Pastilla – Pigeon pie

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One of the local dining delicacies of Fes is Pastilla – Pigeon Pie. Now it is easy to understand how a meal would grow around an ingredient so abundant and readily available. But I was quick to learn that allow they are everywhere that actually pigeon meat is more expensive than chicken meat in Morocco. My host at the Dar Rbab (a Dra is a Moroccan guesthouse), Mohammed, pointed out that not all restaurants serve it much anymore and that ones that do would try to clandestinely substitute chicken for pigeon. Shame on them.

But I was not to be deterred. Mohammed and I devised a plan whereby when he phoned some
potential restaurants to enquire on availability of Pastilla that he claimed I was a visiting food critic and I knew the difference between the two fowls. It took about 30 minutes of calling and but he located a establishment that had fresh Pastilla on the menu.

As is usual in the Medina the confusing maze of it’s layout means that many a tourist could make every effort to travel even a short distance and never arrive at their intended destination. So very wisely restos send a staff member to come to your Dar and guide you to your meal. After a short 10 minute walk I entered the beautiful dining establishment with its vaulted ceilings, wall mosaics, white tablecloths and formally attired wait staff. This was not going to be a cheap meal by Moroccan standards. To my delight they had a number of outdoor patio heaters blazing full blast around the large room. I stationed myself directly below one and started to warm up for the first time since the Sun had gone down.

I had not had lunch that day so I opted for the full meal deal. My appetizer course was a number of small dishes with various salads, pates, etc. My hunger and the tastiness of the tapas led me to almost fill myself on them. Then came my Pastilla. It was a pastry about 6 inches in diameter and 1 ½ inches thick. The pastry was very flaky with an “icing” of white powder crosshatched with brown lines. The inside was a rich savory stew of pigeon meat, the pastry was flaky yet moist. Which brings me back to the “icing”. Here is where the Moroccan blend of savory and sweet plays out to nth degree. The white cap was icing sugar and the brown crosshatching, cinnamon. I ate a few bites to register it’s taste as the chef envisioned it but then flipped the topping off and just ate the yummy pigeon interior.

Certainly Pastilla (with it’s topping in place at least) is high on the interesting scale but not my cup of tea. But trying and learning new foods was what this trip is about. That box is checked.

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Photos

The beautiful restaurant in Fes
Notice the outdoor propane heater in the background!!

Appetizer 1st Course
Each and every one very tasty