Pastilla de Poulet – Moroccan Chicken Pie

A few years ago, a couple of friends were travelling in Morocco. While they were there, I received a text message containing only: “Chef’s challenge: Pastilla de poulet.”

I am not one to shy away from a challenge, so I accepted on the spot. At the time I knew very little about Moroccan cooking. I read, tested and bought the ingredients. When our friends came for dinner, the result was, quite simply, a tremendous success. Pastilla has remained one of those dishes people still talk about in our house.

Pastilla, also spelled bastilla, is a Moroccan pie traditionally made with pigeon, although chicken is common today. Tender meat, a spiced egg sauce and sweet almonds are wrapped in thin, crisp pastry. Icing sugar and cinnamon on a chicken pie may sound unusual, but the meeting of savoury, sweet, spice and crunch is precisely what makes this dish so good.

This recipe fits a 26–30 cm tin and serves four very hungry people, or six as part of a larger meal.

Ingredients

Chicken and spiced cooking liquid

• 1 good chicken, about 1.5 kg, or 1.1–1.2 kg bone-in chicken thighs
• 2 yellow onions, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 generous pinch of saffron
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp paprika
• 1 small pinch of ground nutmeg
• 100 ml water
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 5 eggs

Almonds and assembly

• 100 g blanched almonds
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 50 g raisins, optional
• 10–12 sheets filo pastry
• 75–100 g melted butter, for brushing
• 1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tsp water
• Icing sugar and a little extra cinnamon, to serve

Raisins appear in some versions, but they are not essential. I usually leave them out because I am not especially fond of raisins in savoury food. If you use them, soak them in hot water for 10 minutes and dry them thoroughly before assembly.

Make the filling

1. Joint and brown the chicken. Cut a whole chicken into breasts, thighs and wings. Save the carcass for stock. Heat the olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in a wide, heavy-based pot. Brown the chicken in batches and set it aside.
2. Cook the onions and spices. Add the remaining butter. Cook the onion with the saffron, ginger, cinnamon, paprika and nutmeg for a few minutes, until the onion softens and the spices become fragrant.
3. Gently cook the chicken. Return the chicken to the pot. Add the water, 3 tbsp coriander and all the parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer gently for 45–60 minutes, until the meat comes away from the bone easily.
4. Pick the meat. Lift out the chicken and let it cool enough to handle. Remove the skin and bones, then shred or roughly chop the meat. Set aside.
5. Reduce the cooking liquid. Simmer the onion and spice mixture uncovered until concentrated and no longer watery. This matters: a wet filling will make the filo soggy.
6. Make the egg sauce. Lightly whisk the eggs with the final tablespoon of coriander. Turn the heat right down and gradually stir the eggs into the reduced liquid. Stir continuously until the mixture thickens into a soft, creamy mass. It should be moist, but not runny. Remove from the heat and cool.
7. Make the almond layer. Toast the almonds in a dry frying pan, or with a small knob of butter, until golden. Cool and roughly chop. Mix with the sugar and cinnamon.

Assembly

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, conventional heat. Brush the tin with melted butter.
2. Arrange 5–6 sheets of filo around the tin so that they overlap across the base and hang well over the edge. Brush each sheet lightly with butter before adding the next. Keep unused filo covered with a damp tea towel; it dries very quickly.
3. Spread the chicken across the base. Spoon over the cooled egg sauce, then finish with the almond mixture and optional raisins. Keep the layers fairly distinct; this gives the pastilla a better structure when sliced.
4. Fold the overhanging filo over the filling. Place another 2–3 buttered sheets on top and tuck the edges down along the side to seal the pie.
5. Brush the top with the egg-yolk mixture. Bake in the centre of the oven for 30–35 minutes, until evenly golden and crisp.
6. Rest for 10 minutes before removing it from the tin. Dust with a thin layer of icing sugar and a little cinnamon just before serving.

Serving and preparation

Serve the pastilla with a fresh salad and a sharply acidic dressing. It balances the butter, the sweet almond layer and the spiced filling.

The chicken, egg sauce and almonds can be prepared a day ahead and refrigerated separately. Assemble the pie when everything is cold, preferably no more than a few hours before baking. This makes it much easier to keep the filo dry and crisp.

There are several stages, but none is particularly difficult. And when the golden pie reaches the table, it is worth every single sheet of filo.