Seafood Bastilla
A crispy Moroccan pastry envelope filled with sautéed seafood, caramelized onions, and warm spices. Shatteringly crisp phyllo wraps silky fish and shrimp in an elegant, hand-held package.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Servings
- 2
- Calories
- 385
- Protein
- 28g
Ingredients
- 1 whole Large yellow onion
- 6 oz Firm white fish fillet (cod or halibut)
- 6 oz Large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- ¼ cup Fresh cilantro leaves
- 4 sheets Phyllo dough sheets
- 5 tablespoons Olive oil
- ½ teaspoon Ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon Ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon Paprika
- 1 tablespoon Preserved lemon, finely chopped (or lemon zest)
Instructions
- 1
Slice the onion lengthwise from root to tip into thin half-moon slivers about 1/8 inch thick, like cutting an onion for French onion soup.
- 2
Cut the fish fillet against the grain into 1-inch cubes, cutting across the width of the fillet so the pieces are roughly the size of dice.
- 3
Roughly chop the cilantro leaves into 1/4-inch pieces by stacking them, rolling them into a tight cigar, and slicing crosswise.
- 4
Pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a 10-inch skillet and set it over medium heat until the oil shimmers and slides quickly across the pan, about 90 seconds.
- 5
Add the onion slices and cook over medium heat, stirring every 30 seconds with a wooden spoon, until they turn a deep caramel brown and smell sweet, about 12 minutes.
- 6
Sprinkle the cumin, ginger, and paprika over the onions and stir constantly for 30 seconds until the spices smell strongly fragrant.
- 7
Push the onions to the side of the skillet, add the fish cubes to the empty space, and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes without stirring until the bottoms start to turn opaque.
- 8
Stir the fish gently into the onions and add the shrimp, then cook over medium heat, stirring every 30 seconds, until all the shrimp turn from gray to bright pink and the fish flakes easily when pressed, about 3 minutes total.
- 9
Remove the skillet from heat, stir in the preserved lemon and cilantro, and let the filling cool to room temperature for 5 minutes so it will not tear the phyllo dough.
- 10
Set the oven to 400°F and wait until the indicator light or beep tells you it has finished preheating, about 10 minutes.
- 11
Place one phyllo sheet on a clean work surface and brush it all over with 0.5 tablespoon of olive oil using a pastry brush in broad strokes until the entire surface glistens.
- 12
Lay a second phyllo sheet directly on top of the first, pressing down gently with your fingers so they stick together.
- 13
Brush the second sheet with 0.5 tablespoon of olive oil until it glistens, then lay a third sheet on top and press gently.
- 14
Brush the third sheet with 0.5 tablespoon of olive oil, then lay the fourth sheet on top and press gently.
- 15
Brush the top sheet with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil until it glistens evenly.
- 16
Spoon the cooled seafood filling into the center of the phyllo stack in a rough 4-inch-wide mound, leaving a 2-inch border of empty phyllo all around the edges.
- 17
Fold the top edge of the phyllo over the filling, then fold the bottom edge up and over it, pressing gently so the filling stays inside and the edges overlap slightly in the center.
- 18
Fold the left side edge of the phyllo toward the center, then fold the right side edge over it, creating a sealed packet that looks like a closed envelope.
- 19
Carefully slide the bastilla seam-side down onto a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- 20
Place the baking sheet in the preheated 400°F oven and bake until the top is deep golden brown and you can hear it crackle when you gently press the surface with a fork, about 12 minutes.
- 21
Remove the baking sheet from the oven using oven mitts and let the bastilla cool for 2 minutes so it firms up slightly before serving.
Tools you’ll need
- Chef's knife
- Cutting board
- 10-inch stainless steel skillet
- Wooden spoon
- Rimmed baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Pastry brush
- Oven mitts
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