Παστίτσιο — Print Recipe

A grand layered casserole of tubular pasta, spiced beef ragout, and luscious bechamel sauce, baked until golden and set to a beautiful cross-section of distinct layers.

Ingredients

500g tubular pasta (bucatini or penne)
500g ground beef
1 large onion, diced
400g canned tomatoes, crushed
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
80g butter
80g flour
1L warm milk
2 eggs, beaten
100g kefalotyri or Parmigiano, grated
Salt, pepper
Olive oil

Instructions

1 Brown ground beef in olive oil with diced onion. Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and pepper. Simmer 20 minutes until thick.
2 Cook pasta until just al dente, drain, and toss with a little butter and half the grated cheese.
3 Make bechamel: melt butter, whisk in flour, cook 2 minutes. Gradually add warm milk, whisking constantly until thick and smooth. Season with nutmeg.
4 Remove bechamel from heat, let cool slightly, then whisk in beaten eggs and remaining cheese.
5 Layer half the pasta in a buttered baking dish, spread meat sauce evenly, then add remaining pasta on top.
6 Pour bechamel over the top layer, smoothing it out. Bake at 180C for 45 minutes until golden and set. Rest 20 minutes before cutting.

Did You Know?

Pastitsio is sometimes called the Greek lasagna, but Greeks will quickly tell you it predates the Italian version in their culinary tradition.