This vegan moussaka recipe has all the flavour of the classic Greek eggplant dish, but with tender lentils and mushrooms replacing the ground meat!
To me, Greek cuisine truly represents the crossroads of different cultures. Southern European ingredients are paired with Middle Eastern flavours to create unique dishes—and this vegan moussaka is the perfect example! (Vegan tempeh gyros with tzatziki is another.)
Moussaka is a traditional Greek dish that’s kind of like a casserole and typically made with layers of eggplant, ground meat, and béchamel sauce. It’s creamy, savoury, and aromatic, with lots of fragrant herbs and spices in the tomato sauce. My vegan moussaka recipe swaps out the meat and dairy, but I promise you won’t miss them one bit!
Why You’ll Love This Vegan Moussaka Recipe
- A simple vegan swap. I know store-bought ground meat isn’t for everyone! This recipe uses wholesome lentils and mushrooms as a replacement for the traditional ground beef or lamb.
- Perfect for meal prep. This vegan moussaka is great for batch cooking and meal prepping. Just like vegetable lasagna, you can make a big pan of it and store it in the fridge or freezer for later!
- Hearty and satisfying. The lentils and mushrooms in this vegan moussaka give it a hearty, meaty texture, making it a satisfying dish for both vegans and non-vegans alike.
Notes on Ingredients
Scroll down to the recipe card to find the ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
- Roasted eggplant –You’ll need 2 globe eggplant for this vegan moussaka recipe, along with olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano for seasoning.
- Roasted potatoes – For these, you’ll need Yukon gold potatoes, along with the oil, salt, pepper, and oregano.
- Lentils – Use dry green lentils; cook them in water, then season with salt and pepper.
Sauce
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion
- Seasonings – Fresh garlic is combined with salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, dried thyme and oregano, and bay leaves.
- Tomato paste – This adds some umami to the sauce.
- Dry red wine – Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Pinot Noir are all dry red wines.
- Mushrooms – White mushrooms or cremini would both work.
- Crushed tomatoes
- Fresh parsley – If you have extra, use it to make parsley pesto.
Bechamel
- Vegan butter – I like to use my homemade vegan butter.
- Flour
- Plant milk – Make sure it’s unflavoured and unsweetened.
- Nutritional yeast
- Nutmeg
- Salt and pepper
How to Make Vegan Moussaka
- Prep the eggplant. Salt it and let it sit on a baking sheet for up to an hour. Squeeze out the excess moisture.
- Season the eggplant and potatoes. Toss both in bowls with the oil and seasonings.
- Roast. Bake the potatoes in a 375ºF oven for 20 minutes and the eggplant for 25 minutes, flipping at the halfway point.
- Cook the lentils. Combine all the ingredients for the lentils in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes. Drain.
- Sauté the onion. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan set over medium-high heat. Add the onion and salt; cook until it’s translucent, then stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant.
- Add flavor. Stir in the cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme, and oregano. Once fragrant, add the tomato paste and cook for 30 seconds.
- Deglaze. Pour the wine into the pan and cook for 1 minute, scraping off any browned bits.
- Add the lentils and mushrooms. Stir in the lentils and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.
- Simmer. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste, then add the parsley.
- Make the béchamel. Melt the butter in a saucepan set over medium heat. Whisk in the flour for 1 minute, then whisk in the plant milk. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until thickened, and add the nutritional yeast and nutmeg. Season to taste.
- Assemble. Layer the potatoes in the bottom of a greased baking dish. Add half the sauce, followed by the eggplant, the remaining sauce, and the béchamel.
- Bake. Place the pan in the oven and bake the vegan moussaka for 50 minutes, or until golden brown. Broil for a minute or two if desired.
Tips for Success
- Cut the vegetables into even sizes. From the eggplant and potatoes to the onions, it’s important to cut all of the vegetables into even sizes to ensure that they cook evenly.
- Get a head start. There are a lot of components to this vegan moussaka recipe, so if you’d like, you can start some of them up to 2 days before. You can roast the potatoes and eggplant, cook the lentils, or make either of the sauces.
- Don’t skip salting and squeezing the eggplant. This step helps remove excess moisture from the eggplant slices.
What to Serve With Moussaka
I love pairing this vegan moussaka with a thick slice of crusty olive bread to soak up any extra sauce. You can also serve it with no knead bread, vegan dinner rolls, or focaccia. This Greek cucumber salad would make a refreshing side dish for moussaka too.
How to Store Leftovers
Leftover vegan moussaka can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To reheat, use the microwave or warm up larger portions in a 350ºF oven until heated through.
Can I Freeze This Recipe?
For longer storage, you can freeze individual portions of this vegan moussaka in airtight containers for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then follow the reheating instructions above.
More Vegan Casserole Recipes
Enjoy friends! If you make this vegan moussaka recipe, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love it if you would leave a comment below, and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!
Vegan Moussaka
This vegan moussaka recipe has all the flavour of the classic Greek eggplant dish, but with tender lentils and mushrooms replacing the meat!
For the eggplant
- 2 medium eggplants, sliced thin into rounds
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt, 15 grams
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, 15 ml
- 1 tablespoon oregano, 8 grams
- ½ teaspoon pepper, 1.2 grams
For the potatoes
- 3 large Yukon gold potatoes, sliced thin into rounds
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, 22 ml
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt, 9 grams
- 1 tablespoons oregano, 8 grams
- ½ teaspoon pepper, 1.2 grams
For the lentils
- 1 cup dry green lentils, 192 grams
- 2 cups water, 473 ml
- ¼ teaspoon salt, 2 grams
- A pinch of pepper
Sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil, 22 ml
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon salt, 3 grams
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 grams
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg, 1 gram
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme, 2 grams
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano, 3 grams
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste, 42 grams
- ¼ cup dry red wine, 59 ml
- 8 ounces mushrooms, very finely chopped by hand or in a food processor, 227 grams
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes, 794 grams
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper to taste
- ¾ cup chopped fresh parsley, 45 grams
Bechamel
- 4 tablespoons vegan butter, 56 grams
- ¼ cup flour, 30 grams
- 2 ⅓ cups plant-milk, 544 ml
- ½ cup nutritional yeast, 30 grams
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the eggplant
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Arrange the eggplant in a single layer on 2 baking sheets and sprinkle with salt. Let the eggplant sit for 30 minute to 1 hour.
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Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
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Remove the eggplant slices from the baking sheets and squeeze the water from the slices. Dry the baking sheets and line them with parchment paper.
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In a large mixing bowl, toss the eggplant with olive oil, oregano, and pepper.
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Spread the eggplant out in a single layer on one of the prepared baking sheets and bake for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through.
For the potatoes
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In a large mixing bowl, toss the potatoes with the olive oil, salt, oregano, and pepper.
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Spread the potatoes in a single layer over the second baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through (I just bake them right alongside the eggplant).
To make the lentils (do this while the veggies are roasting)
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Combine the lentils, water, salt, and pepper in a saucepan. Bring the water to a boil.
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Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the lentils are just tender. Drain any excess liquid.
Make the sauce (do this while the lentils are cooking)
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Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the onion, season with salt, and saute until translucent. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.
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Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme, and oregano to the saucepan. Saute for a few seconds. Add the tomato paste and saute for 30 seconds or until darkened in color.
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Add the wine and cook for 1 minute or until the wine has evaporated. Stir with a wooden spoon occasionally, knocking any brown bits off of the bottom of the pan.
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Stir the lentils and mushrooms into the sauce. Saute for 5 minutes.
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Stir in the crushed tomatoes and bay leaves and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and let the sauce simmer for 20 minutes.
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Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the parsley.
To make the bechamel (do this while the sauce is simmering)
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Melt the butter over medium heat in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute, whisking continuously.
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Gradually whisk in the plant milk until smooth. Turn the heat to low and let the sauce simmer until thickened (about 5 minutes).
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Stir in the nutritional yeast and nutmeg. Taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper as desired. Turn off the heat and set aside.
Assemble
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Liberally grease a 9X13-inch casserole dish and preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) if you turned it off after roasting the eggplant and potatoes.
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Arrange the roasted potato slices in the bottom of the casserole dish. It’s ok to have some overlap. Top the potatoes with half of the sauce. Arrange the roasted eggplant over the sauce. It’s ok to have some overlap. Spread the remaining sauce over the eggplant. Spread the bechamel over the final sauce layer.
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Bake for 50 minutes or until golden brown.
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If you want your bechamel to get an extra golden brown hue to it, pop the casserole under the broiler for a minute or two at the end of the baking time.
To freeze: For longer storage, you can freeze individual portions of this vegan moussaka in airtight containers for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then follow the reheating instructions above.
Calories: 304kcal, Carbohydrates: 41g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.02g, Sodium: 1499mg, Potassium: 1143mg, Fiber: 13g, Sugar: 11g, Vitamin A: 1115IU, Vitamin C: 33mg, Calcium: 172mg, Iron: 5mg
Disclaimer: Although jessicainthekitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Jessicainthekitchen.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.
