Egg tart facts for kids
Different variations of egg tarts
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| Alternative names | Daahn tāat; po tat |
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| Type | Pastry |
| Course | Dessert, snack |
| Place of origin | Guangzhou, China |
| Main ingredients | Flour, butter, sugar, egg, custard, milk |
| Egg tart | |||||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 蛋撻 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 蛋挞 | ||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | egg tart | ||||||||||||
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The egg tart (traditional Chinese: 蛋撻; simplified Chinese: 蛋挞; Mandarin Pinyin: dàntǎ (in Mandarin); Jyutping: daan6 taat1; Cantonese Yale: daahn tāat) is a yummy custard tart. You can find it in Cantonese cuisine, which is a type of Chinese cooking. This tasty treat got its start from the English custard tart and the Portuguese pastel de nata. An egg tart has a crispy outer pastry shell filled with a sweet, creamy egg custard. People often eat egg tarts at dim sum restaurants and cha chaan tengs (which are like casual diners).
Contents
History of Egg Tarts
Egg tarts first appeared in the early 1900s in Guangzhou, a city in Guangdong province, China. They were inspired by the English custard tart. Guangzhou was a very important port city. It was the only place where foreign traders could do business in China. This meant that Cantonese food got many ideas from other countries.
As Guangzhou's economy grew, pastry chefs in big Western-style department stores wanted to attract more customers. They were asked to create new pastries every week! The egg tart was one of these new inventions. It had a pastry crust made with lard and a filling similar to steamed egg pudding. A restaurant called Zhen Guang in Guangzhou is also famous for inventing the Chinese egg tart.
Macau was a Portuguese colony for a long time. This is why Macau-style egg tarts are a bit like the Portuguese pastel de nata. But they also got some ideas from the Guangzhou-style egg tarts.
Different Kinds of Egg Tarts
Hong Kong Egg Tarts
Egg tarts came to Hong Kong from Guangzhou in the 1940s. At first, you could only find them in fancy Western restaurants. But in the 1960s, cha chaan tengs started selling them. This made egg tarts very popular with everyday people in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong egg tarts are usually smaller than the original Guangzhou ones. They are often served in groups of two or three. The creamy filling can have different flavors like chocolate, green tea, or even bird's nest. The outer crust can be made with shortcrust pastry (which is crumbly) or puff pastry (which is flaky).
In 2014, the way egg tarts are made in Hong Kong became part of Hong Kong's special cultural heritage. This means it's an important tradition to keep!
Macau Egg Tarts
In 1989, a British baker named Andrew Stow and his wife Margaret Wong opened Lord Stow's Bakery in Coloane, Macau. They created a Macau-style egg tart that was similar to the Portuguese pastel de nata. In Chinese, this type of tart is called po tat (葡撻; 'Portuguese tart').
Later, in 1999, Margaret Wong sold the recipe to KFC. This is how the Macau-style egg tart became famous in other parts of Asia, like Singapore and Taiwan.
What makes the Macau-style egg tart special is its top. Unlike the Hong Kong style, the Macau egg tart has a slightly burnt, caramelized (browned and sugary) top.
Images for kids
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Hong Kong-style egg tart
See also
In Spanish: Tartaleta de huevo para niños
