🍆 Egyptian moussaka (messa'a)

Name: Egyptian moussaka (messa'a)
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Egypt
Ingredients: 2 large eggplants (about 800 g), sliced 1 cm thick; 250 g lean ground beef; 1 onion, chopped; 1 green bell pepper, sliced; 4 garlic cloves, crushed; 400 ml tomato sauce; 3 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 tsp cumin, salt, pepper, a pinch of chili

Origin: Egypt

312kcal

per serving · 250 g

125kcal

per 100 g

10 gProtein4 g / 100 g

22 gFat9 g / 100 g

18 gCarbs7 g / 100 g

Egyptian messa'a is a baked dish of fried eggplant slices layered with a garlicky tomato sauce, sautéed onion and green pepper, often with a layer of spiced ground beef. Soft, silky and rich with oil, it tastes even better the next day. It is served warm or at room temperature as a side or main, and is a familiar home dish in Egypt.

Diets

✓

No porkfor halal, the meat must be halal-slaughtered

✓

Gluten-freeno wheat, barley or rye in a typical recipe

✓

Dairy-freeno milk, cheese, butter or yogurt in a typical recipe

✓

Low-carb7 g carbs per 100 g

Not vegetarianbecause of: ground beef

Not veganbecause of: ground beef

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens in a typical recipe.

What it is made of

eggplanttomato sauceoniongarlicbell pepperground beef

Recipe

4 servings75 min

Ingredients

2 large eggplants (about 800 g), sliced 1 cm thick
250 g lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, sliced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
400 ml tomato sauce
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin, salt, pepper, a pinch of chili

Method

Brush the eggplant slices lightly with 2 tbsp oil and roast at 220 °C for 20 minutes until golden.
Brown the beef with the onion in the remaining oil, then add the pepper and garlic and cook for 3 minutes.
Add the tomato sauce, spices and a splash of water and simmer for 10 minutes.
Layer the eggplant and meat sauce in a baking dish, finishing with sauce.
Bake at 180 °C for 25–30 minutes and serve warm or cold.

How to make it lighter

Roast the eggplant instead of deep-frying: it soaks up far less oil (1 tbsp ≈ 120 kcal).
Use lean ground beef and drain any fat after browning.
Serve it with a large salad instead of a big portion of rice.

History

Messa'a shares its name with Greek and Balkan moussaka, and both are thought to trace back to Arabic and Ottoman eggplant dishes. Unlike the Greek version, the Egyptian dish has no béchamel and is closer to a stew. Today it is everyday home food across Egypt, eaten both with and without meat.

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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →