Eggplant

Oven-Roasted Egyptian Mesaka’a

by:
June 19, 2021
5
4 Ratings
Oven-Roasted Egyptian Mesaka’a
Photo by Julia Gartland. Prop Stylist: Amanda Widis. Food Stylist: Anna Billingskog.
  • Prep time 15 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour 20 minutes
  • Serves 4 to 6
Author Notes

Egyptian mesaka’a, a cousin to the Greek dish moussaka, is one of those dishes that every household makes differently; the differences are slight but significant. It tends to come down to the seasoning in the sauce, whether or not to add garlic, and the best way to cook the eggplant. When I was growing up, my mom would lay out salted eggplant slices on a sheet pan in the kitchen for a couple of hours to draw out some of the water before frying. When I started cooking for myself, I wanted to find all the shortcuts possible to make the dish I loved, but ultimately found it complicated and time-consuming. (I’m definitely not going to go through the long process of dehydrating eggplant when I’m hungry for dinner!)

Instead of frying the eggplant, I roast it, taking it quite far, which renders the sliced eggplant caramelized, silky-tender, and sweet. Roasting also means there’s less spattering hot oil, and no time spent babysitting eggplant on the stove. I also adjusted the spice mixture to my liking. (Don’t tell my mom!) My tweaks are, after all, in line with the tradition of different households having different recipes.

This recipe makes mesaka’a an accessible dish for cooks of any skill level. While the eggplants roast, you can focus on the cinnamon-spiced tomato sauce (with or without the addition of meat). Mesaka’a is a simple-to-prepare meal that you can easily make completely vegan. I like to add some almonds for a bit of crunch, but that’s completely up to you. It's also one of those dishes that gets better the longer it sits in your fridge (up to 3 days)—in my mind, there’s no more perfect make-ahead recipe.
—Mary Fawzy

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds (about 4 large) globe eggplants, stems removed
  • 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
  • 2 green or red bell peppers, seeded, stemmed, and roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder (optional)
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 pound ground beef (optional)
  • 1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 cup beef or chicken stock, or water if not using meat
  • 1 handful toasted and chopped almonds (optional)
  • Cooked white rice or pita, for serving
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Slice the eggplant (no need to peel) crosswise into round disks of about 1/4 inch thick. Arrange in a single layer on a sheet pan and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Season with salt. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until slightly shriveled and caramelized in the center.
  3. While the eggplant bakes, work on the sauce. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the onion and peppers until the vegetables are lightly browned and the onion is translucent.
  4. Stir in the tomato paste, cinnamon, paprika, cumin, and chili powder, if using. Let the mixture cook until the tomato paste darkens slightly in color, about 2 minutes.
  5. Add the garlic and the beef, if using. Continue cooking, breaking up the beef with the back of a spoon, for about a minute, just to get slightly browned but not fully cooked.
  6. Add the chopped tomatoes and stock or water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and let the sauce simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
  7. To assemble the mesaka’a, arrange half the eggplant in the bottom of a 3-quart baking dish followed by half the sauce. Sprinkle over the handful of almonds, if using. Layer on the rest of the eggplant and the remaining sauce.
  8. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the foil, then continue baking for an additional 10 minutes. Serve with rice or pita.
Roasted Eggplant Rolls | Big Little Recipes
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7 Reviews

jgk
jgk July 3, 2024
Really delicious recipe. I had been to Egyptian cafe in Margate who served similar and I wanted to find a recipe. And this is it. Second time I added a tin of chick peas which was a tasty addition!
 
Healthcoachann
Healthcoachann March 31, 2024
I have been trying to replicate a recipe from a local restaurant. This recipe nailed it. We did it with water and not stock and a jar of peppers because we did not have fresh. This recipe is DIVINE and a great healthy side dish!
 
twagerson
twagerson January 24, 2024
Made this last night - super easy and delicious! I agree with doubling the spices as recommended below. I did have an issue with the eggplant sticking to the pan while roasting, so may use parchment next time. I would also cut the red pepper into smaller pieces. Adding this definitely to my rotation!
 
alex
alex November 2, 2021
I was happy with this, but I'd definitely increase most of the spices for next time and chop the pepper more finely than called for. My eggplants were on the smaller side and would definitely want four large eggplants to do it again. I did a mix of roasted and fried eggplant which I liked.

I made this with rice with vermicelli which was great.
 
judy
judy May 27, 2021
This sounds delicious. You had me at eggplant. I love it any way I can get it. This will be a new twist definitely worth trying. I'm on my way to the store today, so I'll get me some eggplant if it looks any good. ....
 
carswell
carswell May 26, 2021
I haven't cooked eggplant in a while. This looks quite tasty - I'm going to try a more robust combination of spices though. I have a dry harissa mix that I think will work well.
 
vipul
vipul May 26, 2021
What an absolutely fantastic post! I have try to make Egyptian mesakaa recipe and it was amazing....

Thanks for posting this. I’ll be sharing it!