Moussaka
Bulgarian Moussaka Recipe – A delicious traditional Mediterranean dish made with potatoes, vegetables, and ground beef.
Save This Recipe
Enter your email and we’ll send the recipe directly to you!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Delicious Meets Healthy.
Since my mom and grandmother were visiting us last month, we cooked a lot of traditional Bulgarian meals. And today, I am sharing with you one of my all-time favorite Bulgarian meals – Moussaka. This is a traditional moussaka recipe made with potatoes, ground beef and vegetables like carrot, red bell pepper, celery, tomato, onion, and garlic. It’s absolutely delicious and I bet you will ask for seconds.
This quick and simple moussaka recipe is also healthy – I used only vegetables, ground beef, eggs, yogurt, and spices.
It can be time-consuming to make moussaka but I love that it’s a great meal for large crowds – it’s enough to feed 10 people. Considering that you cook for about 10 people, spending an hour in the kitchen prepping and cooking is really not that bad. It’s actually a pretty quick meal. I have made several moussakas and I finally was able to make one that takes only about 1 hour to make. I think this is the quickest moussaka recipe I have ever cooked. One trick that I have come up with is to sautée the vegetables and ground beef before they go in the oven. It’s a timesaver, and it lets the flavors combine nicely. This moussaka recipe with potatoes and ground beef is a perfect comfort food.
Ingredients and Substitions
For a full ingredients list with measurements, check the recipe card below.
I love that the ingredients are super simple, everyday pantry staples.
- Ground beef – I prefer to use lean ground beef (93% lean) but you could also use more fatty ground beef, you might just need to drain any excess liquid after cooking. You could also use ground venison or lamb meat.
- Yukon Gold potatoes – Yukon Gold potatoes are best for this recipe because they hold their shape well better after cooking and won’t turn mushy during baking.
- Other vegetables – carrots, celery, onion, red bell pepper, tomato, garlic
- Seasonings – salt and ground black pepper, paprika, cumin, summer savory aka Bulgarian chubritsa (if you don’t have it, use Italian herb seasoning)
- Topping ingredients – eggs, yogurt, milk, cheese, baking soda
How To Make Moussaka
- Sauté Vegetables: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Sauté onions, carrots, celery, and bell pepper for 3 to 5 minutes until tender. Stir in chopped tomato and garlic, and season with salt, black pepper, paprika, and savory. Transfer to a 9×13 casserole dish.
- Cook Ground Beef: Brown beef in the same skillet for 5 minutes, breaking it up as it cooks. Season with salt, black pepper, paprika, savory, and cumin. Add to the casserole dish.
- Cook Potatoes: In the same skillet, cook potatoes in two batches with oil, seasoning each batch with salt, paprika, black pepper, and savory. Cook covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add to the casserole dish.
- Combine and Bake: Mix everything in the casserole dish and spread evenly. Pour 1 cup of water over the mixture. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.
- Make topping: Beat egg whites and egg yolks separately. Fold the yolks into the egg whites, stir in yogurt, milk, and baking soda.
- Bake: Spread topping over the baked moussaka, sprinkle with shredded cheese, and bake in a preheated 400 F oven for about 10 – 13 minutes until golden.
TIPS FROM NELI’S KITCHEN
Recipe Notes and Tips
Here are some tips to make sure your Moussaka recipe turns out perfect every time.
- Season the ingredients as you cook. Season the ground beef as you cook it, then season the vegetables as you saute them, and season the potatoes as you pan fry them. This ensures that all ingredients are equally and well seasoned before you bake the moussaka, so the final dish is flavorful and not bland.
- Layer the ingredients or mix them. You can either layer the vegetables and meat in the casserole dish, or you can mix them all together. My grandmother and mom always mixed them.
- Let Moussaka rest. Once baked, let the moussaka sit for about 10 – 15 minutes before serving. This allows the moussaka to set and makes it easier to slice into neat portions.
Serving Suggestions
I like to serve this potato and beef moussaka with a classic Shopska salad or Cucumber salad. You can also serve another Bulgarian classic as the first course – Tarator – Cold Cucumber Soup. And finish the meal with an irresistible Baklava (I know this is not considered healthy but sometimes for special occasions, you can indulge a little bit)
If you enjoyed this Moussaka recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Pin this now to find it later
Save This Recipe
Enter your email and we’ll send the recipe directly to you!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Delicious Meets Healthy.
Prevent your screen from going dark
Sauté Vegetables: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Sauté onions, carrots, celery, and bell pepper for 3 to 5 minutes until tender. Stir in chopped tomato and garlic, and season with salt, black pepper, paprika, and savory. Transfer to a 9×13 casserole dish.
Cook Ground Beef: Brown beef in the same skillet for 5 minutes, breaking it up as it cooks. Season with salt, black pepper, paprika, savory, and cumin. Add to the casserole dish.
Cook Potatoes: In the same skillet, cook potatoes in two batches with oil, seasoning each batch with salt, paprika, black pepper, and savory. Cook covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add to the casserole dish.
Combine and Bake: Mix everything in the casserole dish and spread evenly. Pour 1 cup of water over the mixture. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes.
Topping
Make topping: While the moussaka is baking, make the topping. Beat 4 egg whites until fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat 4 egg yolks with 4 Tbsp water. Fold in the yogurt, milk, egg yolks and baking soda into the egg whites. Season with salt and ground black pepper.
Bake: Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread topping over the baked moussaka, sprinkle with shredded cheese, and bake for 10-15 minutes until golden.
Serve: Let moussaka rest for about 10 – 15 minutes before cutting. Serve warm.
Serving: 403g | Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 142mg | Sodium: 803mg | Potassium: 919mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 2781IU | Vitamin C: 51mg | Calcium: 172mg | Iron: 4mg