Best Vegan Moussaka Recipe (Greek Eggplant Dish)

One of the most delicious comfort foods out there is Moussaka. It tastes fantastic, featuring the textures and flavours of vegetables, a flavourful meaty layer, and deliciously creamy bechamel sauce. It doesn’t get much better than that. Like with this delicious lasagne, it works beautifully well to make this classic Greek dish vegan! So, let’s make ourselves some Moussaka!

What is Moussaka: 

Moussaka is a Greek casserole dish. While numerous variations exist, most recipes feature deliciously layered potatoes, eggplant, a (here of course vegan) meaty tomato sauce, and a thick bechamel topping. You can picture Moussaka as something like the Greek version of Lasagna. But instead of featuring pasta, Moussaka is built using layers of delicious eggplant. Traditionally, the eggplant is pan-fried. We are baking it today, keeping the calories on the lower side! Moussaka is eaten all across Greece, and variations of this dish exist in the Balkans and the Middle East as well. 

Ingredients for making this Vegan Moussaka Recipe: 

• Potatoes
• Eggplants
• Canned diced tomatoes
• Tomato puree
• White onion
• Minced meat substitute
• Thyme 
• Cinnamon
• Nutritional yeast 
• Vegan butter 
• All-purpose flour 
• Bay leaves 
• Nutmeg 
• Garlic 
• Red wine
• Olive oil 
• Oat milk 
• Salt&Pepper to taste

As you can see, the ingredient list is a bit longer for this one: I like to include both potatoes and eggplants in this vegan Moussaka. Regarding potatoes, I’d recommend using a starchy variety that holds its shape nicely. For this recipe, I am using a store-bought minced meat substitute. You can experiment with lentils and sauteed onions if you don’t want to use processed foods. In this case, you might need to adapt the ratios of other ingredients for the tomato sauce!

What I love about Moussaka is its depth of flavour. The tomato sauce has a delicious taste from the spices used in this recipe: Nutmeg, herbs, and cinnamon make fantastic additions to the sauce!

How to make Vegan Moussaka: 

Buckle up! While this vegan Moussaka recipe is not particularly difficult to make, it takes some time. The dish involves four different layers. But don’t worry: This vegan Moussaka recipe makes the process as easy and time-saving as possible!

Let’s Prepare our Ingredients: 

To make cooking the vegan Moussaka as smooth as possible, preparing our ingredients before getting started certainly pays off. I found this to save time and help not make too much of a mess while cooking. The Moussaka becomes harder to enjoy when leaving behind a huge mess to clean up afterwards!

The Eggplants:

Firstly, let’s take care of our eggplants. I like to salt the eggplant and bake it instead of pan-frying. Slice the eggplants into approximately 1 cm thick slices, sprinkle salt over both sides, and let them sweat. Sating helps release moisture from the eggplant, giving it a fantastic consistency in our vegan Moussaka. Also, it helps to counter naturally bitter flavours from the eggplant. Let the eggplant rest for 20-30 minutes while wiping off the liquid from the eggplant every few minutes. 

Preparing the Potatoes: 

While the eggplants are resting, let’s move on: Preheat your oven to 180° (356° Fahrenheit). Peel the potatoes and cut into 1 cm thick slices. Put parchment paper on 2-3 baking trays, depending on how much Moussaka you intend to make. I needed three trays for mine. 

Preparing the Tomato Sauce: 

We will probably have a few more minutes left before the oven is hot and the eggplant is ready, so let’s put that time to good use by dicing a big onion finely. Also, crush your garlic cloves, and mince them. 

For the Bechamel: 

Nothing much to prepare here! Take your milk substitute (I used oat milk) and vegan butter out of the fridge and let it warm to room temperature.

Baking the Eggplant and Potatoes: 

Wipe any remaining liquid from the eggplants for a last time. Next, gently brush some olive oil on both sides. You can toss and gently salt your potatoes with some oil too. Spread the potato slices and eggplants on the baking trays, and put them into the oven. Keep a close eye on them, and turn them around when turning nicely golden. That should take roughly 10-15 minutes. Take them out of the oven when looking delicious on both sides. 

Making our Flavourful Meaty Tomato Sauce: 

To make our meaty sauce for the vegan Moussaka, put a pan on your stove and turn it on high heat. Sauté your onions for a few minutes until turning translucent, before adding the garlic and meat substitute of your choice. 

Next, add the tomato concentrate and sauté for a few more minutes while stirring thoroughly. I like some roasty flavours to develop during this stage of the cooking process. 

Deglaze the pan with red wine. Add your spices, one laurel leaf, and the your canned diced tomatoes. Simmer without a lid until a thick sauce forms. Your kitchen will smell delicious! 

Making the Bechamel:

While the tomato sauce is finishing up, we can get started with our delicious bechamel sauce. Add a pot on medium heat, and melt your butter substitute of choice. Add the flour, and whisk it in until a crumbly dough forms. Start to add small sips of plant-based milk and whisk it in until fully incorporated. Don’t rush this process. You want to avoid any lumps forming! Once the sauce becomes more liquid, you can add more of your milk substitute. Add laurel leaves and a generous pinch of nutmeg, and simmer the sauce at low-medium heat.

Whisk repeatedly until the sauce thickens nicely. We want a nice, thick bechamel sauce for this vegan Moussaka! 

Finally: Assembling the Vegan Moussaka: 

The most satisfying part begins: Combining all your previous efforts into one beautiful dish! Start by adding your potatoes as the base layer, followed by one layer of eggplant.

Now, spread out a nice layer of your delicious meaty tomato sauce. Make sure it covers the eggplants nicely. 

Follow the tomato sauce with another layer of eggplants. 

Lastly, cover everything with a thick layer of bechamel sauce! I could have used some more for mine, but it tasted delicious anyways! 

Get this beauty in the oven, and bake at 180° Celsius (356° Fahrenheit) for 20 minutes. After that, I turned the heat to 200° Celsius (392° Fahrenheit) and used the broiler function for another 5-10 minutes. Keep a close eye on your Moussaka during this stage, and take it out once you are satisfied with that beautiful, brown crust on top. 

Now, the most difficult part begins: letting it sit and rest for 10-15 minutes before digging in. This will be a tough exercise! 

Plate yourself a nice, big piece of this beauty! Moussaka is comfort food at its finest. If you like to garnish your vegan Moussaka, extra-virgin olive oil, a crack of black pepper, and greens like cress makes beautiful and delicious garnishes. 

Now it’s time to indulge! I hope you enjoyed this vegan Moussaka recipe. Let me know how you like this recipe in the comments! 

Other Recipes you might Enjoy:

• I just can’t have enough of this delicious vegan lasagna.
• This leek casserole is as easy to make as it is tasty!
• Vegetable tajine is comfort food at its finest.
• Check out this vegan quiche recipe for a delightful dinner.
• This vegan shepherd’s pie is so warming and delicious!
• Potatoes au gratin is a great dish for the cold days.

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