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So the other day, I was craving lasagna…but had no pasta in my pantry. But I had eggplants, so obviously, moussaka came to my mind. Introducing Easy Vegan Moussaka!
This 10-ingredient (without counting spices) moussaka is smoky and comforting and makes an amazing meal for the whole family! Let’s do it!
WHAT IS MOUSSAKA
For those of you who never heard of moussaka, it’s a Turkish baked dish that is traditionally made with minced meat, sautéed eggplants and topped with a bechamel sauce. It’s saucy, meaty, and easy to prepare. It’s a bit like lasagna but with eggplants!
HOW TO MAKE MOUSSAKA
This recipe requires simple, easy-to-find ingredients: eggplants, tomatoes, smoked tofu, onion, garlic, nutritional yeast, almond milk, and a few spices. Here, I used smoked tofu to replace the meat and give the dish its warming, smoky flavor.
We start by frying eggplant slices in a little bit of olive oil until golden brown, which leads to an amazing braised flavor. Then, we prepare the meaty filling. Tomatoes are cooked with scrambled smoked tofu and spices like cinnamon, ground black pepper, and a pinch of cayenne pepper for some heat.
Next, you want to alternate layers of eggplant slices and tofu tomato sauce. Everything is then topped with a super creamy bechamel sauce and baked until golden brown.
I had many traditional moussakas in the past, and I can say without a doubt this one is my favorite. The addition of smoked tofu and nutritional yeast really adds a deeper flavor to the dish. Oh, I almost forgot: each serving boasts over 16 grams of protein!
While this vegan moussaka is the perfect comfort food during cold months, I also love it served with a salad in the summer.
This family-friendly meal is flavorful, satisfying, healthy, and will please everyone! From the meat eaters to the kids, not to mention your grandma, they will all enjoy this delectable moussaka.
Easy Vegan Moussaka
Ingredients
Tomato Sauce
- 1 28-ounces can plum tomatoes
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp maple syrup optional
- 2 onions diced
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 12 ounces smoked tofu firm
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 ground black pepper
- a pinch of cayenne pepper
Eggplants
- 3 medium-size eggplants
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Bechamel Sauce
- 2 and 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 2 tbsp potato starch
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Drain the tomatoes into a bowl and keep the juice. Roughly dice the plum tomatoes and add to a skillet with the juice. Heat over medium heat, stirring regularly for about 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes are cooked and the sauce has slightly thickened.
- Stir in the tomato paste, maple syrup, salt, pepper and cinnamon. Cook for another 2 minutes and remove from heat.
- Wash and cut the eggplants into 1-inch think slices, brush slices with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Fry slices until tender and golden brown on both sides in a large non-stick skillet over medium-heat. Depending on your skillet you can probably fry about 5-6 slices at a time.
- Transfer the eggplant slices to a plate lined with paper kitchen paper towel to remove excess oil.
- Heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic, and cook until soft, about 7 minutes. Scramble the smoked tofu and add to the skillet, cook for about 5 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and mix until everything is combined. Remove from heat.
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Arrange a layer of half the eggplant slices in a greased baking dish (I used a 10-by-6 inch pan). Cover with the tomato/tofu sauce. Top with a second layer of the remaining eggplant slices.
- Pour the bechamel on the top and spread evenly.
- Bake 25-30 minutes until top is golden brown. Top with chopped cilantro or parsley and serve hot.
- Moussaka will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
Bechamel Sauce
- Add 1/2 cup almond milk to a medium sauce pan. Add the potato starch, nutritional yeast, salt and nutmeg. Whisk until everything is well combined and add the remaining milk. Heat over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes, whisking constantly until it thickens. Remove from heat.
Nutrition
About the Author
Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.
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Hi Thomas,
This recipe looks delicious, I do love moussaka, haven’t had any since going vegan a few years ago, so I’m eager to try this out. I haven’t seen smoked tofu in the stores, is there a brand or a store that you could recommend? I am in easy driving distance from a Whole Foods and most of the major grocery chains, or if I have time to kill there is a Chinatown with several markets about an hour’s drive away. I’m not sure where to look for it. Thanks!
Hi Ann, I think you can easily find smoked tofu at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s.
This was amazing! Loved it!!
C’était délicieux ! J’ai cuit les aubergines au four (tranches étalées en une seule couche et généreusement nappées d’huile), remplacé la béchamel par de la crème végétale de soja toute prête et mesurée toutes les quantité à l’oeil. Merci pour cette recette gourmande, on la refera !
Merci pour ton retour Sandrine ! Content que la recette t’ait plu 🙂
Eager to try this, but no stores here carry smoked tofu. Is there a way to approximate the flavor by using regular tofu and adding smoke flavoring (in a bottle)? Or do you have a different suggestion?
If you have a stovetop smoker, you can smoke the tofu yourself, check this guide.
If you don’t, I guess crumbling the tofu and marinading it with some soy sauce and liquid smoke should do it 🙂
Absolutely gorgeous recipe! Thank you so much for sharing! I will be making this asap! Just one question: I don’t have potato starch on hand nor do I know where to get it…Do you have any other suggestions as to what I can use? I have some arrowroot powder and agar agar lying around – you think any of these might work?
Thanks Sarah! Arrowroot or cornstarch should male great substitutes! Agar won’t work though.
Excellent recipe. Very comforting without the calories. I didn’t have smoked tofu on hand so I used smoke paprika. Turned out amazing. Thank you so much!
Glad to hear you liked it Ashley! 🙂 Thanks for the rating!
Hello, this recipe is so great, I’ve made it lots of times for my family now. There’s a few variations for me – I cook the eggplant slices in the oven instead of in the pan because I can fit more in and not have to stand and watch, I just place it on baking paper and brush with oil and sprinkle with salt, then flip them over and do the same again. I think it’s about 200c for about 10 minutes a side, roughly.
I don’t have smoked tofu available so I just crumble normal firm tofu and add a few drops of liquid smoke and stir through, it absorbs while I prepare the other ingredients and seems to work great.
I have made the bechamel with soy, almond, and even a fortified rice milk recently and it was always great. I’m using cornstarch in place of potato starch (couldn’t find it), but I had to double it to about 4tbsp to get the milk to turn to a custard consistency. I also use about 4tbsp of nutritional yeast for more flavour.
I’m so glad I came across your recipe for vegan moussaka!
Hi Jamie,
So glad to hear you liked the recipe! Thanks for sharing your tweaks and tips 😉
Yes, cornstarch doesn’t thicken plant-based milk as much as potato starch.
Thanks for the rating!
Well, since I had only 2 eggplants – but I did have Lasagna Sheets… – I made one layer lasagna sheets and one layer of eggplants. It was delicious.
The smoked tofu – is according to your recipe – so yummy.
Thank you, Thomas
Thanks Sara! 🙂
This recipe did not feel like cooperating. The bechamel sauce never thickened, even after 10 minutes of whisking on the stovetop, and remained a liquid even after 30 minutes in the oven. I would appreciate any advice you can give about what to do next time. Thanks.
May I ask which milk you used?