Moroccan Style Chicken Phyllo Rolls

Total Time: 1 hr 55 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 25 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 1/4 lbs chicken thighs, with skin and bones
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 (3 inch) cinnamon sticks
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 8 phyllo pastry sheets, thawed if frozen
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons brown mustard seeds

Recipe

• 1 cook onion in oil along with salt, cumin, ginger, turmeric, pepper, and coriander in 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until softened, about 5 minute.
• 2 add chicken, broth, water, and cinnamon stick and simmer, covered, turning chicken over once, until meat is very tender, about 45 min total.
• 3 transfer chicken with tongs to a bowl, reserving liquid.
• 4 when chicken is cool enough to handle, shred; discarding skin and bones and transfer to a large bowl.
• 5 tranfer the cooking liquid to a 2 cup glass measuring cup (do not clean the saucepan) and let stand 1 min, then skim off fat and discard cinnamon stick.
• 6 return liquid to saucepan and simmer over medium high heat, uncovered, until reduced to about 1/4 cup (liquid will look like a glaze in bottom of pan), about 8 minute.
• 7 stir in the shredded chicken along with the chopped toasted almonds.
• 8 reserve 2 tbs beaten egg in a cup for egg wash; lightly season the remaining egg with salt and pepper, then cook in 1/2 tbs butter in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat, stirring until just set but still slightly soft.
• 9 stir the scrambled egg into the filling.
• 10 put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 450ºf.
• 11 put 1 phyllo sheet on a work surface, keeping remaining phyllo covered with a damp kitchen towel.
• 12 brush the 1 sheet generously with melted butter.
• 13 evenly sift 1/4 tsp cinnamon over the butter phyllo using a fine mesh sieve, then top with another phyllo sheet and generously brush with butter.
• 14 cut the phyllo sheets in half, then arrange one half in front of you to work with.
• 15 spread 1/4 cup chicken filling in a narrow strip along the edge nearest you, then roll up filling tightly in phyllo.
• 16 before completing the roll, brush the remaining edge with butter to seal. no need to fold or seal the ends, just leave them open.
• 17 transfer roll, seam side down, to a cutting board set inside a baking pan (to help contain mustard seeds when sprinkled).
• 18 make another roll with remaining half of phyllo sheets.
• 19 make 6 more rolls in same manner, transferring to cutting board.
• 20 lightly brush top of rolls with egg wash and immediately sprinkle with mustard seeds, pressing lightly on seeds to help adhere.
• 21 cut each roll crosswise into 4 pieces and arrange pieces 1-inch apart on 2 baking sheets.
• 22 bake for 12 min, switching position of baking sheets after 6 min until phyllo is golden brown.
• 23 transfer rolls to a rack to cool slightly.