Basteeya (Moroccan Chicken Pie)

Name: Basteeya (Moroccan Chicken Pie)
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Moroccan Imperial & Coastal
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 large onion; 2 clove garlic; 1 small Thai chile; 1 cinnamon stick; 1 tsp good-quality Madras curry powder; 1 tsp chopped fresh ginger; 1 tsp grated fresh lemon zest; 4 cooked chicken legs; 2 pitted prunes; 0.25 cup spicy green olives; 0.5 cup chicken stock; 0.5 lemon; coarse salt; fresh ground black pepper; 1 tbsp icing sugar; 2 tbsp toasted whole almonds; 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon; 0.333 cup melted butter; 8 sheets phyllo dough; 1 egg; 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

Chicken, lemon zest and prunes come together in this dish, fragrant with chilli and cinnamon and baked in the oven.

1 hr 20 min · Serves 6 · Takes some skill

Method

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Time: Prep 60 min · Cook 20 min · 80 min total
Difficulty: hard

1
Brush a large 10-inch pie plate with some melted butter (or margarine, if you need to keep this kosher) and set aside.
2
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil; saute the onions until soft (about 5 minutes), then add the garlic, chile, cinnamon stick, curry powder, fresh ginger, lemon zest and chicken chunks and saute for two minutes.
5 min
3
Stir in the prunes, olives, chicken stock, lemon juice, and the salt and pepper; bring this to a boil.
4
Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, without stirring at all, for 10 minutes; then remove the lid and simmer for 5 more minutes, or until the liquid has evaporated; let this cool completely.
10 min
5
Meanwhile, in a food processor (the mini one will work well), pulse the icing sugar, ground cinnamon and almonds until coarsely chopped.
6
Preheat oven to 375F. When the chicken mixture has cooled completely, it's time to begin the assembly: on your work surface, arrange a sheet of phyllo (keep the remaining phyllo sheets under a damp tea towel) and brush it with some of the melted butter or olive oil.
7
Lay this sheet of phyllo in the middle of the pie plate, letting the excess phyllo hang over the edge; repeat with 4 more sheets of phyllo.
8
Stir the lightly beaten egg and chopped coriander into the chicken mixture, combine, then spoon the entire mixture into the pie plate, on top of the sheets of phyllo in it.
9
Fold the phyllo edges that are hanging over the edge of the pie plate, one at a time, onto the middle of the pie, sprinkling some of the almond mixture between each layer; do this loosely and not tightly.
10
Butter one piece of the remaining phyllo and sprinkle with some of the almond mixture; place over filling and tuck in any overhang; repeat with remaining phyllo and almond mixture--Christine Cushing says to do this one by one, not stacked together, to achieve a light, blossomy top.
11
Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until the top is browned and crisp; let stand for 5 minutes before cutting into wedges to serve.