Chicken Bastilla: A Moroccan Delight

One aspect about going to Morocco that I look forward to the most is the food. Reading about the culture and the cuisine that we will be immersing our selves in has made me even more excited for D-Term. While many Moroccan dishes appeal to me, one dish that I want to try above all else is chicken bastilla (see image below)
The name bastilla comes for the Spanish word for pastry, pastille. Chicken bastille is usually served after small plates of fresh salads and before the tagine with meat. Bastilla is a pigeon pie that is often made for special occasions in Morocco such as holidays or weddings. A thin pastry leaf called warqa (see image below) that is sprinkled with powered sugar and cinnamon on top surrounds the pie. 

In order to create the warqa pastry, the spongy dough is slapped against a hot convex sheet of metal called a tubsil (see image below) . On the inside of the warqa, there is a savory saffron chicken that compliments the pastry and almond topping.


While there is some discrepancy as to where chicken bastilla came from, many scholars maintain that it is a combination of Arab and Hispano-Muslim cuisine. In addition, the French were making a similar type of pie called pastillus since 1129. Modern Moroccan chicken bastilla is a combination of all the aforementioned cuisines.

Creating authentic chicken bastilla is a complex process that is often difficult to recreate in the United States. However, there are many recipes for creating your own chicken bastilla that can turn out quite similar to that in which you would find will in Morocco, including the full recipe listed below:
https://www.thespruceeats.com/how-to-make-chicken-bastilla-2395017

Ingredients you will need:
  • 1 large chicken (cut into pieces, skin and fat removed)
  • 2 large onions 
  • 1 tablespoon ginger 
  • 2 teaspoons salt 
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper 
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric 
  • 1 teaspoon saffron threads 
  • 2-3 sticks cinnamon 
  • 1/4 cup butter 
  • 1/4 cup olive oil 
  • 1/4 cup cilantro 
  • 8 eggs 
  • 2 cups almonds 
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar 
  • 2 tablespoons orange flower water 
  • For the dough: 
  • 1/2 cup butter 
  • 1 pound phyllo dough 
  • 1 egg yolk  

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