custard egg tarts
2 min readWhen we were younger, dan tat were Julie’s absolute favourite dim sum with their irresistibly waat(silky smooth)custard and gazillion layers of soung (loose and crumbly)pastry.Duringa family trip to Guangzhou we had yum cha at the same restaurant every day, but on one occa-sion the dan tat had been taken off the menu. Not one to be deterred by ‘staff only’entrances,our beloved and larger than life gou yeh poh(ninth great aunt)took little Julie by the hand and marched into the kitchen to demand answers .. needless to say, 15 minutes later the dim sum carts were all sunny yellow with the unmistakable smell of freshly baked tarts wafting through the air.
Makes 14 for the butter dough 80g cold unsalted butter 100g plain flour 120g cold lard or vegetable shortening for the water dough 125g plain flour, plus extra for dusting 14 egg (about 15g),beaten 1 tbsp granulated sugar tsp salt 7g cold lard or vegetable shortening for the filling 120ml full-fat milk 40g granulated sugar 4% tsp vanilla extract 1 egg 1 For the butter dough, use a fork or pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour until evenly distrib-cling film and fold into an 18 x 18cm square. Squeeze the dough into the corners of the square until it takes on the shape, and flatten evenly with your palms. The slab should be about 0.5cm thick.
Chill for 30 minutes. 2 For the water dough, put the flour, beaten egg, sugar salt and lard into a medium bowl. Add 40ml cold water and stir until it forms a dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and use the heels of your palms to bring the mixture together, kneading lightly until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.
3 Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Gently heat the milk sugar and vanilla in a small saucepan for 5-8 minutes until the sugar has melted, then leave to cool. Stir the beaten eggs into the cooled milk mixture and strain through a sieve twice. Set aside 4 Roll the water dough out onto a lightly floured surface into a 20 x 40cm rectangle. Place the flatter square of butter dough into the centre of the rectangle. Fold in the overhanging flaps of water ed dough to wrap around the butter dough. Roll into a 20 x 40cm rectangle. Fold in half to form a square, then in half again to form a rough 10x 20cm rectangle. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes.
5 Roll the chilled dough into a 20 x 40cm rectangle, fold into thirds, chill for 20 minutes, then repeat.
