Pudim Abade de Priscos is the most audacious dessert in the Portuguese canon: a caramel-glazed pudding of fifteen egg yolks, sugar syrup, Port wine — and bacon fat. Invented by the Abbot of Priscos, the celebrated priest-gourmet of 19th-century Minho, it sounds improbable and tastes like silk.
The lard is not a gimmick: it gives the pudding a depth and gloss no butter can match, while the Port and cinnamon keep everything perfumed and elegant. Nobody guesses the secret ingredient; everybody asks for seconds.
It is also a masterclass in Portuguese egg-yolk cookery — the same conventual tradition behind encharcada and pudim flan, taken to its most luxurious conclusion. Save the whites for farófias.
Pudim Abade de Priscos Recipe
Prep time: 20 minutes (plus 4+ hours chilling) · Cook time: about 1 hour 40 minutes · Total: about 2 hours active · Servings: 8 · Calories: ~414 per serving
Ingredients
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1¾ cups water
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 large strip lemon peel (no white pith)
- 1 tablespoon bacon fat or lard
- 15 large egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons Port wine
- ½ cup granulated sugar, for the caramel
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and lightly grease a pudding mold or Bundt pan.
- Combine the sugar, water, cinnamon, lemon peel and bacon fat in a saucepan. Heat until the sugar dissolves, then simmer gently 10 minutes. Cool slightly.
- Whisk the yolks until smooth, then gradually whisk in the warm syrup. Add the Port.
- Melt the ½ cup sugar in a small pan into a golden caramel and swirl it around the bottom of the mold.
- Strain the egg mixture through a fine sieve into the caramel-lined mold.
- Cover with foil, set in a larger dish, and add hot water halfway up the sides.
- Bake about 1½ hours, until set with a slight jiggle at the center.
- Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Run a knife around the edge, invert onto a plate, and let the caramel cascade. Slice thin — it is rich.
Recipe Notes
- The original recipe from Braga uses presunto fat — if you have Iberian ham fat, use it and ascend.
- Straining the mixture is non-negotiable for the glass-smooth texture.
- Thin slices: this pudding is intense by design, and better for it.
I have no idea what “caramelizing your mold” means. Can you expand on that?
Yes, caramelizing the mold is a technique used in making desserts such as flan or crème caramel. It involves melting sugar in a saucepan until it turns into a golden-brown liquid caramel. The caramel is then poured into the mold and swirled around to coat the bottom and sides before adding the other ingredients. This creates a delicious caramel layer on top of the dessert once it’s unmolded.
The bacon surprised me but is an interesting twist I would like to try. However, I need more information on the bacon. Smoked or unsmoked.? Thick cut or thin? Finely diced or left fairly chunky? How come you can’t see any trace of it the photos or are we to remove the cinnamon stick, lemon peel AND the bacon before adding to the egg yokes and port? Thanks
Hello Justin!
Your comment made me realize that the Abade de Priscos pudding recipe is not clear enough. I promise I’ll fix it.
Answering your questions:
1. It must be unsmoked.
2. It must have a good dose of fat.
3. It must be cut into very thin strips.
4. It has to boil for a few minutes together with the cinnamon stick and lemon peel. To know when it’s ready, touch the syrup with your index finger and then stick it to your thumb. Then spread the two fingers apart. If a thread forms between the two fingers, it means it is ready.
5. Remove the syrup from the heat and pass it through a strainer to remove the cinnamon stick, lemon peel and traces of bacon.
Hope this helps!
Maria
Fast response Maria!
All now totally clear. Thanks.
Do you have a traditional Portuguese receipt that uses 15 egg whites? if not I guess it will have to be meringues on the side or a white bacon omelette also using up the left over bacon.
You can try this one:
https://mariascookbook.com/portuguese-molotof-pudding/
Hi Maria, I would like to know which temperature I should preheat the oven to.
Hi Nicole!
180ºC (360ºF).