Pastel de Nata
Photo: Paul Arps from The Netherlands · CC BY 2.0

History

The pastel de nata was created by monks at the Jeronimos Monastery in Lisbon in the early 19th century. Manteigaria opened a Porto branch on Rua do Almada in 2018, baking 800 nata per day to the original Belem secret-recipe approximation. Castro Atelier de Pasteis de Nata on Rua das Flores is the modern Porto-born specialist.

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Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Egg

Make it at home

Yield 12Hands-on 45 minTotal 2 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 1 sheet of all-butter puff pastry, 320g
  • 500ml whole milk
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • Zest of 1 lemon, in long strips
  • 1 vanilla pod, split (or 1 tsp vanilla paste)
  • 60g plain flour
  • 300g caster sugar
  • 150ml water
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • Pinch fine sea salt
  • Ground cinnamon and icing sugar, to finish

Method

  1. Unroll the puff pastry. Roll up tightly into a tight log along the long edge. Cut into 12 equal discs.
  2. With a thumb dipped in water, press each disc into a 12-hole metal cupcake tin, working the pastry up the sides above the rim. Refrigerate while you make the custard.
  3. Warm milk with cinnamon stick, lemon zest, and vanilla in a pan over low heat for 5 minutes. Strain.
  4. Whisk flour with a splash of the warm milk into a smooth slurry, then whisk back into the rest of the warm milk. Cook gently 4 minutes until the texture thickens to a custard base.
  5. In a separate pan, dissolve sugar in water and boil hard for 4 minutes until you have a clear syrup (110C on a sugar thermometer).
  6. Pour the hot syrup into the milk mixture in a steady stream, whisking constantly.
  7. Whisk yolks and salt in a bowl. Pour the warm milk-syrup over the yolks while whisking. Strain.
  8. Heat oven to its maximum, ideally 280C. Pour custard into the pastry shells to 90 percent full. Bake 9 to 12 minutes until the tops have black scorched bubbles. Cool 5 minutes, dust with cinnamon and icing sugar. Eat warm.

Tip from the editors. The oven must hit at least 250C for the proper scorch top; if your oven caps at 220C, switch to grill mode for the last 90 seconds to get the dark bubble pattern.

Where to eat pastel de nata

Pastel de Nata in Porto

Manteigaria ★ 4.6

€ BakeryPasteis de nata, baked on siteWalk-in only

Manteigaria on Rua de Alexandre Braga in Porto is the Lisbon house's Porto branch, with a glass-fronted kitchen baking warm pasteis de nata until midnight.

Worth the queuePastel de nata

Directions

Castro Atelier de Pasteis de Nata ★ 4.3

€ BakeryOpen-kitchen pastel de nata laboratoryWalk-in only

Castro Atelier on Rua de Ceuta in Porto is a glass-walled pastel de nata laboratory: dough is laminated and custard piped in view of the counter.

Worth the queuePastel de nata with cinnamon

Directions

Fabrica da Nata ★ 4.2

€ BakeryPasteis de nata baked on the half hourWalk-in only

Fabrica da Nata on Rua de Santa Catarina in Porto bakes pasteis de nata in 30-minute waves from an open kitchen, with a glass-front display and a queue.

Worth the queuePastel de nata

Directions

Nata Lisboa ★ 3.8

€ BakeryPasteis de nata across PortugalWalk-in only

Nata Lisboa on Rua de Santa Catarina in Porto serves the chain's signature pastel de nata, plus brigadeiro tarts and a bica counter for a quick stand-up.

Worth the queuePastel de Nata

Directions

Padaria Ribeiro ★ 4.5

€ BakeryBread and Portuguese pastries since 1878Walk-in only

Padaria Ribeiro on Praca Guilherme Gomes Fernandes in Porto has baked since 1878, famed for the slow-leaven croissant amanteigado finished with warm sugar.

Worth the queueCroissant amanteigado

Directions

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