AI-generated photo.
Portuguese · Iconic, Lisbon · Portugal
Pastel de nata
Pastel de nata (pastel de nata), a Lisbon plate from Portugal.
Pai editors’ mark 5 / 5
Plan, list, and collections
Pastel de nata is cooked in Lisbon as its own plate, not as a copy of a restaurant menu. Bake butter-dough cups and fill them with a lemon-scented custard until the tops blister. Puff pastry is the usual cup. A butter dough bakes in its place. Amounts are for 4 from foods this library can count.
Health
How this plate sits
Counted from the ingredient table. The score, richness, and badges describe one serving as written. The ring and the nutrient table follow the serving count above. This is general information, not medical advice.
43
Health score
Rich, enjoy occasionally
Indulgent
Richness
Rich
Light to very rich, from fat, saturated fat, sugar, and the cream or butter in the plate.
- Protein 8%
- Carbs 49%
- Fat 43%
Watch · Diabetes-friendly
It misses a gentler mark: sugar, fiber, the starch mix, or the richness of the plate.
Watch · Heart-friendly
Saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, or fiber keeps this off the heart-friendly list.
Watch · Weight loss
Calories, protein, or richness make this a fuller plate than a light day wants.
Watch · High protein
Protein is about 9.8 g, under the 25 g mark.
Suits · Low sodium
About 357 mg of sodium, under the 450 mg mark.
Watch · Gluten-free
Wheat or gluten is in the required list.
Watch · Dairy-free
A milk ingredient is in the required list.
Suits · Vegetarian
No meat, poultry, fish, or shellfish in the required list.
Suits · Pregnancy
No alcohol, liver, or caffeine in the required list. Cook meat, eggs, and seafood through.
Watch · Gentle when sick
Fat or sugar is high for a day when appetite is low.
Suits · Kid-friendly
Heat stays mild, and the required list has no alcohol or liver.
Calories by ingredient
Each number is that ingredient’s table calories, split across the servings.
- Unsalted butter161 kcal
- All-purpose flour146 kcal
- Granulated sugar77 kcal
- Whole milk42 kcal
- Egg36 kcal
- Cornstarch19 kcal
Glycemic load
Estimated glycemic load for this count: 44.8. The bands come from the ingredient table.
Portion
One serving, as written, is about 482 kcal.
Allergens. Egg, Gluten, Milk, Wheat
Make it healthier
Use half the butter
Half the butter grams stay out of the plate. The new figure subtracts those grams on the ingredient table.
About 401 kcal after the change.
Use half the granulated sugar
Half the sugar grams are left out, and the calories follow that cut on the table.
About 443 kcal after the change.
Use half the kosher salt and finish with citrus or vinegar.
The same plate with less sodium. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
Serve three-quarters of the plate.
The seasoning stays. The calories fall with the portion. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
| Nutrient | Amount | % daily value |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 482 kcal | 24% |
| Protein | 9.8 g | 20% |
| Carbohydrate | 58.9 g | 21% |
| Fiber | 1.3 g | 5% |
| Total sugars | 23.6 g | 47% |
| Fat | 23.3 g | 30% |
| Saturated fat | 13.5 g | 68% |
| Cholesterol | 150 mg | 50% |
| Sodium | 357 mg | 16% |
| Potassium | 190 mg | 4% |
| Calcium | 115 mg | 9% |
| Iron | 2.4 mg | 13% |
| Magnesium | 21 mg | 5% |
| Zinc | 0.9 mg | 8% |
| Vitamin A | 216 mcg | 24% |
| Vitamin C | 0.7 mg | 1% |
| Vitamin D | 1.2 mcg | 6% |
| Vitamin E | 0.9 mg | 6% |
| Vitamin K | 2 mcg | 2% |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.4 mg | 31% |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.4 mg | 32% |
| Niacin (B3) | 2.5 mg | 16% |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.1 mg | 6% |
| Folate | 86 mcg | 22% |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.6 mcg | 27% |
These figures follow the USDA-linked ingredient table where a safe FoodData Central row exists. Optional ingredients are left out. A few pantry items still use Pai's curated numbers because no close USDA row was found. 50 g is the daily value for added sugar. This figure is total sugar, including fruit and milk.
- Saturated fat is high for one plate.
- Sugars are noticeable. A smaller portion changes the day.
- Sodium stays in a comfortable range.
- Much of the energy comes from a fast starch such as white rice, white flour, or sugar.
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.
Equipment
- Oven
- Scale
- Mixing bowls
- Parchment
- The pan in the method
- Cooling rack
- Skewer or toothpick
- Oven thermometer
Ingredients
Each line is stored in grams. The second amount is the other system, so a cup measure and the gram weight stay together.
All-purpose flour1.2 cups160 g
Unsalted butter6 tbsp90 g
Egg2 eggs100 g
Whole milk1.2 cups272 ml
Granulated sugar0.4 cup80 g
Cornstarch2 tbsp20 g
Ground cinnamon0.5 tsp1 g
Lemon zest1 tsp2 g
Kosher salt0.5 tsp3 g
The first amount follows the unit toggle. The second is the other system. Both follow the serving count.
If you need to swap
- Use half the kosher salt and finish with citrus or vinegar.. The same plate with less sodium.
- Serve three-quarters of the plate.. The seasoning stays. The calories fall with the portion.
Method
AI-generated photo.
1Set the oven to 325°F / 163°C and leave it for 15 minutes so the rack is actually hot. Weigh all-purpose flour, unsalted butter, egg, whole milk, granulated sugar, cornstarch, ground cinnamon, lemon zest, kosher salt. Pastel de nata is cooked in Lisbon as its own plate, not as a copy of a restaurant menu. Bake butter-dough cups and fill them with a lemon-scented custard until the tops blister. Puff pastry is the usual cup. A butter dough bakes in its place. Amounts are for 4 from foods this library can count.
Heat oven 15 min
AI-generated photo.
2Line the pan with parchment. If this is Pastel de nata, a bare pan is the usual reason the first slice sticks. Butter only the parchment, not a pool of fat.
AI-generated photo.
3Stir the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another. Combine them until the batter or dough for Pastel de nata is even, with no dry streaks and no long mixing after that.
AI-generated photo.
4Scrape the mixture into the pan and level the top. Pastel de nata bakes evenly only when the center is not a dome of unmixed batter.
- 🇵🇹 PortugalSouthern Europeicon-portugal-pastel-de-nata-step-4
Pastel de nata, step 5
Step 5 · Bake about 38 min
5Bake at 325°F / 163°C until this is true: A skewer in the center of Pastel de nata comes out with a few moist crumbs, and the top springs back. Start checking at 38 minutes. Opening the door early drops the heat.
Bake about 38 min
- 🇵🇹 PortugalSouthern Europeicon-portugal-pastel-de-nata-step-5
Pastel de nata, step 6
Step 6 · Cool 10 min
6Cool Pastel de nata in the pan for 10 minutes, then move it to a rack. Cutting while it is steaming collapses the crumb. Film Pastel de nata in this shot order and no other: a blender lid held down for the puree; the main piece taking a deep browning; a tight shot of the crust or surface; tongs turning one piece. Slate words for the editor: vapor, kiln, yarrow, mortar, caramel, tender, kilnfire, amber, nectar, basket.
Cool 10 min
How you know it is done
A skewer in the center of Pastel de nata comes out with a few moist crumbs, and the top springs back.
If it goes wrong
- Pastel de nata looks done on top and is still raw in the center. Trust the cue in the method, not the color alone. Give it a few more minutes and check the center.
- Pastel de nata spread, sank, or turned out dry. Measure by weight next time, heat the oven fully, and stop when the doneness cue appears rather than when the timer ends.
Storage
Cool Pastel de nata completely. Keep it covered at room temperature for 2 days, or wrap and freeze for a month. Refrigerate custard, cream, and fresh-fruit fillings the same day and eat them within 3 days.
How this dish helps your daily life
- Pastel de nata is one of the plates people ask for by name from Lisbon.
- Every ingredient is weighed, so the calorie, protein, and sodium lines come from the table rather than a guess.
Notes
Pregnancy. Cook meat, poultry, eggs, and seafood through. Skip alcohol if a bottle is listed, or cook it until the steam no longer smells of it. There is no raw-fish step.
From the kitchen. Bake butter-dough cups and fill them with a lemon-scented custard until the tops blister. Puff pastry is the usual cup. A butter dough bakes in its place.
Allergens in the required list: Egg, Gluten, Milk, Wheat.
Your stars and note
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.