Pastel de Nata
Pastel de Nata
Behold, the sumptuous, sensuous, chewy-yet-flaky-crusted, custard-gushing Pastel de Nata, native tart extraordinaire of Lisbon, Portugal. This one came from my local Portuguese cafe in Tottenham (and very nice it was too, wolfed down in two or three bites with a galao, a tall white coffee in a glass). However, there is little dispute over where the best Pastel de Nata is to be had in London, and that is at Lisboa Patisserie, 57 Golborne Road, W10. You will be forced to try one of these (well, encouraged anyway) if you attend one of my Portobello Gastrotours.
The bakery which launched them onto the world, in southwestern Lisbon, called Pasteis de Belem, is reputed to sell the holiest of the holy tarts. The recipe is nearly 200 years old and originated in a nearby monastery, and it is a closely guarded secret. The bakery is named after the tart (Pasteis is the plural; Belem is the name of the area). This tart purchased anywhere else is simply “pastry of cream”. Custard tart to you and me. Once you’ve fallen in love with this baby, you’ll start to spot them everywhere. Allegedly, you can get them at KFC in Hong Kong, heaven forbid.
Recipes abound on the internet and in cookbooks, advising the use of shortcrust pastry or ready-made puff pastry. But no. No no no no no. The mysterious pastry makes the tart - it is a flaky and buttery strata, but it is chewy at the same time. And the custard, well, it’s incomparable. Definitely best left to the experts.
April 12th, 2009 at 7:42 am
Boa tarde (presumo que seja Portugues).
Tenho uma pastelaria Portuguesa em Espanha, e tambem vendo os pasteis de nata, mas eu tenho de os comprar congelados.
Voce estando em Tottenham deve ter fabrico proprio.Seria possivel compartir a receita comigo?o meu email é jmagilabert@hotmail.com
Se fosse possivel aradecia-lhe imenso, poruqe me dava uma ajuda daquelas.
Obrigado
Jose
June 10th, 2009 at 6:53 am
If you are nowhere near Portugal, (or Tottenham!) I have recently found a bakery in Derbyshire, called The Loaf, that makes these and if you get there in the morning they are fresh out of the oven and are the most delicious things ever. You can pretty much down them in one bite. http://www.theloaf.co.uk/. So much better than the claggy custard tarts most bakers have.