"Layered pasta, spiced meat sauce and creamy béchamel come together to satisfy the eye, the palate and the biggest appetite!"
Pastitsio - Greek Pasta Bake
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- Recipe Card
Prep time 20mins
Cook time 1hr 10mins
Serves or Makes: 18
Recipe Card
ingredients
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 4 medium finely chopped onions
- 4 cloves finely chopped garlic
- 1200 gram full fat beef mince
- 1200 gram pureed canned diced tomato
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 bunch finely chopped parsley
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 4 bay leaves
- 2 whole nutmegs
- 8 whole cloves
- 4 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
For the pasta
ingredients
- 1200 gram casarecce pasta – boiled to just before ‘al dente’ and cooled
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 egg whites beaten till frothy
- 200 gram grated kefalotyri
For the béchamel sauce
ingredients
- 2 litre full-cream milk
- 2 whole eggs
- 2 egg yolks (left over from the pasta preparation)
- 225 gram sifted plain flour
- 100 gram salted butter
- 300 gram finely grated kefalotyri
For the pastitsio topping
ingredients
- 100 gram grated kefalotyri
- extra virgin olive oil
Preparing the meat sauce
Method
Step 1
Sautée and lightly brown the onions and the garlic
Step 2
Add the beef mince and push down on it with a wooden spoon to help break it down into little pieces
Step 3
Continue mixing and pushing down on the mince meat, until it has all cooked through and all of it has broken down into small fragments
Step 4
Add the water to the empty tomato cans and/or food processor (if either used), swirl to release any remaining tomato residue and add the ‘tomatoey’ water to the pot
Step 5
Add the parsley, salt and pepper and mix in well
Step 6
Place the cloves and nutmeg in a closed tea strainer or bouquet-garni container. Place it in the pot and add the cinnamon sticks and bay leaves
Step 7
Simmer until all the water has reduced, leaving a layer of orange-hued oil on top - about an hour or so
Step 8
Remove the cinnamon, bay leaves and tea strainer from the pot just before using the meat sauce in the pastitsio
Preparing the pasta
Step 1
Combine the cooked casarecce with the EVOO and set aside to cool
Step 2
Once the pasta has cooled, add the beaten egg whites and the kefalotyri in turn and mix well with each addition
Step 3
Set aside
Preparing the béchamel sauce
Step 1
Place all ingredients in a pot on medium heat and stir continuously with a whisk, until all the flour is combined and the butter has melted
Step 2
Continue to heat and stir the sauce with a whisk until it thickens and shows the first signs of bubbling
Step 3
Remove from the heat and mix in the grated kefalotyri until it completely melts through
Assembling the pastitsio
Step 1
Place half of the pasta mixture evenly across the base of a large baking dish (my baking dish is 34cmL x 38cmW x 8cmD)
Step 2
Spoon approximately one third of the béchamel sauce evenly on top
Step 3
Depending on your preference, add all or almost all of the meat sauce and spread it evenly across the pan
Step 4
Add the remaining pasta evenly across the baking dish
Step 5
Pour the remaining béchamel sauce across the top of the baking dish
Step 6
Using the back of a spoon, spread the béchamel evenly across the top of the pastitsio
Step 7
Drizzle the top of the pastitsio sparingly with EVOO and generously top with finely grated kefalotyri
Baking the pastitsio
Step 1
Bake the pastitsio at 200°C for approximately 30-40 minutes
Step 2
Keep an eye on the pastitsio as it bakes and place pieces of either baking paper or aluminium foil over the areas that brown
Step 3
Keep an eye on the pastitsio as it bakes and place pieces of either baking paper or aluminium foil over the areas that brown
Serving the pastitsio
Step 1
Allow the pastitsio to cool and set for 1-2 hours before serving
Step 2
If the pastitsio cools for longer, then reheat it covered at 180°C for approximately 30 minutes before serving
Key Points
Step 1
If you use a food processor to chop the onions, do not over-process them, as they will release their water, turn to mush and change the texture of the meat sauce
Step 2
You can use puréed, fresh, ripe tomatoes or canned tomatoes. This will make the sauce less or more ‘tomatoey’
Step 3
When browning the onions, keep a close eye on them, as you do not want them to burn! A little browning will add sweetness to the sauce; however, burnt onions will impart a bitter flavour
Step 4
As the water content in the meat sauce reduces during the simmering process, the heat setting on your cooktop also needs to be lowered; otherwise you run the risk of burning the sauce. Keep an eye on your sauce and your cook-top heat setting!
Step 5
Do not overcook the sauce or the beautiful infusion of spices will be overwhelmed by the overcooked flavour of the oil, tomato and meat. About an hour should do it
Step 6
If there is a small amount of residual water in the meat sauce, it will be absorbed by the pasta during the baking phase of the pastitsio
Step 7
To make pastitsio preparation a little less onerous, make the meat sauce the night before. It saves you about 1 1/2 hours of preparation time on the day you make the pastitsio and it allows the aromas of the spices to infuse further in the sauce
Step 8
Remove the spices, just before you use the sauce
Step 9
When making the béchamel sauce, continuous stirring and patience is essential! If you do not stir the sauce it may ‘catch’ or burn at the bottom and then when you do stir it, small brown fragments will appear throughout your sauce – not a good look!
Step 10
Depending on how cheesy and/or salty you like your pastitsio you can substitute the kefalotyri with kasseri for a milder cheese flavour