Ethyl 2‐benzyl‐2‐nitro‐3‐phenyl­propanoate

The title compound, C₁₈H₁₉NO₄, is the key synthetic intermediate in the preparation of α,α‐di­benzyl‐α‐amino acid (di­benzyl­glycine, Dbg), the disubstituted homologue of phenyl­alanine, following the di­alkyl­ation of ethyl nitro­acetate. The mol­ecule does not have its potential mirror symmetry in the crystal, with the two benzyl groups forming N—C—C—C torsion angles of 60.31 (13) and 79.89 (13)°.