Pastel de nata (Portuguese pronunciation: [pɐʃˈtɛɫ dɨ ˈnatɐ] (plural: pastéis de nata) is a Portuguese egg

tart pastry dusted with cinnamon.[1] Outside Portugal, they are particularly popular in other parts of
Western Europe, Asia and former Portuguese colonies, such as Brazil and Macau. The Macanese Pastel
de nata was also adopted by KFC and is available in countries such as mainland China and Taiwan. In
Indonesia, this pastry is also quite popular, especially in Kampung Tugu (Jakarta), an ethnic Portuguese
(Mardijker) enclave.[2]

Contents

1 History

2 Japanese cuisine

3 See also

4 References

5 External links

History

The pastéis de nata were created before the 18th century by Catholic monks at the Hieronymites
Monastery (Portuguese: Mosteiro dos Jerónimos) in the civil parish of Saint Mary of Bethlehem, in
Lisbon.[3][4] At the time, convents and monasteries used large quantities of egg-whites for starching
clothes, such as friars and nuns' religious habits. It was quite common for monasteries and convents to
use the leftover egg yolks to make cakes and pastries, resulting in the proliferation of sweet pastry
recipes throughout the country.

Following the extinction of the religious orders and in the face of the impending closure of many of the
convents and monasteries in the aftermath of the Liberal Revolution of 1820, the monks started selling
pastéis de nata at a nearby sugar refinery to bring in some revenue. In 1834, the monastery was closed
and the recipe was sold to the sugar refinery, whose owners in 1837 opened the Fábrica de Pastéis de
Belém. The descendants own the business to this day.[5]

In 2009 The Guardian listed pastéis de Belém as one of the 50 "best things to eat" in the world.[6]

Japanese cuisine

The cuisine of Japan was heavily influenced by Portuguese traders during the 16th century. Notable
Japanese baked goods including pan (パン), called pão in Portuguese, and castella have their origins in
this period. Pastel de nata is one of these.[7] In addition to the traditional form of the pastry, some
variations have been developed especially for the Japanese market by adding green tea flavoring. This
green tea pastel de nata was eventually exported to South Korea and other Asian markets.[8]

See also

Torta de nata

Egg tart

References