The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach Asia by sea, indeed the first Europeans to set foot in Cambodia, so it is surprising that more is not known about the depth and range of their culinary impact on the region. If you go to almost any market in Phnom Penh, you will pass the evidence for it every day in the deliciously yellow, dense and creamy egg custard tarts wrapped in a light puff pastry crust you’ll eventually find as you meander along. And we love them so much, we’ve decided to start creating our own at Khéma, where our hardworking bakers have truly perfected them.
In among its famed roast suckling pigs, chestnut dishes, rich soups and puddings, Portugal is especially renowned for its egg-yolk based desserts, including of course the pastéis de nata, or Egg Custard, which is for many the crown jewel of Portuguese delicacies.
Portugal’s famous puddings and sweets can be attributed to its early development of sugarcane agriculture (which came with its colonisation of Madeira), and an intense competition which developed among the kingdom’s convents in what was to become a highly refined art. Obliged to raise funds for their upkeep, the convents were obliged to turn to sweet making, but necessity soon became a powerful driver of invention as the nuns soon felt the pressure to compete with each other over the richness and delicacy of their wares. Their famed egg yolk-based dishes came about thanks to the surplus of yolks left over from using the whites for starching and pressing clothes.
The most famous of these was the pastéis de nata de Belem, a custard tart made by the nuns of the Jeronimo monastery in the Belem district of Lisbon — a commercial bakery still makes them in the same suburb today, using a centuries’ old secret recipe reportedly known to only three people.
It is part of the nature of national and regional cuisines that they are fed and influenced by the tastes and talents of others. The egg tart that has made its way into hearts Cambodian, Chinese and Macanese hearts via the influence of the Portuguese was itself introduced to the Portuguese by the Sephardic Jews who had in turn had been influenced by the Arabs who conquered Spain and brought with them their mastery of refining and cooking sugar to create delicacies for royalty and the most wealthy.
So the Egg Custard is not just a delicious snack, to be enjoyed on its own or with a soothing cup of tea or bracing cup of coffee, it is a symbol of the world and the ways we are all connected, one way or another. Khéma’s own Phnom Penh Egg Tart will be soon available, stay tuned!
