre of the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil then continue to roast until the top is golden, around 10 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let your vegan moussaka sit for 10 minutes before serving with a fresh Greek side salad.
Tried this recipe?Mention @mikeronm or tag #theveganplanetkitchen!
