Traditional Style Pastitsio Ragu Recipes

NIKKI'S PERFECT PASTITSIO

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Toss with butter; add grated Parmesan cheese. Transfer to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish., Preheat oven to 350°. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking beef into crumbles; drain. Add garlic; cook 2 minutes longer. Stir in tomato sauce, salt and cinnamon; heat through. Spoon over pasta. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese., In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 1-2 minutes or until thickened., In a small bowl, whisk a small amount of hot mixture into eggs; return all to pan, whisking constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes. Pour over beef mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheese., Bake, covered, 20 minutes. Bake, uncovered, 30-40 minutes longer or until golden brown.,

GREEK PASTITSIO RECIPE (GREEK LASAGNA WITH BéCHAMEL)

Steps:

• To prepare this traditional pastitsio recipe (pastichio), start with the meat sauce. Place a large pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil, the chopped onions and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste and the beef. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon and brown for 4-5 minutes. Pour in the red wine and wait to evaporate. Add the canned tomatoes, the sugar, cinnamon, clove, the bay leaf and season. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer with the lid on for about 30 minutes, until most of the juices have evaporated. (After the meat is cooked, discard the bay leaf, the clove and the cinnamon)
• Prepare the bechamel sauce for the pastitsio. Melt the butter in a large pan over low-medium heat. Add the flour whisking continuously to make a paste. Add warmed milk in small batches, whisking continuously in order to prevent your sauce from getting lumpy. If the sauce still needs to thicken, boil over low heat whilst continuing to stir. Remove the pan from the stove and add the egg yolks, salt, pepper, a pinch of nutmeg and the grated cheese (50g/ 1.7oz.). Whisk quickly, in order to prevent the eggs from turning an omelette! Season with salt to taste.
• Cook the pasta for the pastitsio 2-3 minutes less than the package instructions, so that they don't get mushy after turning out of the oven later. Drain the pasta and stir in the egg whites and the feta cheese (smashed with a fork) and mix gently with a spatula.
• For this pastitsio recipe you will need a large baking dish, approx. 25*35 cm / 10*14 inch. Butter the bottom and sides of a pan and assemble the pastitsio. Layer the pasta, top with the meat sauce and even out. Top the pastitsio with the bechamel sauce and smooth out with a spatula.
• Sprinkle the pastichio with grated cheese and bake in preheated oven at 180C (350F) Fan for about 40 minutes, until crust turns a light golden brown. Let the pastitsio cool down for a while before serving.

PERFECT PASTITSIO (VEGETARIAN)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit.
• In large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring, until golden brown, about 7 minutes.
• Add beef substitute, chopping into small bits. Cook until browned, about 5 minutes.
• Add tomato sauce, red wine and spice, stirring to mix.
• Simmer, uncovered, until the excess moisture has evaporated, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside.
• In large saucepan, bring milk to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium.
• Dissolve the cornstarch in water, then add to milk in a thin stream, whisking constantly to avoid lumps.
• Cook, whisking, until mixture has returned to a boil and is thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in 3/4 cup of the cheese.
• In separate bowl, beat eggs until light and very frothy. Add to cheese sauce in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Add salt and pepper to taste and combine with cooked pasta in a large bowl.
• Lightly oil an 11x15x2 inch casserole dish. Spoon in half the pasta/cheese mixture. Top with meat substitute mixture, then with remaining pasta/cheese mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cheese.
• Bake until casserole is golden brown and bubbling, about 40 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving.

MY PASTITSIO

Steps:

• Meat Base: Saute onion with ground beef, breaking meat up as you go, until meat is almost done.
• Drain off any excess fat.
• Add garlic, cumin and flour, stir together well, and saute a minute or two more.
• Add remaining meat base ingredients and simmer gently, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Turn off heat and cover.
• Pasta: Cook pasta until al dente in an ample quantity of salted water to which a bit of vegetable oil has been added (helps keep strands from sticking together).
• Drain well.
• Custard Topping: Melt butter in saucepan and mix in the flour.
• Let it bubble a minute or two or until you can smell a slightly nutty flavor, but do not let it brown.
• Gradually add most of the milk, whisking.
• Let it cook about 10 minutes, stirring, until well thickened, then remove from heat.
• Mix the nutmeg, salt and pepper into the grated cheese.
• Add the eggs to the remaining milk in your measuring cup and whisk.
• Whisk the egg and milk mixture into the sauce, then whisk the cheese mixture into the sauce also.
• Assembly: Layer 1/2 of the pasta in the bottom of your baking pan.
• Then add all of the meat sauce, removing the bay leaf and any stems from the marjoram.
• Top with remaining pasta, then pour the custard sauce over all.
• If everything is still hot when you assemble it, bake at 400 degrees Farenheit for about 35 minutes.
• If merely warm, or if using a glass or ceramic pan instead of a metal one, bake for about 45 minutes at 350 degrees Farenheit.
• Top should be slightly golden, edges slightly brown.