Moussaka with Chicken??

[Anonymous]

I am hosting 5 people for dinner on Saturday. Originally I was making a stew with beef, eggplant, peppers, etc. and planned a whole Greek/Turkish theme around it. One of my guests doesn't eat veal, beef, or lamb but loves eggplant. I was thinking of making moussaka but with ground chicken instead of beef. I could use turkey for more flavor but it's so close to Thanksgiving. Anyone does this? Any tips? Wine pairings? Also any ideas for the Greek/Turkish theme? Starting the meal with bacon wrapped dates, a feta and phyllo ring and a kale salad with chickpeas and feta. Dessert from the local Turkish shop.

[Anonymous]

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[Anonymous]

First, this sound delicious, please invite me!

To your question, ideally I would not veer off the menu - would the guest eat the stew but pick out the beef? (I don’t eat red meat but am not a vegetarian which sounds like your guest, and I’d do that.) You could add Turkish rice or bulgar as a side. You could also add a vegetarian dish like stewed chick peas (although maybe you don’t want to serve a stew plus stewed chick peas?) or lentil patties.

Another idea is to make turkey meatballs in place of the beef in the stew you have planned.

[Anonymous]

I sub ground turkey for beef all the time. Moussaka is a great candidate because it is highly seasoned. (like chili, meatballs, tacos, etc.). You season the meat with nutmeg and other seasonings. Plus, breaded eggplant and bechamel are really the stars. I think this could work wonderfully well

(I'm going to try it too OP- thanks for the inspo)

[Anonymous]

I would do chicken maqluba instead of moussaka without the meat… here’s a recipe:

https://www.fufuskitchen.com/chicken-makloubeh/

[Anonymous]

Thanks, all! I will go with the ground turkey in the Moussaka... the recipe I found doesn't call for the eggplant to be breaded. Does that make a difference? Also, wine pairing advice is welcome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would do chicken maqluba instead of moussaka without the meat… here’s a recipe:

https://www.fufuskitchen.com/chicken-makloubeh/

This looks amazing... adding it to the recipe file!

[Anonymous]

Oh and here is the stew recipe in case anyone is wondering... it is SO good and you can also shred the meat and serve it over pasta

https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/turkish-style-beef-eggplant-stew-recipe

[Anonymous]

I think ground chicken is more flavorful than ground turkey. That being said, I've made moussaka with ground turkey before, and it was good.

[Anonymous]

Does your guest eat pork? I'd go with that over turkey. But the turkey will work if you have to use it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, all! I will go with the ground turkey in the Moussaka... the recipe I found doesn't call for the eggplant to be breaded. Does that make a difference? Also, wine pairing advice is welcome.

I have never heard of or seen breaded eggplant in a Moussaka.
Signed,
A greek