One of my favorite Portuguese foods is the famous pastel de nata! You'll enjoy making David's mouthwatering recipe for these tempting Portuguese custard tarts. It's hard to stop after eating just one!
If you want to try more Portuguese recipes, don't miss these tasty, authentic recipes for caldo verde (potato and chouriço soup), broas de mel (honey cookies), and bacalhau à Brás (a popular comfort food).
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Introduction
Whenever I'm in Portugal, I know I'm coming back a few pounds heavier. Aside from all of the delicious seafood dishes, bowls of rice, and endless glasses of wine, Portugal is also home to my waistline's arch-nemesis: pastéis de nata (pastel de nata in the singular).
These Portuguese custard tarts are so delicious, that it’s hard to stop after eating just one! There’s something special about the combo of blistered, caramelized custard, and flaky golden brown puff pastry. Try one, and you'll want to make these again and again!
These famous custard tarts come from the Jerónimos Monastery, which is located in the town of Belém outside of Lisbon. You can read more about the history of Portuguese custard tarts if you’re curious!
Why This Recipe Works
- This recipe gives you as close a taste to the original as possible.
- These tarts are served warm dusted with cinnamon, which is the traditional method.
- This recipe is flexible so you can use pre-made puff pastry or make your own from scratch.
Ingredients
Curious what ingredients you need to make a batch of these pastéis de nata? Fortunately, it takes basic ingredients that are easy to find at your local grocery store. Let's talk about the most important ingredients for these Portuguese tarts.
- Egg Yolks: They add richness, color, and flavor to the custard in addition to thickening it.
- Flour: This is the main thickening agent in the custard next to the egg yolks. Feel free to swap for a gluten free alternative if desired.
- Puff Pastry: You'll use this to line a 12-hole muffin tin. Feel free to use store bought or homemade pastry--both are delicious.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations
- Dairy Free: Use your favorite plant-based milk in the custard.
- Gluten Free: Swap the flour in the custard for cornstarch, and use gluten free pastry.
How to Make
If you’d like to see the full ingredients and instructions, scroll to the bottom of the post for the printable recipe card.
- Begin by making a sugar syrup. Combine the sugar, water, vanilla extract, lemon peel, and cinnamon stick in a saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat without stirring until the mixture reaches 220°F (100°C).
3. In a separate saucepan, whisk the milk, flour, and salt together until well combined.
4. Whisk constantly over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
5. Add the egg yolks.
6. Whisk until well combined.
7. Remove the cinnamon stick from the sugar syrup and slowly whisk it into the milk mixture.
8. Strain the custard into a measuring cup with a spout to remove any lumps.
9. Cut the sheet of puff pastry in half.
10. Place one half on top of the other, then roll into a tight log from one of the short ends. Cut the log into 12 equal pieces (not pictured).
11. Press the 12 pieces of pastry into a greased muffin tin. Wet your thumb with cold water to keep the dough cool.
12. Make sure the dough extends slightly past the top of the tin.
13. Fill each cup ¾ of the way with custard.
14. Bake at 550°F (290°C), or the highest your oven goes, for about 10-12 minutes. You want the custard to blacken a bit on top, as this is a sign of a true pastel de nata!
Recipe FAQs
The most popular dessert in Lisbon is these pastéis de nata. They have a creamy custard filling baked inside of a crispy, flaky pastry cup, and can be dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon.
Yes, they are a popular breakfast item in Portugal, but can be enjoyed any time of day. Make sure to serve them with a cup of coffee like café con leche or espresso (known as bica in Portugal).
It's hard to describe the taste of these mouthwatering tarts! You'll love the creamy custard with its hints of lemon, vanilla, and cinnamon, as it contrasts perfectly with the beautifully flaky, crispy pastry.
It's best to serve pastéis de nata warm--preferably straight from the oven. This way, the custard filling is at a good temperature, and the pastry is still crispy and delicious.
Serve
A custard tart is perfect any time of day -- breakfast, snack, dessert... but always with a cup of coffee! I love it with a "bica" (espresso) but many of my friends go for a café con leche (or café com leite should I say!).
If you're looking for other Portuguese foods to try, don't miss out on ginjinha (sour cherry liqueur), this Francesinha recipe (a mountain of bread, meat, and cheese), and this caldo verde recipe (a comforting potato soup).
Store
Make Ahead: It's best not to make pastéis de nata in advance, as they taste best fresh out of the oven. Try making a small batch you can enjoy within a day or two.
Leftovers: Pastéis de nata will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days, but the pastry will lose its crispiness after about 2 days.
Reheating: Before enjoying leftover tarts, bring them to room temperature, or pop them into a hot oven (400°F/200°C) for a minute or two, or until warm.
Freezing: Seal the tarts in an airtight container or freezer bag and freeze for up to 1 month. Even though you can freeze pastéis de nata, realize that they taste much better when eaten immediately.
Defrosting & Reheating: Defrost at room temperature, then reheat as described above.
Expert Tips
- Use a candy thermometer when making the custard for best results.
- Good quality, pre-made puff pastry works very well. Feel free to make your own if you would like for a more authentic touch.
- Use the convection setting on your oven if you have it. If your oven doesn't go to 550°F (260°C), simply put it at its maximum temperature.
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Pastéis de Nata (Portuguese Custard Tarts)
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup water
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cinnamon stick
- peel of 1 lemon cut in thin strips
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- Ground cinnamon for dusting optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 550°F (290°C), and lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin.
- Bring the sugar, water, vanilla extract, lemon peel, and cinnamon stick to a boil in a medium, heavy-based saucepan. Cook without stirring until it reaches 220°F (100°C), then remove the cinnamon stick and take the pan off the heat.
- Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, whisk the milk, flour, and salt until well blended. Whisk constantly and cook over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove it from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Once the milk mixture has cooled, whisk in the egg yolks, then add the sugar syrup and mix until everything is well combined. Pour through a sieve into a measuring cup to remove any lumps.
- Cut the puff pastry sheet into two pieces and place them on top of each other. Tightly roll the sheets into a log from the short side, then cut it into 12 evenly sized pieces.
- Place one piece of pastry in each of the 12 wells of the muffin tin. Dip your thumb in cold water, then use your thumb to press the pastry against the sides to form a cup. Make sure the pastry comes slightly above the edge of each well.
- Fill each pastry cup ¾ of the way with custard.
- Bake at 550°F (290°C) for 10-12 minutes. The tarts are done when the custard starts to caramelize and blister, and the pastry turns golden brown.
- Dust with powdered sugar and cinnamon if desired, and serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use a candy thermometer when making the custard for best results.
- Good quality, pre-made puff pastry works very well. Feel free to make your own if you would like for a more authentic touch.
- Use the convection setting on your oven if you have it. If your oven doesn't go to 550°F (260°C), simply put it at its maximum temperature.
Nutrition
Photography by Giulia Verdinelli
Kevin Whelehan
Excellent recipe brings me back to Lagos.
Jennifer
Easier recipe than I expected for professional looking tarts. A little sweet for me so I may try less sugar next time. I also had half the custard leftover - used metric measures so not sure if there is an error or if it was just me?
Will definitely try again
Doug
great recipe for a delicious pastry.
The only think I do differently is to take the puff pastry (I use store bought, too), cover it with soft butter and roll it into a spiral log. Seal the long edge with water. Once it's rolled, wrap it in plastic wrap - chill for ~2-3hrs.
Cut the puff pastry log into 10-12 pieces - then press the spiral pieces into the muffin tins - as described in the recipe. The characteristic spiral of the puff pastry on the bottom is well worth the effort!
Heather
I'm making these today. How many days do they stay fresh and can you freeze leftovers? Just trying to determine if I'm keeping the extras or handing them out. Thanks!!
Lauren Aloise
They are best (most crispy) on the same day but will last 3 days without losing much quality. After that they're fine to eat but getting a bit stale. They do freeze well! I'd reheat in a hot oven to try to get a bit of crunch (after defrosting at room temp).
Tia
Helloo, it looks so tasty I can't wait to try! But can I reduce amount of the eggs? like 4 egg yolks per recipe? Thank youu
Lauren Aloise
I've never tried it (some recipes use even more!) but I'm sure it would still be yummy. Let me know if you try.
Cathy
I don’t have cups. Do you have the ingredients in metric measurements please? (grams)
Lauren Aloise
All of the ingredients are listed in both metric and US!
carol vigurs
gorgeous custard, more accurate sizing of pastry would have helped to check against my pre made sheet - like other commenters, mine came out too thin when made to reach the top of the muffin tin, as instructed, next time I will not stretch them so much, an indentation will do I am sure, - and cook at 290C?? a typo surely? - my oven only goes to 270! I referred to other recipes to check this and found 190C for 20 minutes perfect.
Lauren Aloise
290°C is correct but many have had success at a lower temp due to their specific oven limits!
T
I guess I"m making a custard pie next because I've got 2 cups of filling leftover. Not a bad thing, but if I do this again I'll probably halve the filling and see if I'm closer......
Terry Lewis
Hi, I have just had these and they taste amazing. Mine were particularly burnt on top though, is 290c too hot, if it is a fan oven do you think? Should I reduce the temp? They taste great, but looked a but charred.
Lauren Aloise
They are often quite burnt in pastry shops in Lisbon as well - some prefer this style, but yes, I would definitely lower by 10°C next time and also keep a close eye on them. If they start becoming too burnt again, cover with foil for the remaining oven time.
Stephan
That calculates to 22grams of sugar per tartlet. Thats 5 teaspoons in each. I'll just let that sink in.
Alyssa
It actually amounts to 12 grams but ok buddy
Luna Muñoz
5 teaspoons is only 1 and a half tablespoons... why are you trying to make it sound like more sugar than it is? An apple (depending on the size) has about the same amount of sugar.
Sumi
Hi could u please explain me the pastry part again Im in SA here we get today's puff pastry. Do I open it up nd re roll it. Please advise
Khalied
Yes. Today's pastry works perfectly - 300g I think. It's enough for 12 tartlets in a muffin pan
Lee
They were delicious and much easier to make than I would have thought. Thank you!
Colette in London
Great recipe. I made them for my Portuguese partner and he Loved them. First batch last weekend were fab, if a little overfilled. This weekend I'm paying more attention to the note about 3/4 filling!
Lauren Aloise
So happy they turned out well!
Amy
These were amazing! The only advice I have is to specify the size of the puff pastry sheet. I am in NZ and used Edmonds pre-rolled puff pastry which are 150 g each. I initially cut it into 12 pieces, but these were way too thin so, if you're using this recipe & the Edmonds pastry, I recommend cutting into 6 pieces per sheet. Overall, this recipe is easy to follow and the result is a smooth, caramelised, sweet treat!
Jeanette
Hi Amy, I’m also from NZ, and know the Edmonds sheets you are talking about, did you put 2 pieces together so it wasn’t so thin? I usually use the block that you roll out, how did this make?
Mick
Jools
You can get these at Lidl in the bakery section. About 50p each.
Jools
Hi
I buy these from a Portugese chap at my once monthly market in Frome, Somerset UK. He packs me 6 with happy pictures of the tarts on the box! However, they are not cheap at around £10..
I can’t wait to make these now... & they will be devoured whilst we watch the World Cup Rugby this week .. thank you & great recipes on your link too!
Jools
I
Sandy
In Portugal...and addictive! They are 1 euro each in Belém and everywhere we have had them.
sally
Made these at Verril Farm in Concord Ma with Chef Guida Ponte!
Pamela Walters
Just home from a trip to Portugal and I'm going to give this a try. BUT HOW MUCH CINNAMON?? Other recipes say to use a cinnamon stick and remove it once the syrup is ready so I'll try that.
Lauren Aloise
Hi Pamela - yes, exactly, that's what this also refers to. A cinnamon stick that you remove before adding the eggs. And ground cinnamon on top later if that is your preference!
Lori
Noticed the cinnamon thing too, but took Thad’s advice. Also, enough custard for two batches. My biggest problem was my oven only goes as high as 525 for bake. Anything else is broil. They are in the oven now and I’m going to start watching at the ten minute mark! Looks like 17 minutes at 525 degrees F. Wish I could post a picture!
Lauren Aloise
Hope they came out great!
Wade
There is no cinnamon in the ingredients list, but step 2 refers to cinnamon. Is it one cinnamon stick?
Lauren Aloise
Hi Wade, there is a cinnamon stick in the ingredients, and I've clarified in the instructions as well. Happy baking!
THAD
These are delish! Made them for friends we met travelling in Portugal - BIG hit. They're the typical teeth-aching sweet pastry. I'll try reducing the sugar just a little next time. The instructions refer to adding cinnamon to the sugar syrup but the ingredients don't list how much. I used a big pinch and it seemed fine. Can't wait to make them again.
Lauren Aloise
Hi Thad -- it is a stick of cinnamon! I clarified in that step. But ideally you use the cinnamon stick and remove later in the recipe. Happy they turned out well!