This recipe was updated on 30/7/2023 for clarity and to improve text readability.
If you’re wondering what to serve with your moussaka, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, I list 45 of the most popular side dishes for moussaka.
In a rush? Here’s the short answer.
The best side dishes for moussaka are salad, psomi, zucchini fries, fried feta, roasted potatoes, and avgolemono. Try serving pickled radishes, tomato fritters, ratatouille, steamed asparagus, or braised greens as healthy options.
Ready? Let’s jump right in.
Greek salad
Greek salad is an excellent side dish to serve with moussaka. It’s light and fresh, the perfect complement to the moussaka’s rich bechamel and meaty filling.
This recipe from The Food Charlatan features an easy vinaigrette to go along with this salad. And I like adding extra fresh dill and mint to my salad for an even more refreshing bite.
Pro Tip: The vinaigrette can be made ahead of time, but prepare your salad as you’re serving your moussaka to prevent the veggies from releasing too much liquid.
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Shirazi salad
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Dolmas
Dolmas are also known as Turkish stuffed grape leaves – they can be stuffed with meat, but they’re easy to make vegan too.
I choose to serve the vegan version with my traditional moussaka, which are made from a mixture of rice tomatoes, fresh herbs, spices, and a splash of lemon juice.
Give Recipe recommends serving these dolmas with a garlic tomato sauce, but you can skip the sauce if your moussaka is already sauce-y enough.
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Dolmas
Make it different
Swiss chard and quinoa dolmas
Skip the leaves
Stuffed zucchini blossoms
Lemon roasted potatoes
Lemon roasted potatoes are the perfect accompaniment to a moussaka that doesn’t already feature potatoes.
Unlike your traditional roasted potatoes, these are braised with a lemon-garlic broth before being roasted. This technique results in a tray of lightly crisp but beautifully tender potato wedges that are brimming with citrusy flavor.
Sounds divine, right?
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Greek lemon potatoes
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Duck fat potatoes
Make it fun
Garlic butter smashed potatoes
Psomi bread
A crusty loaf of bread always works best with a casserole dish like moussaka. Imagine soaking up the leftover bechamel sauce from the moussaka with a slice of warm bread. YUM!
You can use any crusty bread, but I love using Psomi. It’s a rustic Greek bread with a faint tangy taste, just like sourdough. It’s easy to make, but you do need to plan ahead because you’ll need to rest the dough overnight.
My Greek Dish uses fresh yeast for this, but you can also use instant yeast (just 1/3 of the amount, though).
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Psomi
Skip the kneading
No-knead artisan bread
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Rosemary focaccia
Tomato fritters
Lazy Cat Kitchen mixes massaged tomatoes, herbs, spices, and flour to create a pancake-like batter that’s then shallow-fried. This creates crisp, herby fritters that’ll have you coming back for more.
Want to make this healthier? You can bake the batter on a generously greased tray, but the fritters won’t come out as crunchy as shallow-fried version.
Pair your moussaka with these tomato fritters for a fusion of flavors that will transport you straight to the Mediterranean.
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Greek tomato fritters
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Blistered tomatoes
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Heirloom tomato salad
Fried feta
Start off your moussaka meal right with a serving of fried feta!
This appetizer boasts a crunchy panko crust enveloping a block of warm, crumbly feta, all drizzled with an aromatic blend of thyme-infused honey and cracked black pepper.
It’s a simple combo, but the saltiness of the feta, combined with peppery honey is guaranteed to get your taste buds going.
You can enjoy this crispy cheese as is, but I like serving it with fresh cherry tomatoes and a side of crispy pita chips.
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Pan-fried feta with peppered honey
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Saganaki (Greek fried cheese)
Preheat the oven
Baked feta bites in phyllo pastry
Pickled radishes
Pickled radishes may not be the first thing that comes to mind as a side dish for moussaka, but it’s a pairing that makes sense when you taste it.
The pickles carry a blend of sweet, tangy, and sharp notes that help cut through the richness of your moussaka. And they have a crisp bite that contrasts the moussaka’s tender, creamy potatoes and eggplants.
Just a heads up, though – the radish slices need at least six hours to soak in the brine before you can dig in, so better plan ahead. But once you have them made, they’ll last up to four months in the fridge.
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Pickled radishes
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Zucchini fries
Craving for something crunchy with your moussaka? You can’t go wrong with these zucchini fries.
This healthier take on traditional fries incorporates zucchini coated in Japanese panko breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese. Aside from the crunch, this mixture brings a cheesy, umami boost that’ll have you coming back for second helpings.
Even kids will wolf them down.
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Parmesan zucchini fries
Switch it up
Zucchini chips
Another low-carb option
Baked jicama fries
Ratatouille
Want to impress your guests at an upcoming dinner party? Why not serve your moussaka with a vibrant, eye-catching skillet of delicious ratatouille?
It’s an excellent side dish that works for both vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike.
When I serve ratatouille with moussaka, I omit the eggplant from the ratatouille and just add more zucchini and squash.
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Ratatouille
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Summer squash sauté
Fire up the grill
Grilled vegetables
Avgolemono
Avgolemono, also known as lemon chicken soup, is a comfort dish, just like moussaka.
These two dishes are guaranteed to fill you up and leave you with a warm fuzzy feeling.
The good thing about avgolemono is how adaptable it is – you can make it as soupy or as porridge-like as you want. And sometimes I even omit the shredded chicken when I serve it with moussaka.
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Avgolemono
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Green pea and mint soup
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Roasted cauliflower soup
Spanakopita
Spanakopita is a savory Greek pie also known as spinach pie.
It’s the perfect side dish to take to a dinner party with moussaka because everyone will love it – it’s flakey and buttery with a delicious cheesy spinach filling (what’s not to love?).
It’s so good that even your pickiest eaters will be clamoring for a piece or two.
Psst… I like to make mine in a pan, but you can also shape it into triangles or rolls.
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Spanakopita
Make it easy
Spanakopita bites
Make it low-carb
Spinach-stuffed mushrooms
Steamed asparagus
If you’re running out of time to make a side dish for your moussaka, don’t worry. Steamed asparagus is an easy side dish you can whip up in under 10 minutes.
You might think this veggie side is boring, but steaming is a super fast way to cook these spears and it’s the healthiest because you don’t need any butter or oil to achieve a crisp-tender bite.
With a dish as decadent as moussaka, a nourishing side dish is always a welcome addition.
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Steamed asparagus
Skip the stovetop
Grilled asparagus
Skip the cooking
Shaved asparagus salad
Falafel
Falafel is a great side dish to serve alongside either traditional or vegetarian moussaka.
These crispy yet tender chickpea balls feature a savory, herby flavor with a spicy kick that works with a rich dish like moussaka.
These are usually deep-fried, but Life Made Sweeter’s recipe details how you can pan-fry, bake or air-fry them instead.
I personally like air-frying them to make them even healthier.
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Falafel
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Roasted butternut squash falafels
Make it chickpea-free
Cauliflower falafels
Rice pilaf
Many people consider moussaka on its own as a complete meal. But, if you’re looking to add a side dish that will fill you up, lemon rice pilaf is the answer.
It’s a rice dish taken up a notch by cooking it with various seasonings and chicken broth. This rice pilaf has a bright, zesty kick to it, thanks to the addition of lemons and a touch of zest.
Damn Spicy also uses turmeric to give the rice it’s signature light yellow color.
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Greek lemon rice
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Cranberry rice pilaf
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Quinoa with lemon
Braised greens
One of my go-to side dishes to make with moussaka is braised greens. It’s an easy vegetable side to make, and it goes nicely with a dish as hearty as moussaka.
Bon Appetit uses kale and collard greens, but you can easily use other greens like cabbage and swiss chard.
They’re flavored with lots of garlic and a sprinkle of parmesan to tie everything together. I also like adding a pinch of red pepper flakes to add a mild kick.
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Garlic-and-parmesan braised greens
Add umami
Balsamic spinach and mushrooms
Make it Italian-inspired
Sautéed garlic broccolini
What To Serve With Moussaka – 45 Side Dishes
Ingredients
- 1 portion tomato fritters
- 1 portion fried feta
- 1 portion psomi bread
- 1 portion pickled radishes
- 1 portion spanakopita
- 1 portion avgolemono
- 1 portion … and more
Instructions
- Prepare your moussaka according to your favorite recipe.
- In the meantime, choose one of the following sides to serve alongside it.
- Sides include: greek salad, dolmas, lemon roasted potatoes, psomi bread, tomato fritters, fried feta, pickled radishes, zucchini fries, ratatouille, avgolemono, spanakopita, steamed asparagus, falafel, rice pilaf, and braised greens.
- Serve immediately and enjoy.
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