Healthy Vegan Moussaka
Are you a fan of Greek food? I must admit that I don’t eat it very often as most Greek dishes are meat-based. The Greek version of Moussaka includes layers of meat and eggplant topped with a Béchamel sauce. Other popular Greek dishes are Souvlaki, Gyros, and Tzatziki but there are so many more. Moussaka is the first Greek dish which I veganized and let me tell you I LOVE this vegan Moussaka recipe. It’s flavorful, satisfying, and very tasty!
Made with lentils
The traditional Moussaka recipes are made with lamb but some are made with beef. I decided to use lentils instead. Lentils are packed with fiber, minerals, proteins and they are are very healthy and good for our gut. However, you can also make this recipe with bulgur (if you aren’t gluten-free) or tofu instead of lentils. I haven’t tried the bulgur version as I prefer gluten-free ingredients but I heard it’s very delicious as well.
I used dry brown lentils and cooked them with some salt and water in a pot. Feel free to use tinned lentils though.
Eggplant Moussaka
I roasted the eggplants in the oven together with the potatoes. You just need to brush them with a little bit of olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on top. You could also fry them in a pan but since I used 3 big eggplants in this recipe (which I cut into 4 pieces each) it was actually easier and quicker to roast them in the oven. Eggplants add a wonderful flavor to this vegan Moussaka and did you know that they are very healthy? They are rich in many nutrients and antioxidants. They are high in fiber and low in calories, that’s why they could help with weight loss.
Meal prep recipe
This healthy vegan Moussaka tastes best right out of the oven but it can be also made a day ahead and then reheated in the oven or microwave, for example, at work. My boyfriend also loves to eat it cold!
This vegan Moussaka is:
- Hearty
- Flavorful
- Plant-based
- Lamb-free
- Gluten-free
- Fairly easy to make
- A great comfort dish
- Satisfying
Béchamel sauce
A traditional Béchamel sauce is made with butter, all-purpose flour, and milk. I’ve used vegan butter, cornstarch, and plant-based milk instead. You can use regular flour if you are not gluten-free. Instead of cornstarch, you could also use potato starch but you will need less because potato starch thickens more than cornstarch. I also added nutritional yeast flakes for a cheesy flavor.
Mashed potatoes as an alternative
If you don’t want to make the Béchamel sauce, you could also prepare this casserole with mashed potatoes. Check out my Vegan Shepherd’s Pie for the recipe.
Variations
You can make this vegan Moussaka without potatoes. It will be less filling but at the same time it will also contain less carbs. You could also use zucchinis instead of potatoes for a “low carb version”.
If you make this delicious casserole and maybe even take a photo of it, then I would love to see it. You can DM it to me on Instagram.
Don’t forget to tag me in your Insta caption + photo with @elavegan and use the hashtag #elavegan and I will gladly check out your post. And if you are a fan of casseroles, definitely also try out my following recipes: Potato Bake, Shepherd’s Pie, Pasta Bake. All recipes are gluten-free and vegan as well.
Vegan Moussaka
Ingredients
For the base:
- 2 pounds (1 kg) potatoes peeled
- 3 large eggplants
- Olive oil to brush
- Sea salt & pepper to sprinkle
For the lentil mixture:
- 3 cups (600 g) cooked lentils (about 1 1/2 cups dried)
- 2 cups (450 g) passata
- 1 cup (150 g) chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1-2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp coconut sugar or brown sugar
- pinch of cinnamon
- Sea salt & pepper to taste
For the béchamel sauce (*see recipe notes):
- 2 tbsp (28 g) vegan butter
- 2 cups (480 ml) plant-based milk
- 3 1/2 tbsp (28 g) cornstarch
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- Sea salt & pepper to taste
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Vegan cheese to taste (optional)
Instructions
- Check the video below for easy visual instructions.Preheat oven to 390° F/200° C and prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Slice each eggplant lengthwise into 4 pieces. Cut the potatoes into 1/2 inch (1 cm) thick slices. Arrange all slices in a single layer on the baking sheets and brush lightly with some olive oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until lightly brown.
- Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion & garlic and sauté for about 4-5 minutes. Add the tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, all spices, and salt & pepper to taste. Finally, add the cooked lentils and let simmer on low heat for about 5 minutes.
- For the béchamel sauce, add the plant-based milk to a pan/skillet. Mix in the cornstarch, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper, and whisk. Add the vegan butter and bring the mixture to a boil. Let simmer on low heat for a few minutes until it thickens. Whisk continuously. Remove from heat. Check the recipe notes if you don't want to make the béchamel sauce.
- Grease a 13"x9" (33x23 cm) or larger baking dish and arrange half of the potato and eggplant slices on the bottom of the baking dish. Top with the lentil mixture, followed by the remaining potato/eggplant slices (see photo above in the blog post). Pour the béchamel sauce on top and spread evenly. Add vegan cheese to taste (optional).
- Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Garnish with fresh herbs. Enjoy!
Notes
- You can top the moussaka with mashed potatoes if you don't want to make the bechamel sauce. Check out my Vegan Shepherd's Pie for the mashed potato layer recipe.
- Recipe serves 6. Nutrition facts are for one serving.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
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Hi I want to cook this tonight but was wondering could I replace the lentil layer with a walnut/mushroom meat?
Hey, I never tried it, but I think it should be fine. 🙂
Delicious moussaka, even my man aaproved it, so that’s a big deal ???????????? But it took me at least two hours to make it… Also bechamel souce was quite strange and not really thick (probably because I did not disolve it first in the a milk… Also had no nutritional yeast). Anyways thanks foe the this rich and comforting food recipe!
You are very welcome!
Sauce taste great but is very runny. Even when I used less milk and more cornflour. I am not sure how to get it right.
Hi Mar, did you use cornflour or cornstarch? There is a difference.
Hi Ela! I love the taste of eggplant but am not a fan of leaving on the skin and for some reason, I don’t like big slices of eggplant, but prefer smaller pieces. So, do you think, it’s ok to peel the eggplant and to cut it in cubes (before roasting)?
Hi Christine, I think that should be fine too! 🙂
What is passita?
It’s called passata, and it’s a tomato sauce. You can use Google image search for more info. 🙂
Hey Ela
Can the vegan butter be substituted with oil or left out?
Hi think coconut oil should be fine. 🙂
Amazing recipe Ela, thank you! Im Aussie with one side Greek heritage and all my family loved this recipe – and none of them are vegan (except my BF). Moussaka has always been one of my favourite dishes of all time so I’ll be making this Vegan version from now on. Efharistó polí! xx
Aww, that’s so good to hear, Nico! Thanks for your wonderful feedback. 🙂
This dish is a winner! Comprehensive meal which was thoroughly enjoyed by all, even my kids:) I followed the recipe exactly as is and am soo impressed how easy it was to make and tastes amazing!!!
I am so glad you and your family enjoyed it, Nadira. Thanks for your feedback! 🙂
thanks for the recipe. what kind of potatoes are best? how much nutritional yeast did you put in béchamel?
sorry i see the nutritional yeast now, my mistake
No worries, John! 🙂
Hi John, I would recommend all-purpose potatoes. 🙂
hello can you pls suggest the cooking time for the lentils so they don’t get mushy?
That depends on which type of lentils you use, if you soak them beforehand, etc. I typically use brown lentils and soak them for about 30 minutes. Then they cook in about 20 minutes. 🙂
Hi 🙂
How can I replace the Passata and the vegan butter?
Thanks!
Hi, you can use any tomato sauce of choice, and coconut oil might work too. 🙂
Hi Ela, I’ve made this many times now, it’s our favourite meatless recipe. Up to now I haven’t been brave enough to make the bechmel with a plantbased alternative to cows milk. Also I haven’t ever added any butter as I’m allergic to it so never have it in. Wouldn’t even want to purchase a vegan alternative as I hate the taste of any “spread” type product. It still tastes great, but of course that could be because I’m using cows milk. But I want to ask what vegan milk you use for the bechmel? I’m nervous about using tinned coconut milk as I’ve heard it doesn’t work well. Even though I use it all the time in curries and your Stroganoff. I’m guessing its best to avoid one that has a sweet aftertaste? As you can probably tell I’m clueless which to use, but really want to make this as a fully vegan Moussaka. Some advice would be a great help. Thanks
Hi Vicky, I use coconut milk (without sweetener) and it works very well. I believe almond milk or cashew milk should be fine too. I hope you will enjoy it. 🙂
Omg. This was bloody delicious. I have never commented on a recipe or site like this before but was so happy with that dinner (as was my non veggie chef boyfriend) that we literally just finished that I had to rave about it. I’m not strictly vegan but a vegetarian that tries to avoid dairy, however I live in a place where many things are not available. (For example i can’t buy passata or Vegan products).
My version was 1 cup oat milk and 1 cup cream and the butter was dairy.
It felt labor heavy because I had to make the milk and the passata too. My question is – why precook the aubergines and potatoes before? To use less pans and make things easier is it possible to put raw potatoes and aubergines with the cooked lentils and sauce and put it in the oven for longer? Appreciate your thoughts.
Thanks again!
Charli. (From England, living in Galápagos Islands)
Hi Charli! So happy you loved the recipe. 🙂 I never made the casserole with raw eggplants because I would be afraid they wouldn’t cook through. Also, if you leave everything in the oven for much longer, e.g. 50 minutes the lentils, etc. would be quite mushy. You can certainly give it a try though. 🙂
This was insanely delicious! I made it with raw potatoes and eggplant and doubled the bake time. It came out perfectly.
Sounds fantastic! I am so glad you liked it! 🙂
Hi Ela
I used this recipe with bulgarwheat. I absolutely loved this tasty Moussaka and my husband couldn’t get enough of it. Definitely a winner and will be making it again soon. Thanks for sharing
So glad you liked the recipe, Daphne! Thanks for your feedback. 🙂
Hi Ela,
Thanks a lot for very detailed instructions!
I used green lentils.
It was very tasty ???? we loved it a lot !
My pleasure, Roopa! So glad it turned out delicious with green lentils. 🙂
I just made it today too, delicious thank you ????
My pleasure! I am so glad you liked it, Fran. 🙂
Hi Ela,
Thank you for sharing another lovely recipe.
Can’t wait to try this one! ????
Do you think I could use cannelini beans or yellow split peas instead of lentils?
Thank you
Hi Hana! Yes, yellow split peas should be fine. 🙂
Thank you so much ????
You are very welcome. 🙂
Hi ela, I was wondering with what can I replace the eggplant? Ps: I love your recipes
Zucchini would be an option. 🙂
Hi, had a question ..any specific lentils i should use for the sauce?
Hi, I used brown lentils but any lentils are fine except red lentils as they would be too mushy. Hope this helps! 🙂
Hi this was a very tasty recipe that everyone really enjoyed. We made it with red lentils which gave it a very smooth texture. Next time I will try it with green, brown or canned red so they hold their form. Thanks
Sounds great, Mike! Thanks for your feedback. 🙂
Hello! I have dry lentils and am wondering how much (so how many grams of dry lentils?) I gotta cook in order to get 600 grams cooked lentils?
Hello Sofie! You will need to cook 250 grams of dry lentils. 🙂
Thanks so much!! Trying this when having friends over for dinner today. Looks delicious!
You are welcome, Sofie! 🙂
What kind of vegan cheese would you recommend? Making this tonight and we have shredded mozzarella and cheddar, do you think either of those would be good?
Hi Jordan! Both sound good to me. 🙂