Moussaka, lamb and eggplant in a charlotte mold
ANTI-CHEF · ♥ 14.6K likes · 385.5K views · 20 min video
Read about ground lamb in the BrightCulinary Book
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Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp oil
- ¼ cup carrots
- ¼ cup celery
- ¼ cup onions
- 2 tbsp bacon
In a saucepan over medium heat cook the butter, oil, diced carrots, celery and onions and the minced bacon 10 minutes without browning.
Starting the tomato sauce
- 2½ cups chopped ripe tomatoes
- 0.125 tsp sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 whole bay leaf
- ¼ tsp thyme
- 4 whole parsley sprigs
Add the chopped ripe tomatoes, sugar, salt, unpeeled garlic, bay leaf, thyme and parsley sprigs.
- 6 tbsp clarified butter or rendered pork fat
- ⅓ cup onion
- ⅓ cup celery
- ⅓ cup carrot
- 3 tbsp diced bacon
For the brown sauce, in another saucepan over medium heat cook the roughly chopped onion, celery and carrot with the diced bacon in the clarified butter and pork fat for 10 minutes.
- 4 tbsp flour
Blend in the flour with a wooden spoon and cook over low heat eight minutes, until it turns golden without browning.
- 4 cups beef stock
- 2 cups beef stock
Add the boiling beef stock and whisk vigorously so there are no clumps.
- 3 sprigs parsley
- ¼ tsp thyme
- 1 whole bay leaf
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
Add the parsley, thyme, bay leaf and the tomato paste, whisking the paste in.
Partially covered, bring to a simmer and hold two hours, skimming the scum and fat throughout.
- 5 whole eggplant
Remove the green caps from the eggplants and slice them in half lengthwise.
- salt
Cut deep gashes in the flesh of each half, sprinkle with salt and stand half an hour to dry out.
- 1–2 tbsp tomato paste
Strain the tomato sauce, return it to the cleaned saucepan and simmer five minutes.
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Wash the eggplants in cold water, squeeze the water out, dry with paper towel, rub with olive oil and lay them in a pan with about half an inch of water.
- water
- ⅔ cup finely minced onion
Bake in the upper half of a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for 30 minutes, until tender.
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ lb mushrooms
Cook the finely minced onion slowly in a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan 10 to 15 minutes, until tender but not browned, then scrape into a mixing bowl.
- green onion
Rinse and mince the mushrooms in a food processor, then extract the juices in a clean kitchen towel and add the juice to the tomato sauce, returning it to a simmer.
- 1½ tbsp olive oil
- 2¼ cups ground lamb
Saute the finely minced green onion and the squeezed mushrooms in a tablespoon and a half of olive oil about five minutes, until the mushrooms start to separate, then add to the mixing bowl.
Cook the ground lamb in the same pan, breaking it up.
Strain the brown sauce, which should give around four cups of liquid, and separate the fat off before using it.
Scoop the flesh from the baked eggplants keeping the skins intact; chop half of the flesh into the mixing bowl and dice or slice the rest.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
Brown the remaining eggplant flesh lightly in three tablespoons of olive oil.
Oil the Charlotte mold and line it with the eggplant skins, purple sides against the mold, each laid lengthwise with a pointed end at the centre.
- 2¼ cups ground cooked lamb
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- ½ tsp ground thyme
- ½ tsp rosemary
- 1 clove garlic
Combine the cooked ground lamb, salt, pepper, ground thyme, rosemary and mashed garlic with the onion, mushroom and eggplant mixture.
- ⅔ cup brown sauce
- 3 whole eggs
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
Add the brown sauce, the eggs and the tomato paste and mix well, tasting carefully for seasoning.
Spread an inch of the mixture in the bottom of the mold, then a layer of sauteed eggplant, then more mixture, then eggplant, then the rest of the mixture, and fold the skins over the top.
Cover with foil and then the lid, set in a baking pan in the bottom third of the oven and pour in boiling water.