The Best Egg Tarts Recipe | Dim Sum Central (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between Chinese and Portuguese egg tarts? ›

Another distinct difference between Portuguese egg tarts and other egg tarts like English egg tarts or Chinese egg tarts is that the Portuguese tart uses only egg yolks and also includes a light puff pastry, whereas the English tart and Chinese egg tart uses whole eggs and a denser pie crust-like dough for the outside.

Hong Kong egg tarts are typically smaller and served in twos or threes, in contrast to the original Guangzhou egg tarts which were larger and could be served as a single item. The custard filling may be flavored with chocolate, green tea, or bird's nest, and the outer shell may be made with pastry.

Using a lower temperature for baking will result in a smoother egg custard as it doesn't expand too much and spill over while baking.

Unlike egg tart, custard tarts are normally served at room temperature. They are available either as individual tarts, generally around 8 cm (3.1 in) across, or as larger tarts intended to be divided into slices.

Portugal's tart has a flaky crust that is like the Hong Kong version. The two taste somewhat similar, but the pastel de nata has a caramelised surface, while the daan tat top is smooth and glossy.

884 Comments. Posted:2/08/2021 Updated:3/15/2021. Hong-Kong style egg tarts, or dan tat in Cantonese, are probably my favorite pastry.

While daan tat had its origins in mainland China, it wasn't until after World War II that the Cantonese egg tart made its way to Hong Kong, as wealthy Cantonese people migrated to the major port city. It's in Hong Kong that the pastry was perfected, helping to catapult the city's status to global food destination.

Egg tarts aka 'dan tat 蛋挞' in cantonese are best served when they out of the oven— warm and crispy. The egg filling is soft and slightly sweet with a delicious egg flavor. The crust is buttery and flakey with a crispy and soft texture (similar to a croissant).

Egg tarts, with contain a vanilla custard filling made of eggs and dairy, require refrigeration if you don't intend to consume them within six hours after baking. To maintain their freshness and flavor, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

However if the proteins are overcooked, either by using a temperature that is too high or just cooking for too long, then the proteins will come together so tightly that they will start to squeeze out water and this causes the weeping in an egg custard (or the scientific term for this is syneresis).

Why do egg tarts crack? ›

If the heat is too high, the egg custard will not be even as the mixture may expand (then deflates), cracks or burn during the baking process. Should that happens, reduce the temperature to 160 degrees Celsius the next time you bake them.

Portuguese custard tarts (or pasteis de nata) are crisp, creamy, and decadently sweet. This Portuguese dessert recipe features a delicately spiced flavor and uses pantry ingredients like egg yolks, flour, and cinnamon to create a one-of-a-kind pastry.

German pudding uses heavy cream while classic egg tart uses milk or evaporated milk. The filling texture for German pudding is creamy, while the classic egg tart is silky smooth like a steamed egg. Prebake the refrigerated tart to avoid the crust turning soggy because of the addition of liquid.

The origin of Pastel de Nata dates back to before the 18th century, where they were created by monks at the Jerónimos Monastery in the parish of Santa Maria de Belém in Lisbon. At that time, convents and monasteries used large quantities of egg-whites for starching clothes.

It has English and Portuguese origins

However, both the English and Portuguese versions ultimately come from the king of pastries, France, while the egg tarts you'll find in Chinese restaurants and bakeries today are distinct from their European cousins.

Macau's Chinese cooks made their own version of pasteis de nata that is creamier, a little bit less sweet, and more egg-y in flavor. Chinese people refer to this dessert as “Po Tat” (Portuguese tart).

Instead of a short, crumbly pastry, the pastel de nata has a crisp, slightly salty, layered crust; and, rather than the firm, egg-rich fillings of the classic British or French custard tart, the filling is almost molten, and spiced with cinnamon and lemon zest, as opposed to our peppery nutmeg or sweet vanilla.

British tarts use the less flavoursome shortcrust pastry, which doesn't provide as much textural contrast with the smooth custard. They are also topped with nutmeg, which fails to bring the custard alive as Portugal's cinnamon does. Worse, they are now almost all mass-produced with palm oil-based pastry.