This vegan moussaka is every bit as good as the 'real' thing - a rich lentil and red wine ragu, layered with roasted aubergine and topped with sliced potato and a creamy vegan béchamel.
🍴Why you will love this recipe
Moussaka is a totally luscious Greek dish, traditionally based on a slow-cooked lamb ragù, layered with aubergines, potato and a béchamel sauce. This vegan version is every bit as good, with a very rich lentil and red wine ragù, and a creamy vegan béchamel sauce.
This isn't the speediest recipe on the blog, with four individual elements to prepare (roasted aubergine, lentil ragù, sliced potato and béchamel sauce), but I promise it is absolutely worth every minute. Crowd-pleasing comfort food, perfect to serve to both vegans and non-vegans alike. So incredibly tasty and filling that no one will miss the meat!
You can prepare your vegan moussaka up to a day in advance if you're entertaining. Or if you're in the mood to batch-cook for the freezer you can freeze individual portions in foil trays for many delicious comfort-food dinners.
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📝 What you need
Tinned or cooked lentils You can use either a tin of green or brown lentils (the cheapest option and very tasty), or a pouch of pre-cooked lentils. These tend to be more expensive but have a bit more bite to them than tinned lentils, so an even better texture to the finished dish.
Red wine Never cook with a wine you wouldn't drink! A medium-bodied red will go well with the tomatoes - not too heavy but reasonably acidic. something like a pinot noir would be excellent.
Dairy-free milk Use an unsweetened plant milk for your béchamel sauce - I usually use soya, but oat or nut milks will work fine too, just avoid coconut as it has quite a strong flavour.
Dairy-free cheese My favourites for cooking are Applewood smoked vegan cheddar or Violife epic mature. But I often use half and half cheddar with vegan parmesan here too which is really good.
👩🏽🍳 How to make your Vegan Moussaka
For a full, printable recipe with ingredients and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this page 👇🏼.
Slice the aubergines thickly, brush with oil and roast for 20-25 minutes until soft and golden brown.
Finely chop the onion and carrot and fry gently. Add chopped courgette and crushed garlic and continue to cook. Add lentils, red wine, cinnamon, oregano, tomato purée and vegetable stock. Simmer for 20 minutes until thick.
Meanwhile, thickly slice the potatoes and par-boil for 5 minutes. Make the vegan béchamel sauce and stir through vegan cheese.
Layer your vegan moussaka with half the roasted aubergines, half the lentil ragu, then the remaining aubergines and remaining ragu. Add the potato slices then cover with the béchamel sauce. Bae for 35 minutes until golden and bubbling.
⭐️ Reader Testimonials
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Absolutely delicious!! My husband loved it!! Thank you for such a tasty vegan version of the moussaka, which is “meaty”, creamy and full of flavour. I will be making again today. My husband is looking forward to it, as am I, of course. 😊 A great recipe!" Carole
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "LOVE LOVE LOVE. Wow, teens devoured it. A total winner - going to make it for extended family and grandparents as I’m sure they won’t miss the meat. Took leftovers to work and ate it cold - just as delicious. Thank you so much for sharing. X" Jackie
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Honestly this recipe is dreams - can’t recommend more!! Please try this out, you won’t regret!!" @veganrie
🔪 Top Tips & FAQs
Remember to taste and adjust the seasoning of each individual element before layering the moussaka - once it is in the oven it is too late!
Adjust the consistency of the lentil ragù before layering the moussaka - add a splash of water if it is a little dry, and bubble for an extra minute or two if it is still too liquid.
This moussaka goes well with a crisp green salad or steamed green vegetables. For a special occasion I might also serve some vegan garlic bread or garlic dough balls - delicious!
This would freeze really well, and would be perfect for batch cooking as it would take very little extra effort to make up a double batch, then freeze in individual foil trays for lots of lovely weeknight suppers.
Just remove one from the freezer in the morning, then bake as below for 35-40 minutes until cooked through and golden brown on top.
Yes, you can make the moussaka up to 24 hours in advance, keep it covered in the fridge and then just pop it in the oven whenever you need to. Ideal for feeding a crowd without having to stress in the kitchen when your guests arrive!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Moussaka
Ingredients
For the aubergine layers:
- 2 aubergines
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
For the lentil layers:
- 1 onion
- 1 courgette
- 1 carrot
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic or garlic purée / ready-chopped garlic
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoon tomato purée
- 1 x 400g tin lentils or 250g cooked lentils from a pouch
- 150 ml red wine check it is vegan
- 150 ml water
- 1 teaspoon vegetable stock powder check it is vegan
For the potato & béchamel layer:
- 2 large potatoes
- 40 g dairy-free block margarine
- 60 g plain flour
- 500 ml dairy-free milk unsweetened
- 50 g dairy-free cheese
- grated nutmeg to your taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC (fan) / 350ºF / Gas Mark 4.
- Slice the aubergines into rounds about ½cm thick. Brush with oil on both sides, season with salt and black pepper and lay on baking trays. Roast for 20 minutes or so, turning half way through cooking, until golden brown all over and soft.
- Meanwhile, finely chop the onion, carrot and courgette, and peel and crush the garlic cloves.
- Heat the olive oil in a large lidded casserole or frying pan, and gently cook the onion and carrot for 3-4 minutes until starting to soften.
- Add the courgette and garlic and continue to cook for a further 3-4 minutes.
- Add the cinnamon, oregano and tomato purée to the pan, stir well, then add the lentils and red wine. Turn up the heat to bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer.
- After 2-3 minutes, add the water and stock powder and season well with salt and black pepper. Cover and cook gently for 15 minutes until thick and glossy.
- Whilst the lentil mixture is cooking, bring a saucepan of water to the boil. Peel and thickly slice the potatoes, then add these to the pan and cook for 5 minutes until almost cooked through but not falling apart. Drain and set aside.
- Melt the margarine in the same saucepan, and add the flour. Cook gently, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes, then add the milk a little at a time until you have a thick and glossy sauce. Season well with salt and black pepper. Remove from the heat and stir through the grated cheese and nutmeg.
- To layer up the moussaka, place half the aubergine slices in the bottom of an ovenproof dish, followed by half the lentil mixture. Top with the remaining aubergine slices, then the remaining lentil mixture, then the potato slices, and finally pour over the béchamel sauce.
- Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until the top is turning golden brown. Serve immediately with crusty bread and a crisp green salad.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Cathy Whiteside says
Really enjoyed making this moussaka. I used cashew cheese to top it off. Perfect everyone loved it. Thank you for sharing
Josie says
Delicious! Had no courgette so added red pepper, mushrooms and chopped spinach at the end, almond milk for bechamel. Sharing the leftovers with a friend tomorrow. Will definitely cook again. Easy and not too time consuming.
Susan says
I used gluten free flour instead of regular, frozen lentils instead of tinned, and added some tofu cheese and garlic to the bechamel sauce. Even the meat eaters in my family preferred the vegan version over "regular" moussaka. Thanks for sharing the recipe! Will definitely make it again.
Phillip says
I made this. It was simple and delicious. I didn't use any wine. I mixed Nutritional Yeast into the white sauce. Thank you.
Ailia says
Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe. After eating vegan moussaka at a greek brasserie recently, I wanted to find an easy recipe to follow and came across yours, Kate. It was dreamy and so satisfying to make and eat!
I used half oatly barista/half soya milk which made the bechamel sauce creamy but not too rich. I managed to overcook the aubergines but it didn't matter too much. I also added a few cherry tomatoes to the ragu and I think I would add a few more next time for a bit more sweetness, or perhaps a tin of cherry tomatoes. That said, I really enjoyed the rich, earthy flavour of the lentils and red wine.
DogDog says
The end result looked better than it tasted for some reason?
The ragu was very bland, even though I added a few other things to give it depth. Everything tasted amazing until the lentils were added, then the texture and depth wasn't to my taste. I someone mentioned Soy mince which I think is a better bet for texture.
However the Recipe is a wonderful base to experiment. I will make it again but I think next time I will do the following....
1) Add chopped mushrooms, sautéed in Henderson's Relish or Gluten Free Worcester sauce Sause
2) Chopped sun-dried tomatoes and half a tin of chopped tomatoes instead of puree
3) More herby stuff like ...Bay Leaves, basil and parsley
Louisa says
I loved this!!
Katherine says
I made this this evening and it was delicious!
We used soy mince instead of the lentils and it came out great.
It does take a lot of time though and you end up with a huge amount of washing up, so make sure you keep cleaning as you go else you'll finished dinner to a massive pile of cleaning!
Karen Moore says
This is indeed delicious ...thanks for the inspiration. Prep time if 20 minutes though? Perhaps if there's 2 of you. Realistically you would need to at least double the prep time. The mince is beautiful... Can't wait for my kids to try leftovers tomorrow 🙂
Michela says
Absolutely fantastic! We just had this for dinner even my dairy free 1 year old ate the whole plate.
Kate says
Made this recipe last night It was delicious!
Kate Ford says
That's great to hear, thanks so much Kate!
Hanifia says
I love moussaka but never tried a vegan version before, looks delicious! Hanifia
Corina Blum says
I think the lentil ragu sounds delicious in this and it's definitely something I'd love to try. I know I wouldn't miss the meat at all. Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice! x
Jessica Cantoni says
I've been wanting to make moussaka for ages too! We've just been to Corfu and I didn't manage to try it there due to SO much choice of what to eat! I'll have to try it soon though. This looks very good! x
P.S I have a new world food linky at jesseatsandtravels.com if you're ever interested in joining in!
Honest Mum says
I have to make this as a vegan British Greek Cypriot girl! Looks dreamy x
Eb Gargano | Easy Peasy Foodie says
What a gorgeous recipe! I especially like the sound of that lentil ragu. I reckon I'd be coming back for seconds and thirds of this one!! Eb x
Sally - My Custard Pie says
I'm always after delicious sounding vegan dishes as both my daughters eat a plant-based diet. Looks really good.
Claudia Lamascolo says
Now this is my style I love Vegan foods and have never had this vegan. I am sure its over the top fabulous. Meat is overrated for sure this is so much healthier for us! thanks
Natalie says
I simply love moussaka, and making it vegan is simply genius! I bet it's way lighter than traditional meaty moussaka. Looks absolutely delicious!
Amy | The Cook Report says
I love moussaka but never tried a vegan version before, looks delicious!
Jillian says
This looks so delicious! Thank you for sharing!