Hong Kong Style Egg Tarts

An Elegant Classic

Welcome to this week’s issue of Whisked Away. This recipe is a simple and delicious one – Hong Kong Style Egg Tarts. If you haven’t had Hong Kong Style Egg Tarts, you are in for a treat! They are small, buttery and flaky tarts filled with divine rich egg custard. You can find them throughout Hong Kong in bakeries, dim sum restaurants and cha chaan tengs (Hong Kong-style diners). They are also common in bakeries all over Asia and are a crowd favourite all around the world.

Egg tarts have a rich history dating back to the early 20th century. They were inspired by the Portuguese pastel de nata and the English custard tart, which were brought to Hong Kong during the colonial era. Over time, the recipe was adapted to suit local tastes, resulting in the iconic Hong Kong style we have today. Egg tarts are a must-have at the end of every dim sum meal.

There are two common types of tart shells used in making Hong Kong-style egg tarts: a crisp and buttery tart shell and a flaky, puff pastry tart shell. In this recipe, we are making the crisp and buttery tart shell.

Hong Kong Style Egg Tarts

Makes 10 egg tarts

Equipment:

10 Mini Tart Cups, 8cm diameter and 2cm tall, greased with unsalted butter (I used disposable aluminium ones but you can use regular ones)

Egg Custard Filling

115g Whole Eggs, beaten

50g Evaporated Milk, cold

2g Vanilla Extract

1g Fine Salt

40g Caster Sugar

135g Hot Water

Tart Crust

85g Unsalted Butter, softened

30g Icing Sugar

13g Whole Eggs, beaten

9g Evaporated Milk

3g Vanilla Extract

2g Fine Salt

140g Cake Flour

Egg Custard Filling

1.     In a bowl, gently whisk 3 eggs until smooth, avoiding large bubbles.

2.     In another bowl, add the caster sugar and hot water. Mix until the sugar has been completely melted.

3.     Add the cold evaporated milk into the sugar mixture and stir to combine. Let cool slightly – 5 minutes.

4.     Pour 115g of the beaten eggs and the vanilla extract into the sugar and milk mixture then mix gently to combine. Reserve 13g of the beaten egg for the tart crust. The rest can be used in other recipes.

5.     Pass the egg custard mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a measuring cup. Repeat two more times. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 4 hours up to overnight. The longer rest time improves the flavour.

Tart Crust

1.     Add the softened butter and icing sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer or a hand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium-low speed until the butter and icing sugar is well combined and lighter in colour – 2 to 3 minutes.

2.     Add the vanilla extract and salt then continue beating on medium-low speed until well combined – about 1 minute.

3.     Add the beaten eggs and evaporated milk then continue beating on medium-low speed until well combined – about 1 minute. Scrap the sides of the bowl.

4.     Sift in the cake flour. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the flour into the butter mixture until a dough forms and no white spots of flour remain.

5.     Transfer the dough onto a piece of cling film and shape it into a rough log. Wrap it and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Assembly & Baking

1.     Brush the tart cups with softened unsalted butter.

2.     Weigh out and divide the refrigerated dough into 10 equal pieces. Then roll the dough into balls.

3.     Take one dough ball and place it in the centre of a tart cup. Press with your thumb and rotate the tart cup with your other hand to create the tart shell. Try to make the dough thickness as uniform as possible, avoiding a thick bottom. Repeat this process for the rest of the tart cups. Refrigerate the tart shells until firm 15 – 20 minutes.

4.     Preheat the oven to 220C.

5.     Stir the chilled custard mixture then pour into the firm tart shells until they are about 80% full.

6.     Bake the egg tarts for 12 minutes on the lowest oven rack. Then, turn off the oven and let the remaining heat bake the egg tarts for an additional 3 minutes. The tart shell should be golden brown, and the egg custard should be slightly puffed up without taking on any color from baking. Once done, take the tarts out of the oven and allow them to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before removing them from the tart cups and serving.

7.     Enjoy!