Pastel de Nata

 Pastel de Nata - Portugal's delectable custard tarts





The iconic Pastel de Nata is the Portuguese custard tart that looks like a dainty nest with flaky crusts, a custardy centre, and a mouth-watering caramelized top speckled with dark brown or black spots dusted with cinnamon and occasionally powdered sugar. 


The name Pastéis de Nata is a trademark of Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém, which owns the original secret recipe, everyone else sells the tarts under the generic name Pastel de Nata.


They simply melt in your mouth, providing for a brief moment what heaven feels like! For the uninitiated: Don’t use a knife and fork. You’re supposed to eat it with your hands preferably with a cup of coffee. So divine, that in 2009 The Guardian listed Pastel de Nata as one of the 50 “best things to eat” in the world.


Pastéis de Nata

source: Bloomberg

The history of the Pastéis de Nata (literally "cream pastries") can be traced back over 300 years to the Jerónimos Monastery in the district of Santa Maria de Belém, on the outskirts of Lisbon. The nuns and monks would use egg whites to starch their clothes, which left an abundance of egg yolks. Which left them with a lot of egg yolk. Voila! From these frugal beginnings, the delectable custard tarts aka pastéis de nata were born! 


After the Liberal Revolution of 1820, following the dissolution of religious orders, many religious institutions throughout Portugal no longer received funding and were shutting down. The monks in the monastery facing a financial crunch started selling the custard tarts to the public. Eventually, when the monastery closed in 1834, the monks sold the recipe to the local sugar refinery. The Monastery is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Sensing the gold mine they had on their hands, the refinery’s owners opened the Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém in 1837… and the rest, as they say, is history.

The 'Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém' is, therefore, the only place on earth that produces the original pastry that inspired many variations commonly known as pastéis de nata.

source: Bloomberg

There is always a long line in front of the shop is located just a short three-minute walk from the Jerónimos Monastery.


Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Pastel de Nata’s rise was fueled in part by promotion from the Portuguese government, which sponsored the 2018 Nata Festival in London. Exports of Portuguese specialities, meat and livestock to other European countries topped 1 billion euros in 2016, more than doubling in seven years. In the last three years, the Portuguese government has spent €50 million per year overseas promoting the country and its products.


References

  1. Kantor, A. (2019, April 15). The unlikely rise of the pastel de nata, and why it’s suddenly everywhere. Bloomberg. Retrieved May 20, 2024, from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-04-15/portuguese-pastry-pastel-de-nata-takes-over-the-world?
  2. Api, S. (2022, August 2). The History Of The Pastéis de Nata: How These Tiny Tarts Became A Country’s Most Iconic Treat. BāKIT Box. Retrieved May 20, 2024, from https://www.bakitbox.com/blogs/baking/history-of-pasteis-de-nata
Location: R. de Belém 84 92, 1300-085 Lisboa, Portugal

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