Nando's / Pasteis de Nata

Foodies love it; food snobs loathe it. Granted, you now find them in 29 countries (including Qatar, Fiji, and Botswana), and with around 50 restaurants in London alone, it's hard to hide from that all peri-peri goodness. In fact, until recently I lived right opposite a Nando's, with another branch within 3 minutes' walk, just for good measure.

Despite the chain's omnipresence, it's hard to deny: their chicken tastes darn great. Finger lickin' good, even, except that it's a nice enough place to feel obliged to use cutlery provided. At least for the first ten seconds.

And to anyone who cares to diss the food:  Did you eat the 'real' chicken? None of this chicken-breast-in-a-wrap nonsense -- after all, everyone knows the best eatin' is in the leg/thigh/back zone. If you still don't like Nando's, then congratulations: you're either a certifiable food snob (so can look down on the rest of us in cheerful disdain) or you have no tastebuds (which means a hell of a saving on your food costs).

Speaking of cheap, Nando's reasonable prices are only part of the allure. The fast-food-like service -- queue-to-order, bottomless soft drinks, and help-yourself cutlery, napkins, and sauces -- makes it a welcome halfway house between KFC and 'proper' restaurants, especially for anyone too young to carry ID, while the decor and ambiance (latin music, bright earthy colours, eclectic ornaments) keep the tone upmarket enough to maintain near-universal appeal.

In fact, Nando's is apparently now the venue of choice for the cream of the UK's young hip urban crowd. According to this recent Observer article: What's unique about Nando's in the UK, however, is its status with the city youth. Over the past few years, the UK charts have been transformed by British-born urban pop artists, such as Chipmunk, Tinchy Stryder, Dizzee Rascal, N-Dubz, JLS, Taio Cruz… and every one of these No 1 artists is a Nando's lover.

Who knew?

On to today's tenuous link: Portuguese egg custard tarts, aka pasteis de nata. I've only ever had these at Nando's -- anyone know somewhere in London that sells them? -- but I can't get enough of the crisp flaky pastry, silky filling, and, of course, the burnt bits.

A hunt round the internet throws up a handful of recipes, but most called for puff pasty (which I tried with less-than-all-round success in the pic above) or shortcrust, neither of which seem to fit the bill. Next stop: filo.

So if anyone has a killer pasteis de nata recipe, please share the love. I might even treat you to a free half-chicken (yay, Nando's loyalty cards) in return. But just be warned: I'll be wanting the leg.

Comments

[Charmaine M.]

You must try the pasteis de nata at Kaffeine, a coffee shop on Great Titchfield St. I was surprised by just how good they were - creamy, dense, not too sweet, flakey pastry. I've also heard Lisboa Cafe is a classic for them but I've not been myself.

[JenJen]

Ooo, will check them both out - thanks!

[clumbsycookie]

Hi! I'm Portuguese and it always makes me happy when I read someone talk about our Pasteis de Nata. I'm leaving here the link to a post on my blog where you can find the recipe for the custard itself. The secret for really good pasteis de nata is to have you oven the hottest possible. Good luck, and let me know if you try it! http://clumbsycookie.blogspot.com/2009/09/vols-au-vent-meet-portuguese-custard.html

[Shiruko99]

i never knew nando's did these! i totally fell in love with them in singapore and found some at borough market last week (a little dense for my taste) and at a pinch, patisserie valerie has them.

there's also some portugese bakeries in west london i'm yet to try, or for an asian variation maybe head to chinatown: http://thisisnaive.com/?p=2939 (they look lovely but not nearly burnt enough on top!)

i look forward to your attempt!

[JenJen]

clumbsycookie - thanks for the recipe - those vol-au-vent-tarts are so cute!

Shiruko - chinese egg tarts are great too, I don't think I could choose between the two. Will work on my pasteis de nata before moving on to the other type... =)

[Maria-Venetia Kyritsi]

I've had quite successfull attempts at making them at home, actually my first blog post was about them, as I love them so much! You can see the recipe here: http://dulcisfundo.blogspot.com/2010/04/pasteis-de-nata-portuguese-custard.html

They also sell them in the Borough Market in one of the cake/sweets stands, they're quite nice, if you're passing by, buy a couple and try them. I'm quite lucky to work near the market, so I always get something new to try every week (and subsequently I'm getting bigger and bigger :oP)

[jo]

Try using Wonton pastry - should work a treat, i've used puff pastry making these before and wasn't a great experience. Had one of them in Nandos the other week however and realised its wonton pastry - the type that you may find in a chinese restaurant!