Portuguese Egg Tart

The Portuguese egg tart is a small tart of puff pastry filled with egg custard and baked at high heat so the surface develops caramelised spots; the shell is crisp and flaky, the filling silky and sweet, and warm from the oven its milk and caramel notes mingle, Macau's most iconic dessert.

It is said that in 1989 the British baker Andrew Stow and Margaret founded Lord Stow's Bakery in Coloane, adapting the traditional Portuguese pastel de nata into a puff-pastry version and creating the Macau egg tart; after the two parted ways Margaret opened Margaret's Café e Nata on the Macau Peninsula and in 1998 sold the recipe to KFC, carrying the tart to worldwide fame.

Best eaten warm straight from the oven, it is usually taken as an afternoon tea or street sweet, the first bite showering pastry and flowing custard; locals often pair it with a milk tea or coffee.

The many-layered flaky pastry, the caramel freckles on top and the rich eggy custard set it apart from the Hong Kong-style tart and make it synonymous with Macau sweets.