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Portuguese

Pastéis de nata

Contains egg (no meat or fish)

Crisp, flaky pastry cups filled with a silky egg custard and baked in a blazing oven until blistered on top. Dust with cinnamon and eat warm.

Pastéis de nata is a Portuguese pastry from Portugal, ready in about 1 hour 10 minutes and made with all-butter puff pastry and egg yolk. It serves 12 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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A delicious pastel de nata with a steaming cup of espresso on a wooden board.
Photo: Travel with Lenses / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
30 min
Cook
25 min
Rest
15 min
Total
1 h 10 min
Serves
12
Level
Intermediate
Calories
263

Ingredients

12 tarts

For the syrup

For the custard

To serve

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) as hot as it goes (at least 260 °C). Roll the pastry up tightly from the short side into a log and cut into 12 discs.

    • 5 min
    • 260°C

  2. Step 2

    Place each disc cut-side up in a muffin tin (opens in a new tab) hole. With wet thumbs press it out from the centre up the sides until the pastry rises a little above the rim. Chill.

  3. Step 3

    Boil the sugar (opens in a new tab), water, cinnamon (opens in a new tab) stick and lemon peel (opens in a new tab) for 3 minutes to a light syrup.

  4. Step 4

    Whisk (opens in a new tab) the flour into a little of the milk (opens in a new tab), then heat with the rest of the milk, whisking, until thickened. Gradually whisk in the hot syrup (discard the cinnamon (opens in a new tab) and peel), cool slightly, then whisk in the yolks and vanilla (opens in a new tab).

    Eggs being whisked in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels

  5. Step 5

    Fill the pastry cases three-quarters full and bake at the top of the oven (opens in a new tab) until the pastry is crisp and the custard is scorched in spots.

  6. Step 6

    Cool for 15 minutes in the tin, then dust with cinnamon (opens in a new tab) and powdered sugar (opens in a new tab).

    About this dish

    Origin
    Lisbon (Belém), Portugal · Well documentedAlso popular in Brazil, Cabo VerdeMore food from Portugal
    Dish
    Breakfast · Snack · Dessert · Pastries · Desserts
    Cooking method
    Oven-baked
    Taste
    sweet, creamy, buttery
    Diet
    Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredients
    All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No nut ingredients · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-sodium
    Without the optional extras: Alcohol-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
    Good for
    Festive & celebration · Portable / lunchbox
    Cook more with
    All-butter puff pastry · Egg yolk · Sugar · Cinnamon · Lemon zest · Milk
    Techniques
    Baking

    Allergens

    • Contains: Milkfrom all-butter puff pastry, milk
    • Contains: Eggsfrom egg yolk
    • Contains: Wheatfrom all-butter puff pastry, all-purpose flour
    • Contains: Glutenfrom all-butter puff pastry, all-purpose flour

    Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

    Nutrition

    263 kcal per serving

    Estimated

    1 serving ≈ 91 g · recipe makes 12

    Where the energy comes from

    • Protein 6%
    • Carbohydrate 48%
    • Fat 45%
    Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
    NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
    Energy263 kcal291 kcal
    Protein4.3 g4.8 g
    Carbohydrate32.2 g35.6 g
    Net carbohydrate31.5 g34.8 g
    Sugars18.2 g20.1 g
    Added sugars16.7 g18.4 g
    Fibre0.7 g0.8 g
    Fat13.3 g14.7 g
    Saturated fat3.9 g4.3 g
    Trans fat——
    Cholesterol95 mg105 mg
    Sodium82 mg91 mg
    Salt equivalent0.2 g0.2 g
    Vitamins & minerals per serving
    Potassium
    64 mg
    Calcium
    48 mg
    Iron
    1.1 mg
    Magnesium
    8 mg
    Vitamin A (RAE)
    44 µg
    Vitamin C
    1 mg
    Vitamin D
    —
    Vitamin B12
    0.3 µg
    Folate (DFE)
    53 µg

    How these numbers were made

    • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
    • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
    • Optional ingredients are not included: vanilla extract, icing sugar.
    • All-butter puff pastry: Frozen puff pastry (FDC 172790). Shop-bought puff pastry varies; some brands use vegetable fat.
    • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
    • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

    Good to know

    Tips

    • The hotter the oven the better: domestic ovens rarely match the 300 °C+ of Lisbon bakeries.

    Common mistakes

    • Overfilling – the custard puffs up and spills over.

    Storage

    • Best on the day; keep at room temperature, not in the fridge.

    Reheating

    • Crisp up for 5 minutes in a hot oven.

    History

    They are believed to have been made by monks of the Jerónimos Monastery in Belém, Lisbon; after religious orders were dissolved in 1834 the recipe passed to a nearby bakery that still sells them as pastéis de Belém.

    Confidence: Commonly attributed

    Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

    Recipe DNA

    How this dish is built

    Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

    What the dish is built around

    Main ingredient

    Used in step 1

    Baker’s notes

    Customise in Bread & Bakery

    Timeline and readiness cues

    1. Mix and knead · about 30 min

      Keep the butter and dough at the same cool, pliable temperature; chill between folds.

    2. Bake · about 14 min at 260 °C

      Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).

    3. Cool · about 15 min

      Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.

    4. Start to finish: about 59 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

    If something goes wrong

    • Pale crust

      Likely causes

      • Oven too cool
      • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
      • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

      What to do

      • Check the oven with a thermometer
      • Brush with egg wash or milk
      • Shorten the fermentation
    • Burnt bottom

      Likely causes

      • Tray too close to the heat
      • Dark tray absorbs more heat
      • Too much sugar in the dough

      What to do

      • Bake on the middle shelf
      • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
      • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
    • Pastry didn't puff or layers leaked butter

      Likely causes

      • Butter too warm and melted into the dough
      • Layers sealed when cutting
      • Oven not hot enough

      What to do

      • Chill between folds; keep everything cold
      • Cut straight down with a sharp knife — don't drag
      • Bake hot (200–220 °C) so the water in the butter steams the layers apart

    Reviews & corrections

    Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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