Rasgulla is a sweet, spongy and juice milk-based dessert loved by people in India. These small syrupy balls are not only delicious but also very addictive. So, if you want to make a few rasgullas for your family or for yourself, here is a recipe you can rely on.
Homemade Rasgulla
Ingredients you’ll need:
- Around 4 cups of milk (preferably full fat)
- 3 tablespoons of lemon juice (Alternative option: vinegar)
- A few ice cubes or 1 liter of ice water
Ingredients for the sugar syrup:
- 1 ¼ cups of refined white sugar
- 4 cups of water
- 3 elaichi (green cardamom pods)
- 1 pinch of kesar (saffron strands)
- 1 teaspoon of rose water (optional)
Instructions to make the chenna:
Step 1: Rinse a utensil and pour the milk. Bring the milk to a boil over a medium-high heat. And, to prevent a layer of cream from forming on top, keep stirring.
Step 2: If you are using homogenized milk, add two or three tablespoons of lemon juice or vinegar to the milk when it’s about to come to a boil. But, if you are using non-homogenized milk, do not add lemon juice or vinegar to the boiling milk. Once boiled, keep the utensil aside, wait for 5 minutes and then add the lemon juice.
Step 3: Now, you got to keep stirring and you’ll notice the milk will start to curdle. Putt off the stove and stir until the milk curdles completely. If it doesn’t, you can add another tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar.
Step 4: Adding the ice cubes or ice water will prevent the cheese from further cooking and let it stay soft.
Step 5: After 2 minutes, pour the mixture to a colander lined with a thin cloth. To remove the lemon or vinegar flavor, it is important to rinse it well.
Step 6: Next, the chenna should be wrapped properly and rinsed under running water.
Step 7: Once you’ve made a knot with the cloth, squeeze it as hard as possible to remove excess water. Leave it for 1 to 1 ½ hours.
Note: After draining, the chenna must be moist as any excess water might disintegrate the chenna in the sugar syrup.
If you want to test out to know if your chenna has the right amount of moisture in it, take a small portion of it in your fingers and smudge it gently to a smooth chopping board. Remember, it has to be crumbly and non-sticky. Of course, the texture might vary if you use non-homogenized milk.
Step 8: Now, start kneading the entire chenna with your fingers. Knead, knead and knead until the chenna turns smooth and uniform. If you used homogenized milk, it would take you only 3 minutes. Otherwise, you would knead it for 5 minutes.
Step 9: Next, divide the dough into 18 portions and make small smooth balls. Avoid making them large, as they can double in size when cooked. Once you’ve made the balls, set them aside and proceed to the next stage.
Instructions to make the rasgulla:
Step 10: Take a 4-liter pot or a mini-pressure pan and add sugar to it. Then, add water along with the green cardamom pods.
Step 11: Dissolve the sugar and bring it to a boil. You can then take out the cardamoms and add some rose water.
Note: At this point, the flame should be medium to medium-high so that the syrup would be bubbling steadily while the rasgullas cook.
Step 12: Now, add all the balls to the syrup.
Step 13: Cover the pan and let it boil for 8-10 minutes. However, remember to open the lid after 5 minutes and stir the sugar syrup with a skewer – you’ll want to do this if you want uniform cooking. Then, cover again and let cook.
Step 14: Don’t uncover the pan until the temperature hasn’t come down. Once taken out, you’ll notice that the rasgullas have doubled in size. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
