Pastel de Nata Cooking Class, Lisbon – How to Make Portugal’s Iconic Dessert

Wandering the cobbled streets of Lisbon, the sweet smell of cinnamon and warm custard drifts from the many local bakeries that sell its legendary dessert. If you’ve ever tasted a pastel de nata, a rich, creamy Portuguese custard tart, you know it’s more than just any old treat. On a recent trip to Lisbon, I decided to go beyond just eating them and actually learn how to make them. So I signed up for a pastel de nata cooking class. Spoiler: it’s not as hard as it looks to make them.

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What Is So Special About Pastel De Nata?

First things first: ONE pastel de nata, multiple pastéis de nata. But language lesson aside, there’s a reason people seek out pastéis de nata when visiting the delicious dessert’s birthplace.

It’s the perfect balance of textures and flavors: a crisp, buttery pastry shell filled with silky-smooth custard, lightly caramelized on top and dusted with just a hint of cinnamon or powdered sugar. Makes you want one already, right?!

Don’t worry, you won’t need to go far to find some on your travels, no matter where in Portugal you are. But especially in Lisbon where it seems everyone has tried their hardest to recreate the original iconic tart.

If this isn’t your favorite treat by the time you leave Portugal, you may not be welcomed back. Well, you will, because the Portuguese are wonderful, friendly people. Just don’t dismiss their popular pastel de nata in front of them.

How Much Is A Pastel De Nata Cooking Class In Lisbon?

A pastel de nata cooking class in Lisbon typically costs around €50 per person. There are sometimes cheaper ones, but it isn’t always as easy to find them. For most expect to pay €50 or more, especially since this activity is growing in popularity.

The amazing pastel de nata cooking class I took at Homecooking Lisbon was €50. It was 2 hours long and included all instruction to create 6 of my own pastéis de nata (2 to eat there and 4 to take home). Drinks (water, beer, soda, hot drinks) were also included, and there was an optional local liqueur tasting included too.

While it’s true that you can buy 6 pastéis de nata for under €10, a class will help you make them at home – where you can’t always buy them. As a solo traveler I also enjoyed a fun activity where I got to meet other pastry-loving travelers.

Are These Cooking Classes Only In Lisbon?

Not at all. If you’re spending more time in Portugal than just the capital, take a look for other cooking classes while you’re traveling. My trip to Portugal included Lisbon and Faro (in the southern Algarve). Of the two places, only Lisbon offered a pastel de nata cooking class, so I had to find a way to fit into my itinerary there.

If you’re lucky enough to be able to include the more northern city of Porto in your travel plans, you can also take a class there. In fact, during my research I found that a pastel de nata cooking class in Porto was cheaper than those in Lisbon. There you’re more likely to pay €28-40 making it a much more budget friendly option.

In the Algarve I found classes in Lagos, but not in many other places. For that reason I’d make sure to book your class in Lisbon or Porto to avoid disappointment at lack of options.

Where Are The Classes Held?

While the odd cooking class may be held in a private home, for example with the popular company WithLocals, most are in a professional kitchen or studio.

The great thing about a cooking class in a professional workshop studio: lots of space, and usually someone else to do the washing up.

The class I took at Homecooking Lisbon was in a large kitchen studio. There were 14 people in my pastel de nata cooking class in Lisbon, and another class started half an hour later with a similar number of people in.

Given that it was a professional kitchen, over 80 pastéis de nata were cooked almost at the same time – meaning no waiting around to enjoy them.

Top Tips For A Pastel De Nata Cooking Class

I love taking cooking classes while traveling. I’ve taken many cooking classes on my travels including Thai cooking in Chiang Mai, and a French éclair class in Paris. Neither were as popular as the pastel de nata cooking class in Lisbon. So what are some thing you might need to know?

• Cooking classes run multiple times a day at most studios – Pick the one best for you. A later class is often good for solo travelers who struggle to fill in evenings, and be aware of where in the city your class is and how this might fit into your itinerary.
• Bring your appetite – You’ll eat a couple of your heavenly creations in the class, and these rich little pastries can be quite filling.
• Participants will be paired up – This way you can share the cooking tasks and workstations. Because of this, solo travelers (like me) will often be paired with other solo participants. Nothing bonds strangers more than making delicious pastries together.
• Cooking classes will be popular – Book in advance, and prepare for a full class. Even a week before my visit one of the places I looked at booking was already sold out. And if you’re not here long you don’t want to be disappointed and miss out.
• You’ll have leftovers – Which is the best part. Great news for those staying in hotels – your pastéis de nata don’t need to be refrigerated. Not that they’ll probably last too long anyway. At one point in my trip I ate 6 in one day!

Making Your Pastéis De Nata

One of the highlights of my trip to Lisbon was taking a pastel de nata cooking class and learning how to make them from scratch. Imaging having a local master share the art of making these indulgent tarts with their rich, creamy custard. Here’s what you can expect from the experience.

THE HISTORY

What really makes a pastel de nata special is the way it’s rooted in Portuguese history. The tarts were originally created by monks in Lisbon centuries ago with leftover egg yolks. The rest of the eggs being used for starching clothes.

Waste not want not, after all. Otherwise the yolks would have gone to waste or gone bad before they could be used. Every bite carries a bit of that story, or so our workshop teacher told us.

The original pastel de nata was made at the Jerónimos Monastery in Belém, Lisbon. When the monastery closed they sold their unique recipe to a nearby sugar refinery who started making and selling the custard tarts.

You can sample the original recipe tarts at Pastéis de Belém near the monastery. Since then, many have tried to recreate the recipe and have differing, but still delicious, versions of them.

THE PASTRY

The messiest and most repetitive part of making your own pastéis de nata. But since making puff pastry is a skill in itself, this will set you up for success with other recipes in the future. This was, admittedly, my first time making puff pastry from scratch (I usually cheat and buy pre-made).

A ball of pre-made pastry (flour and water mixed) needs to be rolled out. A block of softened butter or margarine is then placed on top, and the pastry folded over it. Now you will begin rolling. Over and over again, folding the pastry as you go until you end up with a dozen or more layers.

Now for the fun part – rolling up the pastry into a long sausage shape. Why is this fun, you ask? Because after you’ve done this you get to cut it into evenly spaced discs of dough which is why you can really see the magic of the layering. New life skill acquired, you now know how to make puff pastry!

THE FILLING

The pastry is good and all, but let’s face it, the sweet custard filling is the star of the show when making pastéis de nata. One of your arms might be ready for the biggest workout of the day, so be prepared.

A little cold milk combined with a flour and cornstarch mix starts you off. The rest of your milk is heated until it looks like it’s about to boil over the pan. Don’t let it. But then mix in the rest of this with the flour paste, followed by a cinnamon spiced sugar syrup mixture and some egg yolks. Then whisk like your life depends on it.

If you’ve done this right you’ll end up with a thickened (but still runny) custard mixture. While the pastry making took a lot of muscle, the filling was the most stressful part to get right. But with a pro walking you through it, it’s easy as pie custard tarts.

THE ASSEMBLING

Now for the fun part. Taking the little discs of buttery pastry goodness we pressed them into a baking tray, making a dozen little pastry shells. The important part to remember here is to take the pastry higher than you think because it will shrink while baking.

Next we poured the custard mixture to the pastry cases all the way up to the top. Once we’d made it this far we were feeling pretty confident in our newfound pastel de nata skills. Off into the oven everything went, and a moment to relax.

One thing I liked about Homecooking Lisbon is that they put the tarts into the oven in a particular order so that you can be sure the tarts you get to sample are the ones you made.

THE EATING

Ding goes the oven and the excitement in the room is at an all time high. While the end goal of our pastel de nata cooking class is almost realized, there’s a final step. We have to let the tarts cool a bit – possibly the longest wait of my life.

Plates ready, we’re called up group by group to get two of our deliciously warm tarts. The table is set with some icing sugar and ground cinnamon to dust over the top of our pastéis de nata custard tarts. Don’t skip this step for maximum flavor.

The quietest your class will be over the 2-hour workshop will be when the tarts are passed around – save for a few yummy noises of course.

At the class I took we had a choice of different local liqueurs to sample alongside our tarts. Full size drinks such as soft drinks, coffees and beer were also available. If you’re curious about Portuguese port wine, the popular sweet Ginja cherry liqueur or maybe a Portuguese almond liqueur, now is the time to try them.

Where Else Can You Find Good Pastel De Nata In Lisbon?

Absolutely everywhere. There isn’t a bakery that doesn’t have their own variation of the country’s most popular treat. While trying them might be trial and error, there are a few signs to watch out.

• Buy at a Pasteleria – That is a place that specializes in pastéis de nata. If it’s their signature treat, the odds are high they are better than average.
• Pre-packaged is a big no-no – No fresh pastéis de nata on sale? Best to move on. It could be that they just buy them in, or worse, that they’re mass produced and made from frozen.
• Anywhere with a line – If there’s a lot of people, there’s a high turnover of product, meaning ultimate freshness. Not a guarantee they’ll be the best, but a good chance at least.
• Bakers in view – Spy someone actually making the glorious pastéis de nata before your very eyes? This at least shows they’re made on site, and they have a high probability of being extra amazing.

Other than the must-visit Pastéis de Belém (the original), a couple others I really enjoyed that are worth trying are Manteigaria and Castro Atelier de Pastéis de Nata.

TOP TRAVEL TIP: Are you vegan and worried you can’t try a pastel de nata? Fear not, there are even some top rated vegan versions in Lisbon such as Vegan Nata Chiado, and a vegan option at Nat’elier.

Is A Pastel De Nata Class Worth Doing?

If you’re visiting Lisbon and have a sweet tooth, taking a pastel de nata cooking class is a must-do experience. It’s a fun, hands-on way to learn how to make Portugal’s most famous custard tart. And you get to eat your delicious creations fresh from the oven. Although waiting for them to cool enough really tested my patience.

The best part is that also get to learn from a local and hear more about the world famous pastries. For me, it really helped understand the effort that goes into making them – and I left thinking I could probably make some more when I got home.

I found the workshop a unique way to connect with a Portuguese tradition beyond what you find at the usual sightseeing activities.

Whether you’re a foodie, a traveler, or just love pastries, a pastel de nata cooking class in Lisbon is a sweet experience well worth a couple of hours of your time.

If you’ve enjoyed this post leave a comment or share using the social media buttons below. Have you taken a pastel de nata cooking class in Lisbon or anywhere else in Portugal? Would this activity be on your travel bucket list?