How-to guide
How to Make Chicken Pastilla (Bastilla)
Pastilla is Morocco's great sweet-and-savoury showpiece: layers of paper-thin warqa pastry wrapped around spiced, shredded chicken and a soft egg mixture, then baked until crisp and dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar. The contrast of warm spiced meat under a sweet, crackling top is what makes it unforgettable, and it takes real assembly work rather than difficult technique.
About 2.5 hours
Step by step
- 1
Cook the chicken
Simmer chicken pieces in a pot with grated onion, ginger, saffron, cinnamon, chopped coriander and parsley, salt and a little butter, covered, until the meat is tender and falls easily off the bone, about 40 minutes.
- 2
Shred and reduce
Lift out the chicken, shred the meat off the bone and discard skin and bones. Return the cooking liquid to the heat and reduce it down until thick and only lightly saucy.
- 3
Make the khalta (egg mixture)
Beat eggs into the reduced, still-warm sauce over a low flame, stirring continuously until they scramble softly into thick, moist curds rather than a runny liquid. Fold the shredded chicken back through this khalta.
- 4
Toast the almonds
Toast blanched almonds in a dry pan until golden, then pulse them in a food processor with a little sugar and cinnamon until coarsely ground, not a fine powder.
- 5
Layer the warqa
Brush a round baking tin with melted butter and lay overlapping sheets of warqa pastry across the base and up the sides, leaving enough overhang to fold over the top later.
- 6
Fill and fold
Spread the almond mixture over the base layer, then spoon the chicken and egg khalta on top. Fold the overhanging pastry over the filling, adding a couple more buttered sheets on top to seal it completely.
- 7
Bake until golden
Bake in a hot oven until the pastry is deep golden and crisp all over, turning the pastilla once if needed for even colour, about 25-30 minutes.
- 8
Dust and serve
Invert onto a serving plate so the crispest side faces up, then dust generously with icing sugar and trace fine lines of ground cinnamon across the top in a lattice or diamond pattern before serving hot.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Letting the egg mixture cook too fast, which scrambles it into hard, dry curds instead of soft, moist ones.
- Skipping the reduction step, so the filling is too wet and makes the pastry soggy.
- Handling warqa pastry roughly — it tears easily, so always keep sheets covered with a damp cloth until you use them.
- Grinding the almonds to a fine powder instead of a coarse texture, losing the contrast against the soft filling.
- Dusting with cinnamon and sugar mixed together — the classic look is separate lines or a lattice of each.
Tips from the kitchen
- Warqa can be substituted with filo pastry if unavailable, though it will be slightly less pliable.
- Make the filling a day ahead and assemble just before baking to save time on the day.
- A sprinkle of orange flower water in the almond mixture adds a subtle traditional perfume.
- Serve pastilla as a starter cut into wedges, or as a centrepiece for a festive meal.
- Check our <a href='/techniques'>pastry techniques</a> guide for tips on handling warqa without tearing it.
Questions
What is warqa pastry made from?
Warqa is a very thin, unleavened flour-and-water dough, cooked briefly on a hot surface until set but not browned. It is similar in spirit to filo but more elastic and slightly thicker.
Why does pastilla have cinnamon and sugar on top?
The sweet dusting contrasts with the savoury, spiced filling underneath, reflecting the Moroccan love of balancing sweet and savoury flavours in a single dish, especially for festive occasions.
Can I make pastilla with fish or seafood instead of chicken?
Yes, seafood pastilla is a well-known coastal variation, typically made with a creamy vermicelli and seafood filling rather than the almond-and-egg mixture used for chicken.
Can pastilla be prepared in advance?
The filling can be made a day ahead and refrigerated, but it is best to assemble and bake the pastilla close to serving time so the pastry stays crisp.
Learn it hands-on in Marrakech
Reading is one thing; doing it beside a local host is another. Book a Marrakech cooking class, or explore the medina on a guided food tour.