This south-east Asian dessert is found in all kinds of restaurants and street bakeries in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Mainland China, and many other Southeast Asian countries. Because it is called the Portuguese tart, I did a little bit of research and found that it’s origin is actually from Lisbon, Portugal. I believe it made it way to southeast Asia when Macau became colonized by the Portuguese. Hmmm, I wonder if we Asians have made this our own rendition of the yummy dessert from Europe…
The Portuguese egg tart (葡撻) is not to be confused with the Hong Kong/ Canton invention of egg tarts (蛋撻), which not only does not have the bruelee-ing on top, but the texture tastes a lot different too. The Portuguese egg tart has a heavy, creamy/ custard-y taste, which, when in your mouth, the eggy part melts together with the greasy crispness of the flaky shell. In contrast, the the Cantonese egg tart is less creamy, and has a texture more similar to steamed egg, or (燉蛋, another Asian egg dessert, but that is another post topic).
Just for fun, I researched the process of making these little yellow delights. Surprisingly, all the recipes I came across were quite simple. Here I’m including links to two recipes I found: Jamie Oliver’s Quick Portuguese Tarts Recipe, and a recipe from an Asian Recipe Website.
I haven’t had the chance to try these recipes yet (even though I’m having trouble keeping my mouth from watering just writing this blog), so if you you’ve made Portuguese tarts before, or if you are going to try one of these recipes, please share your experience in the comment box below!
Happy baking & eating!
These look really good great photo. Stop by and say hi
These just look AMAZING.
Believe me, they don’t just LOOK amazing. When you get a chance, sink your teeth into these and you will find they are amazing for your taste buds as well
Man I hope so! They look to die for. How is life across the pond?
Actually, Im back in the US now…and terribly missing home food :’(
where in the US? I bet!
Orlando, FL… unfortunately, the Chinese selection here is quite sad
ugh i bet. Ill be down In Sarasota soon for spring training. Looking forward to it.
BRB, going to grab some now because you made me so hungry…
Lucky you! You’re making me despise you!
I might go with Hason tonight after Jollibee
Thanks for sharing. I know Hong Kong well and spent time there in the past. I was an English teacher in mainland China for 9 years and was near enough in South China to visit Hong Kong often. Egg tarts are also common in mainland China but, yes, they are different from the Portuguese Egg Tarts.