Moroccan Main

Chicken Pastilla

Festive Moroccan pie of spiced chicken, eggs, almonds, cinnamon and crisp pastry dusted with sugar.

Jump to recipe More Moroccan food
1 hrPrep time
1 hr 30 minsCook time
Serves 6Servings
HardDifficulty
Chicken Pastilla
About this dish

Chicken Pastilla: the story on the plate

Pastilla, or bastilla, is one of Morocco’s great ceremonial dishes, linked particularly with Fez. It shows the sweet-savoury elegance of Moroccan palace cooking: crisp pastry, fragrant meat, spiced eggs and sugared almonds.

Historical background

Pastilla, or bastilla, is one of Morocco’s great ceremonial dishes, linked particularly with Fez. It shows the sweet-savoury elegance of Moroccan palace cooking: crisp pastry, fragrant meat, spiced eggs and sugared almonds.

Why it is famous

Chicken Pastilla is included because it is traditional, popular and tells a useful story about Moroccan food culture, family cooking, markets, celebration meals or regional identity.

Cultural significance

Moroccan mains are often built for sharing: tagines, couscous, grilled meats, fish dishes and slow-cooked stews served with bread, salads and mint tea hospitality.

Nutrition

Estimated nutrition per serving

Useful for meal planning and calorie-aware recipe browsing.

720Calories
38gProtein
44gCarbs
42gFat

Estimated from the structured traditional Moroccan ingredient list. Validate before making formal health claims.

Ingredients

What you need

  • 200.0 chicken pieces
  • 0.5 onions, finely chopped
  • 1.0 eggs
  • 20.0 blanched almonds
  • 10.0 icing sugar
  • 0.83 cinnamon
  • 0.83 ginger
  • /2 tsp turmeric
  • pinch saffron
  • 2.0 sheets warqa or filo
  • 16.67 melted butter
  • 3.33 parsley
  • salt and pepper
Method

Step-by-step method

Follow the recipe in order, tasting and adjusting seasoning where needed.

  1. Cook chicken with onions, ginger, turmeric, saffron, parsley, salt, pepper and 300ml water in a heavy pot for 45–55 minutes until tender.
  2. Remove chicken, shred meat and reduce onion sauce until thick. Beat eggs into the sauce over low heat, stirring until softly scrambled and dry.
  3. Toast or fry almonds until golden, then chop with icing sugar and cinnamon.
  4. Brush a round tin with butter. Layer pastry sheets, overlapping, then add chicken, egg mixture and almond mixture.
  5. Fold pastry over, butter the top and bake at 190°C for 30–35 minutes until crisp and golden. Dust lightly with icing sugar and cinnamon.
Cook smarter

Tips, storage and serving advice

Shopping tips

Use fragrant spices, fresh herbs, good olive oil and the best main ingredient you can. Avoid old spices with little aroma.

Ingredient quality

Slice vegetables evenly, brown or braise patiently, steam grains properly and reduce sauces until glossy.

Common mistakes

Common mistakes include watery sauce, high heat, dry meat, broken fish, soggy pastry, clumped couscous and over-spicing before tasting.

Chef’s tips

Build flavour in stages. Moroccan dishes should taste layered and generous, not aggressively hot.

How to know it is cooked

Ready when meat is tender, fish flakes, couscous is separate, vegetables hold shape and sauces are reduced enough to coat the spoon.

Plating advice

Serve communally where traditional, with sauce controlled and garnishes such as herbs, almonds, sesame, cinnamon, lemon or olives used deliberately.

Make ahead

Stews, fillings and sauces can often be made ahead. Grilled meats, couscous and pastry dishes are best finished close to serving.

Storage and reheating

Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container. Stews usually keep 2–3 days; seafood is best eaten sooner. Reheat stews gently with a splash of water. Refresh pastry or fried foods in the oven. Steam couscous again if needed.

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