We are in Hong Kong for Chinese New Year! Parades, light shows, and lots of great food are in store for these three days! Street food here is AMAZING and one of the most traditional street foods happens to be a dessert – egg custard tarts. Try these delectable treats when they are still warm from the oven!
The Recipe
by volume                                 by weight
1x recipe 1-2-3 cookie dough            375 grams 1-2-3 cookie dough
1/2 cup sugar                             99 grams sugar
1 cup hot water                           240 grams hot water
3 large eggs                              204 grams eggs
1/2 cup evaporated milk                 120 grams evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla                        4 grams vanilla
Directions
Heat the oven to 400F. Line the tart shells with the 1-2-3 cookie dough.
Mix the sugar with the hot water and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Stir in the evaporated milk and the vanilla.
Whisk the eggs well and then whisk in the milk mixture.
Strain the mixture in to a measuring cup with a spout or another container that will make the liquid easy to pour. Straining makes sure the custards are completely smooth with no weird eggy bits and it also gets rid of all the surface bubbles.
Place the tart shells on a baking sheet and fill almost to the top. Be careful not to spill any custard over the edge of the tart shell or it will make it difficult to remove from the pan. The best way to prevent this is to fill the tarts once they are in the oven. This way, it isn’t necessary to move the pan once the tarts are full.
Bake for 10 minutes and then turn the oven down to 350F and bake for an additional 15 minutes until the custards are just set in the middle.
Serve warm (the best!) or cool completely. The custards will souffle slightly while they bake and will settle as they cool.
Alternatives
Hong Kong egg custard tarts can also be made with a puff pastry crust if you prefer and both variations can be found on the streets of Hong Kong. Simply line the tart pans with puff pastry instead of the cookie dough and proceed according to the directions.
The Hong Kong egg custard tarts I made are not in the traditional shape. If you are a purist, buy individual pie tins with sloping sides and yours will look and taste like those in Hong Kong!
