Chicken Bastilla

I ate in a Moroccan restaurant and had this delicious, first time for me, appetizer.

Called chicken bastilla, it came on a large dish to be shared, a mound of flaky pastry (abouy 8 or 9 inches in diameter) covered with, of all things, powdered sugar. Sort of like a large, delicate meat pie.

Inside was minced chicken with cinnamom, ginger, almonds, saffron, and eggs. What a combo!!! We were supposed to eat it with our hands, which we did, getting powdered sugar all over. It was served warm, right from the oven. Yum yum.

Has anyone ever had this?

Yes, I've had it at the Casablanca restaurant in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. I believe the authentic version is made with squab, but the chicken version is delicious, if messy, to eat.

this sounds both strange and wonderful.

The wife and I love Mediterranean cuisine. Don't think we've ever been Moroccan, though. Usually we do Greek/Lebanese/Turkish to get our fix.

I first had it on a trip to Los Angeles in the mid 70's and really enjoyed the combination of flavors. The menu said it was stuffed with pigeon but it tasted like chicken to me. Unfortunately, the closest decent Moroccan restaurant to us is near Philadelphia so I don't get it that often unless I make it myself.

Was rabbit on the menu?

quote:

Originally posted by stlouisguy

this sounds both strange and wonderful.

The wife and I love Mediterranean cuisine. Don't think we've ever been Moroccan, though. Usually we do Greek/Lebanese/Turkish to get our fix.

Yes, it was wonderful. In fact, all the dinner was! It was a 7 course meal for only $20, and had another chicken dish, a lamb dish, appetizers, dessert, etc. Even a bowl of fruit fruit (apple, orange, grapes, banana).

The other chicken dish was in a spicy fruity thin sauce with cinnanom, oranges and herbs.

It was similar to other Mediterreanean foods, but much more spice (not "hot" just flavorful) and fruits. The chcikenbastilla had that phyllo dough crust, and a dessert course was baklava-ish with aslo the phyllo dough.

I once made a dish of apricots and chicken and it was also good.

(The restaurant, by the way, was Casablanca near Wilmington, DE. Lots of fun, belly dancers, etc.)

from '95 to '99 i worked in a wonderful little restaurant in Saugerties NY called the Blue Mountain Bistro. the menu was french/mediterranean, and chicken b'stilla was often an evening special. my first taste of that amazing mix of sweet, savory, crunchy, and juicy made me a lifetime fan! ( i swear one of these days i'm going to buy puff pastry, almonds, saffron etc. and try to make my own.)

quote:

Originally posted by NYNM

I ate in a Moroccan restaurant and had this delicious, first time for me, appetizer.

Called chicken bastilla, it came on a large dish to be shared, a mound of flaky pastry (abouy 8 or 9 inches in diameter) covered with, of all things, powdered sugar. Sort of like a large, delicate meat pie.

Inside was minced chicken with cinnamom, ginger, almonds, saffron, and eggs. What a combo!!! We were supposed to eat it with our hands, which we did, getting powdered sugar all over. It was served warm, right from the oven. Yum yum.

Has anyone ever had this?

We have a place in Philly called Marrakesh, and it's by far one of my favorite places ever. Very traditional and authentic, and 6 years ago when I had my kidney transplant, the first thing I wanted to eat was their Chicken Bastilla. I hadn't been able to eat it while I was on dialysis for some reason, but that first day out of the hospital, guess where I went? lol. Great place

quote:

Originally posted by njkim

quote:

Originally posted by NYNM

I ate in a Moroccan restaurant and had this delicious, first time for me, appetizer.

Called chicken bastilla, it came on a large dish to be shared, a mound of flaky pastry (abouy 8 or 9 inches in diameter) covered with, of all things, powdered sugar. Sort of like a large, delicate meat pie.

Inside was minced chicken with cinnamom, ginger, almonds, saffron, and eggs. What a combo!!! We were supposed to eat it with our hands, which we did, getting powdered sugar all over. It was served warm, right from the oven. Yum yum.

Has anyone ever had this?

We have a place in Philly called Marrakesh, and it's by far one of my favorite places ever. Very traditional and authentic, and 6 years ago when I had my kidney transplant, the first thing I wanted to eat was their Chicken Bastilla. I hadn't been able to eat it while I was on dialysis for some reason, but that first day out of the hospital, guess where I went? lol. Great place

Good 4 You! That Marrakesh place might be connected to the Casablance place we went to in DE. They mentioned they had a Philly location.

http://www.thecasablancarestaurant.com/

From the menu:

Second Course - B’stilla
A traditional Moroccan pastry of flaky phyllo dough dusted
with powdered sugar and cinnamon. Filled with a delectable
mix of eggs, chicken, and sweet cinnamon spices.

I'd love to have the bastilla again. It was delish and oddly comforting

Maybe some recipes and photos?

http://www.wgby.org/localprograms/onthemenu/recipes/recipe_detail.cfm?recipe_id=221

http://www.fabulousfoods.com/index.php?option=com_resource&controller=article&category_id=18&article=17548

http://moroccan-food.suite101.com/article.cfm/chicken_bastilla_recipe


It's interesting that each recipe has different spices: saffron, cinnamon, cardamon, crushed almonds, tumeric, cilantro, orange water, paprika, ginger, chili powder, parsley, black pepper, and of course, powdered sugar.

Who would think of this stuff with chicken??

(I am getting hungry....)

I've lived in Morocco for eight years. Bastilla is a spectacular dish, and I've never encountered chicken bastilla with cardamon, chili powder or paprika. The traditional spices used to cook the chicken are ginger, saffron, salt, white and black peppers...also turmeric. Cilantro is more complimentary than parsley. The orange flower water is used to flavor the almonds.

Forgot to include cinnamon sticks in that list of spices for the chicken!

I worked for a Morrocan in denver in the 70's He had this on the menu. We made it in a pie tin just like the greek spinch pie(spancopita-sp?) It was layered fresh sspincah, chicken, slivered almonds and feta in phyllo crust.
britt