Tarta de jamón y queso
In my years exploring Argentine kitchens, I've found that the tarta de jamón y queso is the undisputed champion of the everyday table, a humble yet deeply comforting centerpiece I frequently rely on for weekend lunches and quick weeknight dinners. When you buy the shop-bought frozen versions from the supermarket, you are paying a premium—often upwards of three dollars a portion—for a product I find fundamentally flawed. Those commercial tartas rely heavily on palm oil, chemical preservatives, and a soggy, cardboard-like crust that tastes of nothing but salt and artificial cheese flavor. By contrast, I believe making this tart from scratch is a revelation. Crafting your own masa quebrada takes me barely twenty minutes and yields a buttery, tender pastry that shatters beautifully against the rich, savory custard. The secret I always share is keeping ingredients ice-cold and resisting the urge to overwork the dough, which is the most common pitfall that leads to a tough, chewy crust. Another frequent mistake I see is overbaking the filling; the custard should still have a slight wobble in the center when it comes out of the oven, as it will continue to set while cooling. This from-scratch approach transforms a mass-produced convenience food into a genuine culinary triumph, offering a flaky, golden vessel for high-quality diced ham and a melting, gooey cheese filling that actually tastes like real dairy. It is a simple act of cooking that allows me to reclaim our daily meals from the industrial freezer aisle.
Nutrition
| Per serving | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fat | Sat fat | Fibre | Sugar | Sodium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| beginner | 884kcal | 36g | 53g | 58g | 35g | 2g | 4g | 1328mg |
| intermediate | 599kcal | 25g | 37g | 39g | 23g | 2g | 4g | 886mg |
| expert | 589kcal | 24g | 35g | 39g | 23g | 1g | 3g | 885mg |
Per serving · Ava-estimated — a guide, not a clinical figure.
- 250 gplain flour— common wheat flour
- 125 gbutter— cold and cut into small cubes
- 5 gsalt— fine salt
- 60 mlice-cold water— very cold water
- 200 gcooked ham— diced
- 200 gcheese— diced, such as mozzarella or tybo
- 3 pieceegg— large
- 150 mlmilk— whole milk
- 100 mlheavy cream— heavy cream
- 2 gnutmeg(optional)— ground
- 2 gblack pepper— freshly ground
- 150 gonion
- 2 pieceyolks
This beginner-friendly tarta de jamón y queso skips the intimidating laminated dough of traditional recipes in favor of a forgiving, press-in shortcrust that requires zero chilling, making your first from-scratch tart a confident success. Shop-bought frozen quiches typically cost around $4 to $6 each, but they are riddled with palm oil, artificial preservatives, and processed cheese analogues that leave you with a soggy, flavorless crust and a rubbery filling. By making the pastry and custard from scratch using real butter, fresh eggs, and quality Argentine tybo or mozzarella cheese, you achieve a vastly superior, flaky texture and rich flavor for a fraction of the cost per slice. Watch your pastry thickness; pressing it too thin in the corners will lead to tearing, while going too thick makes it doughy. Keep your butter cold when mixing the dough to ensure a tender, flaky bite rather than a tough crust. This simplified approach guarantees a beautiful, rustic tart that proves from-scratch cooking is both accessible and deeply rewarding.
Equipment
- 9-inch tart pan— a removable bottom makes unmolding much easier
- Large mixing bowl— glass or stainless steel helps keep the butter cold
- Whisk— for a perfectly smooth custard
Method
- 1
Combine flour and cold cubed butter in a large bowl, rubbing them together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
Work quickly to prevent the butter from melting.
rubbing in~ 5 min - 2
Sprinkle ice-cold water over the mixture a tablespoon at a time, gently bringing the dough together until it forms a cohesive ball, then press it evenly into the bottom and sides of the tart pan.
Do not overwork the dough, or the pastry will become tough.
binding~ 5 minTricky bit - 3
Whisk the eggs, milk, a pinch of salt, and freshly grated nutmeg together in a separate bowl until completely smooth and uniform.
Straining the custard through a fine sieve guarantees a silky texture.
whisking~ 2 min - 4
Layer the diced ham and grated cheese evenly over the bottom of the unbaked pastry shell, then carefully pour the egg custard over the top.
Leave a small gap at the very top to prevent spilling in the oven.
layering~ 3 min - 5
Bake the tart in a preheated oven until the pastry is golden brown and the custard is set with a slight jiggle in the very center.
Let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing so the filling firms up.
baking~ 45 min
Cooking from frozen
Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in a hot oven to restore the pastry's crispness.
Storage times are a guide — always use your judgement and store food safely.