Macarona bil bechamel (Egyptian baked macaroni with bechamel)featured

This Egyptian baked macaroni dish is the perfect comfort food. Penne or rigatoni is bathed in silky bechamel sauce and layered with spiced meat and tomato sauce, then topped with a thick layer of more creamy bechamel sauce. It’s then baked to bubbly and crusty perfection.

Egyptians LOVE bechamel sauce and use it on so many casserole dishes. It’s so typical to the cuisine that I grew up thinking ‘bechamel’ was an Arabic word. Well, apparently it’s kind of a French thing, but Egyptians sure know how to use it.

This macarona bil bechamel was yet another of my childhood favourites, and its a dish that my family really loves. It’s super flavourful, rich and comforting and it pairs perfectly with some bright and acidic salata balady salad, which balances the richness.

Making macarona bil bechamel

This dish is pretty straightforward to put together.

The first thing you will do is make the meat filling. You can use ground beef or lamb, which you will cook with warm spices, onions, garlic, and tomato sauce. To this mixture you will add a couple beaten eggs at the end, this will help your casserole hold together when you cut into it.

Next, you will cook your pasta. I recommend cooking it slightly less than the package says to cook it for al dente. For example, if the package says cook for 10-11 minutes for al dente, cook it for 9 minutes. This is because once assembled this will get baked for about an hour, and you don’t want your pasta to be mushy by the time it’s done.

Then, it’s time to make your bechamel sauce.

You will need to start by making a roux. You’ll melt butter in a large pot, and add flour, continuously whisking until it turns golden and develops a nutty aroma. At that point you will begin adding milk, bit by bit, whisking after each addition. Once all your milk is added, season your bechamel sauce and bring to a boil and turn off the heat. Adding beaten eggs at this point will again help to bind the casserole.

Then you will toss your pasta with some of the sauce and layer in a baking dish.

Bake for about an hour at 425F, until it is bubbling and golden with some dark, delicious patches.

Bel hana wel shifa! Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Macarona bil bechamel (Egyptian baked macaroni with bechamel sauce)

This Egyptian baked macaroni dish is the perfect comfort food. Penne or rigatoni is bathed in silky bechamel sauce and layered with spiced meat and tomato sauce, then topped with a thick layer of more creamy bechamel sauce. It's then baked to bubbly and crusty perfection.

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: Egyptian

Keyword: baked pasta, bechamel sauce, casserole, ground meat, pasta

Author: Dahlia Morched

Equipment

• Deep 9 x 13" baking dish, or baking dish with equivalent volume

Ingredients

For the meat

• olive oil
• 1 lb ground beef or lamb
• salt and pepper
• 1 medium onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp allspice ground
• 1 tsp Aleppo pepper or ½ tsp chili flakes, optional
• ½ tsp cardamom ground
• ½ tsp cinnamon ground
• 1 6 oz can tomato paste approximately 6 tbsp
• 3 tbsp parsley finely chopped
• 2 eggs whole, beaten

Pasta

• 1 lb penne or rigatoni

For bechamel sauce

• 6 tbsp butter
• 6 tbsp AP flour
• 8 cups whole milk
• salt
• white pepper substitute black pepper if necessary
• allspice or nutmeg
• 2 eggs beaten

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425F

For the meat

• Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan then add ground meat. Cook while breaking up any large pieces until the meat begins to brown.
• Add onions and spices. Once onions soften add garlic and saute a few minutes longer.
• Add tomato paste and saute 2-3 minutes longer.
• Add enough water to just cover the meat. Mix and bring to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes and turn off heat.
• Add parsley and beaten eggs and mix well.

For the pasta

• Cook pasta according to package instructions, but cook for a minute less than al dente. For example, if the package recommends 10-11 minutes for al dente, cook it for 9 minutes.
• Strain and return to pot.

For the bechamel sauce

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Once melted add flour and whisky quickly until there are no lumps.
• Continue whisking as the mixture (called a roux) begins to turn golden brown and develop a nutty aroma. Don't let it burn!
• Begin adding your milk bit by bit, about half a cup to a cup at a time, whisking thoroughly after each addition to ensure no lumps develop. Once about half the milk has been added, you can simply add the remaining half all at once. Continue stirring.
• Add salt and pepper and a pinch of either nutmeg or allspice. Taste the sauce to make sure it is well seasoned.
• Allow the sauce to come up to a boil for a minute then turn off heat.
• Whisk your eggs in a small bowl. Add a few spoonfuls of bechamel to the eggs and whisk until smooth, then add to your bechamel sauce and stir in thoroughly.

Assembly and baking

• Add about a third of the bechamel sauce to the pasta and mix to coat.
• Grease your baking dish and lay half the pasta down evenly. Add the meat mixture and smooth is out evenly, then add the remaining half of the pasta, again, as evenly as you can.
• Pour remaining bechamel sauce over the pasta.
• Bake until the top is bubbling and golden with some dark spots, about an hour.

Notes

When making your bechamel sauce, you want to avoid burning the milk. If your milk seems to be burning turn down the heat a bit. If some burned milk is sticking to the bottom of the pot make sure you don’t scrap it off when whisking. It will only cause you problems if you scrape it off into the sauce!