Moroccan Chicken Pastilla
Pastilla is a Moroccan pie of chicken, almond and egg between thin pastry layers, finished with icing sugar and cinnamon. The surprise is that it is sweet and savoury in the same mouthful — that balance is the dish, and the sugar is not decoration.
- Prep
- 50 min
- Cook
- 60 min
- Total
- 110 min
- Calories
- 520
Pastilla is the grandest dish in Moroccan cooking, served at weddings and major occasions. Its origins are Andalusian, and it shows the Arab influence on Morocco clearly: almonds, cinnamon and sugar with meat is a medieval Islamic combination.
Method
-
1
Cook the chicken
Cook the chicken with the onion, spices, saffron and half a cup of water over low heat for forty-five minutes until completely tender.
⏱ 48 min -
2
Shred it
Lift out the chicken, remove the bones and skin, and shred it. Keep the broth in the pan — it becomes the egg layer.
⏱ 12 min -
3
Reduce and set the egg
Raise the heat on the broth and onion until it reduces almost to a paste, then add the beaten eggs and stir until they set. It must dry out completely.
⏱ 15 min -
4
Prepare the almonds
Fry the almonds in oil until golden, drain them and grind them coarsely with the icing sugar and orange blossom water. Coarse, not fine — the bite is part of the dish.
⏱ 12 min -
5
Layer the base
Butter a round tin and lay six sheets overlapping with their edges hanging over the rim, brushing each with butter.
⏱ 10 min -
6
Assemble
Add the chicken layer, then the egg and onion, then the ground almonds. Fold the overhanging edges inward and cover with six more buttered sheets.
⏱ 12 min -
7
Bake and dust
Bake at 190°C for thirty to thirty-five minutes until golden. Dust with icing sugar and cinnamon straight out of the oven while still hot.
⏱ 35 min
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Tips that actually matter
- Every filling layer must be completely dry — any moisture leaves the pastry soft inside.
- The egg and onion mixture must reduce until nearly dry. This is the commonest cause of a soggy pastilla.
- Grind the almonds coarsely — finely ground, they disappear and the bite goes with them.
- Sugar and cinnamon after the oven, not before, or the sugar melts and caramelises.
People also ask
Why is my pastilla soft inside?
A wet filling. The chicken must be drained and the egg mixture must dry out completely before assembly.
Can I use filo instead of warqa?
Yes, and it is the common substitute outside Morocco. Moroccan warqa is thinner and more supple, but filo gets close.
Why sugar on a savoury dish?
That is the origin of the dish — an old Andalusian combination of meat with almond, sugar and cinnamon. The balance is pastilla's whole character.
Can I make it a day ahead?
Prepare the fillings and refrigerate them, then assemble and bake at serving time. Baked ahead, it loses its crispness.
Cook mode
Moroccan Chicken Pastilla
-
1
Cook the chicken
Cook the chicken with the onion, spices, saffron and half a cup of water over low heat for forty-five minutes until completely tender.
-
2
Shred it
Lift out the chicken, remove the bones and skin, and shred it. Keep the broth in the pan — it becomes the egg layer.
-
3
Reduce and set the egg
Raise the heat on the broth and onion until it reduces almost to a paste, then add the beaten eggs and stir until they set. It must dry out completely.
-
4
Prepare the almonds
Fry the almonds in oil until golden, drain them and grind them coarsely with the icing sugar and orange blossom water. Coarse, not fine — the bite is part of the dish.
-
5
Layer the base
Butter a round tin and lay six sheets overlapping with their edges hanging over the rim, brushing each with butter.
-
6
Assemble
Add the chicken layer, then the egg and onion, then the ground almonds. Fold the overhanging edges inward and cover with six more buttered sheets.
-
7
Bake and dust
Bake at 190°C for thirty to thirty-five minutes until golden. Dust with icing sugar and cinnamon straight out of the oven while still hot.
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