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Moroccan · Maghrebi

Chicken bastilla

Non-vegetarian

بسطيلة · bastila

A crisp, layered pie of thin pastry filled with saffron-spiced shredded chicken, soft herbed eggs and sweet cinnamon almonds, dusted with icing sugar. A showpiece of Moroccan celebration cooking.

Chicken bastilla is a Moroccan savoury bake from Morocco, ready in about 2 hours 50 minutes and made with chicken thigh, almonds and filo pastry. It serves 8 and is rated advanced to cook.

Start cooking
A serving of Pastilla
Representative photo. Krista / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-2.0
Prep
50 min
Cook
1 h 50 min
Rest
10 min
Total
2 h 50 min
Serves
8
Level
Advanced
Calories
577

Ingredients

8 servings

For the chicken

For the eggs

For the almond layer

To assemble

To finish

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Put the chicken in a heavy pot with the onions (opens in a new tab), 40 g butter (opens in a new tab), olive oil (opens in a new tab), herbs, spices, salt, pepper (opens in a new tab) and water. Cover and simmer until the chicken is very tender.

    Food safety: Cook chicken to at least 74 °C before shredding.

  2. Step 2

    Lift out the chicken and shred the meat (discard any skin and bones). Boil the onion (opens in a new tab) sauce until reduced to about 300 ml, then lower the heat and stir in the beaten eggs (opens in a new tab), cooking gently until they form soft, moist curds. Cool.

    • 20 min
    • low heat

    The egg mixture should be soft but not liquid, or the pastry turns soggy.

    A sauce simmering in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Nanda Mends on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Fry the almonds (opens in a new tab) in the oil until golden, drain, then pulse with the icing sugar (opens in a new tab), cinnamon (opens in a new tab) and orange blossom water (opens in a new tab) to a coarse crumb.

  4. Step 4

    Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 190 °C. Brush a 28 cm round tin with melted butter (opens in a new tab) and line with 6 overlapping, buttered phyllo (opens in a new tab) sheets so they hang over the edges. Layer in the chicken, then the eggs (opens in a new tab), then the almond (opens in a new tab) mixture.

  5. Step 5

    Fold the overhanging pastry over the filling, brush with butter (opens in a new tab), then cover with the remaining buttered sheets, tucking them underneath. Brush the edges with egg yolk (opens in a new tab) to seal and the top with butter.

    • 10 min

  6. Step 6

    Bake until deep golden and crisp.

  7. Step 7

    Rest 10 minutes, then dust with icing sugar (opens in a new tab) and decorate with lines of cinnamon (opens in a new tab) in a lattice. Serve warm.

      A finished dish being plated
      How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

    About this dish

    Origin
    Fez, Morocco · Commonly attributedStrongly associated with Fez; often linked to Andalusian influence, though the details of its history are debated.Also popular in AlgeriaMore food from Morocco
    Dish
    Dinner · Lunch · Pizza & savoury pies · Main courses
    Cooking method
    Oven-baked, Braised
    Taste
    sweet & savoury, aromatic / warmly spiced, buttery, nutty
    Diet
    High-protein
    All labelsNon-vegetarian · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · High-protein
    Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
    Good for
    Festive & celebration · Make-ahead
    Cook more with
    Chicken thigh · Almonds · Filo pastry · Onion · Butter · Parsley
    Techniques
    Baking · Simmering · Braising · Reduction

    Allergens

    • Contains: Milkfrom butter
    • Contains: Eggsfrom egg, egg yolk
    • Contains: Tree nutsfrom almonds
    • Contains: Wheatfrom filo pastry
    • Contains: Glutenfrom filo pastry

    Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

    Nutrition

    577 kcal per serving

    Calculated

    1 serving ≈ 297 g · recipe makes 8

    Where the energy comes from

    • Protein 21%
    • Carbohydrate 20%
    • Fat 59%
    Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
    NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
    Energy577 kcal194 kcal
    Protein31.2 g10.5 g
    Carbohydrate29 g9.8 g
    Net carbohydrate24.8 g8.3 g
    Sugars9.6 g3.2 g
    Added sugars6.7 g2.3 g
    Fibre4.3 g1.4 g
    Fat38.1 g12.8 g
    Saturated fat12 g4 g
    Trans fat——
    Cholesterol289 mg97 mg
    Sodium803 mg270 mg
    Salt equivalent2 g0.7 g
    Vitamins & minerals per serving
    Potassium
    556 mg
    Calcium
    117 mg
    Iron
    3.5 mg
    Magnesium
    91 mg
    Vitamin A (RAE)
    197 µg
    Vitamin C
    7 mg
    Vitamin D
    0.9 µg
    Vitamin B12
    1 µg
    Folate (DFE)
    79 µg

    How these numbers were made

    • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
    • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
    • Optional ingredients are not included: orange blossom water.
    • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
    • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

    Good to know

    Tips

    • Make the chicken and egg fillings a day ahead — cold fillings are much easier to layer.

    Common mistakes

    • A wet egg layer — reduce the onion sauce well before adding the eggs.

    Serve with

    • Serve as a first course at a celebration, followed by a tagine.

    Storage

    • Assembled, unbaked bastilla can be frozen up to 1 month; baked leftovers keep 2 days refrigerated.

    Reheating

    • Reheat in a 180 °C oven for 15–20 minutes to re-crisp.

    Variations

    • Seafood pastilla: A savoury version filled with prawns, fish, vermicelli and chermoula, without sugar.

    Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

    Recipe DNA

    How this dish is built

    Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

    What the dish is built around

    For the chicken

    Used in steps 1, 2, 4, 7

    Baker’s notes

    Customise in Bread & Bakery

    Timeline and readiness cues

    1. Mix and knead · about 1 h 45 min

      Knead until smooth and soft; it should feel like an earlobe.

    2. Rest · about 10 min

      Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.

    3. Bake · about 30 min at 190 °C

      Puffed with golden-brown spots on both sides.

    4. Start to finish: about 2 h 25 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

    If something goes wrong

    • Pale crust

      Likely causes

      • Oven too cool
      • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
      • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

      What to do

      • Check the oven with a thermometer
      • Brush with egg wash or milk
      • Shorten the fermentation
    • Burnt bottom

      Likely causes

      • Tray too close to the heat
      • Dark tray absorbs more heat
      • Too much sugar in the dough

      What to do

      • Bake on the middle shelf
      • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
      • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
    • Crust too hard or thick

      Likely causes

      • Baked too long at too low a temperature
      • No steam at the start

      What to do

      • Bake hotter for a shorter time
      • Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
      • Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust

    Reviews & corrections

    Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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