Moussaka

                                                       

Anecdote

Gopal is an alien on earth. He is a good husband, well at least almost all the time. To me he is like that Dutt God, Brahma-Vishnu-Maheshwar, all in one and therefore pretty unbelievable. He cooks. He does grocery. He checks the fridge for stock. He checks on you. He makes you hot chocolate after you have partied till the wee hours. He makes morning tea. Okay, I shall stop my orgasmic ranting.

I don’t know why I do this to myself but every time I am in Bangalore I am living with Kavi and Gopal and I come back writhing in self pity and some solid anger directed at you-know-who. My most all time memory of Gopal would be that when I was down in the dumps in Calcutta in ’97, he, then posted in Bombay called me every morning to just say, ‘cheer up” for almost thirty days.

And girls, let me make it worse for you, Gopal cooks non vegetarian food but is a vegetarian and is a good looking fellar!

Stuff that you must have & what to do:

Eggplant: preferably 2 purple, medium sized ones, sliced in roundels

Potatoes: 3 -4 medium/large ones: sliced in roundels again...not very thick, but not wafer thin either

Soak the roundels of eggplant and potatoes in a slight drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper. Leave aside for about 15 minutes

 On a low flame, fry the eggplant and potatoes on a flat skillet. The eggplant has to turn reddish brown, while potatoes need to get golden brown. Once done, set aside: this is the base that we will use

Tomatoes: ripe, about 4 large ones

Mince: beef or lamb....about 200 grams (add a little salt and some freshly ground pepper and keep aside)

Garlic: freshly peeled, about 4 large pods

Onions: about 2 medium sized ones...sliced long and fine..

Parsley / Celery leaves 

In a slightly deep sauce pan, fry the crushed garlic in some olive oil, then fry the onions till they turn translucent; add tomatoes and slow cook till they are soft and turn into a soft mash. Add the seasoned mince...and allow to cook (covered) till all the juices dry up. Add the chopped parsley (or celery) and leave aside

 Preparing the Béchamel sauce:

1 1/4 cups of all purpose flour - ensure that it has been sieved 

3 sticks of 3" wide butter

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 egg yolks

2 cups of milk (preferably with cream) - warm (not hot!!)

Salt and pepper to taste

Cheddar / Parmesan - depending on required amount of flavor

- Melt butter in a medium sauce pan and ensure that it is warm

- Whisk in the flour slowly, stirring to ensure that there are no lumps (on low heat)

- Keep whisking and adding flour till it has all blended in the initial stage, It will blend to smoothness, and then as the density of the flour increases, it will tend to become flaky - not to worry...(on low heat)

- As once the flour is added, slowly add in the warm milk and keep whisking...till you have a smooth, flowing sauce.

- Remove from heat, whisk in the beaten egg and the egg yolks and whisk away...till all ingredients are blended.

- Keep warm and add the cheese. Cover and set aside

For the final assemble:

-In a baking dish - preferably rectangular. Grease the bottom and sides with butter

- Put in one layer of the fried potatoes, then one layer of the egg plant, one layer of the meat & tomato sauce - then the next layer of eggplant and meat sauce.

- Pour the Béchamel sauce ensuring that it covers the top of the dish completely (some of it should seep through the layers below..and that is good :)!

- Top with some more cheese

- Bake at 250 to 270 deg C for about 20 minutes - the top should be golden brown

- Take off from heat, rest for about 15-20 minutes 

Moussaka is ready to serve                                 

How to serve:

As in the picture assemble in a baking bowl, preferably rectangular in shape.

Trivia:

Moussaka is the best known of all Greek foods. Greeks believe that Moussaka was introduced when the Arabs brought the eggplant, although Arabs, especially in Lebanon, think of it dish as a Greek dish. Moussaka is also found in Turkey.