The Perfect Rasmalai | Rossomalai: Durga Puja Special Recipe

Durga Puja is the theme for the 111th Foodie Monday Blog Hop and here I am with the recipe for Rasmalai, one of my favourite desserts. I am super pleased at how perfect it turned out and look forward to making it again soon.

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The Perfect Spongy, Soft Rasmalai

Durga Puja is just a couple of days away and I am so looking forward to it. I usually spend about 1/2 a day at one of the Pandals (hopefully with a dear friend and her family), offer Anjali and savour the Bhog.

I also spend time at the various stalls, indulging my twin passions of food and sarees. I invariably come home with some Rasgulla and Rasmalai (and an extra helping of Bhoger Khichuri, if possible).

What I love about Rasmalai is that it is not too overly sweet; for me this mellow, mildly sweet is just the right end to a festive meal. I am over the moon at the fact was able to create the perfect Rasmalai in the first try and cannot wait to share the recipe with everyone. 🙂

Do visit my collection of Recipes for Durga Puja.

How to Make The Perfect Rasmalai | Rossomalai for Durga Puja

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The Perfect Rasmalai | Rossomalai

Aruna

I am presenting the recipe for soft, melt-in-your-mouth Rasmalai for Durga Puja. Called Rossomalai in Bengali, this sweet is the perfect end to a festive meal. 

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Total Time 2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine Bengali, Indian

Servings 6 People

Ingredients

  

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For the Chena Discs

• 1 Litre Full Fat Milk
• 1.5 tbsp Lemon Juice
• 3 tbsp Water
• 5-6 Ice Cubes

For the Sugar Syrup

• 1 Cup Sugar
• 4 Cups Water
• 1/4 tsp Cardamom Powder I did not use any

For the Ras/Flavoured Milk

• 1/2 Litre Milk I used toned milk
• 2 Pinches Saffron Strands
• 3 tbsp Sugar
• 2 tbsp Slivered Almonds and Pistachios

Instructions

 

Making the Chena

• Dilute the 1.5 tbsp lemon juice with 3 tbsp water.
• Bring the full-fat milk to a boil. Remove any malai that forms on top.
• Take the milk off the heat and let it cool a bit for about 5 minutes.
• Now gradually add the diluted lemon juice in 2-3 batches while stirring constantly.
• The Chena is ready when the milk solids separate from the whey.
• Add the ice cubes and wait for 5 minutes.
• Strain all the whey out of the Chena and rinse it well under running water to remove the lemony taste. Save the Whey Water. We will make a healthy protein-rich Lemon Coriander Soup with it.
• Now transfer the Chena into a cotton cloth and gently squeeze the liquid out of it.

Making the Chena Discs

• Transfer the Chena into a large plate. 
• Crumble it. It should not be too dry.
• With the heel of your palm, knead the Chena till it is soft and loses the crumbly texture. It took me about 8 minutes. 
• Roll the Chena into a ball.
• Divide into 12 equal portions.
• Roll each portion into a ball and gently press into a disc.
• Cover with a damp cloth and set aside.

Making the Sugar Syrup (I made this while kneading the Chena)

• Mix 1 cup sugar with 4 cups water. 
• Add the cardamom powder, if you are using it.
• Bring the mix to a boil.
  

Making the Ras

• Warm about 2 tbsp milk in a small bowl.
• Add the saffron strands to the warm milk.
• Cover and set aside.
• Boil the rest of the milk till it reduces to 3/4 the original volume.
• Turn off the heat.
• Add the sugar and saffron along with the milk it is soaked in.
• Stir well so that the sugar dissolves.
• Set aside.

Boiling the Chena Discs

• When the sugar syrup is boiling, slide the chena discs gradually into the syrup.
• Let the chena discs boil on high-flame for 5 minutes.
• Lower the heat till the sugar syrup just simmers and is not boiling.
• Cover and let the discs cook for 10 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and leave the discs in the syrup for 5 minutes.

Putting It All Together

• Ensure that the flavoured milk/ras is warm.
• Remove the discs from the syrup and place them on a plate to cool till they are just warm.
• Now press each disc gently between your palms to remove the extra syrup and slide it into the flavoured milk/ras.
• Add the dry fruits to the Ras Malai.
• Let the Ras Malai rest for at least an hour.  Ensure that the Chena Discs are completely soaked in milk.
• Refrigerate the Ras Malai for at least 2 hours. I left them overnight.
• Serve chilled.

Keyword Bengali Sweets, Ras Malai, Rossomalai

Tried this recipe?Do let me know how you liked it @aahaaram or tag #aahaaram!

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Rasmalai | Rossomalai: A Favourite Bengali Dessert

Step-by-Step Instructions to Make Spongy, Melt-in-Your-Mouth Rasmalai | Rossomalai

1. First Step: Make the Chena
   1. Dilute the 1.5 tbsp lemon juice with 3 tbsp water. This helps you add the lemon juice gradually to the milk.
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   2. Boil the full-fat milk and remove any malai that forms on top. I actually boiled the milk about 2 hours before I started making Rasmalai. I then let it cool, removed the Malai and then boiled it again.
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   3. Now turn off the heat and take the boiled milk off the stove.
   4. Let the boiled milk cool a little for 5 minutes.
   5. Now slowly add about 1/3rd of the diluted lemon juice and mix well for 1 minute.
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   6. Add the rest of the lemon juice and mix well.
   7. Keep stirring till the whey and the milk solids separate.
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   8. Now add the ice cubes and wait for 5 minutes. This keeps the Chena soft.
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   9. Using a soup strainer, strain all the whey out of the Chena. Save the Whey Water. We will make a healthy protein-rich Lemon Coriander Soup with it (I will post the recipe soon).
   10. Now rinse the Chena well under running water to remove any residual lemon juice.
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   11. Now transfer the Chena into a cotton cloth. I used a large men’s handkerchief. 😀
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   12. Gather the ends of the cloth to make a bundle and gently squeeze the remaining whey/water out of the Chena.
   13. Check to see that the Chena is moist but does not have extra liquid.
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2. Make the Chena Discs
   1. Remove the Chena from the cloth into a large plate. You need a large plate so that you have room when you knead the Chena.
   2. Crumble the chena. It should be moist but not wet.
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   3. With the heel of your palm, knead the Chena till it is soft and loses the crumbly texture. It took me about 8 minutes of good solid kneading.
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   4. Roll the soft, well-kneaded Chena into a ball.
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   5. Divide into 12 equal portions.
   6. Roll each portion between your palms into a ball and gently press into a 1″ disc.
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   7. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside.
3. Make the Sugar Syrup (Make it While Making the Chena Discs)
   1. Mix 1 cup sugar and cardamom powder (if you are using it) in 4 cups water.
   2. Bring the mix to a boil.
   3. Keep the sugar syrup boiling.
4. Boiling the Chena Discs
   1. Ensure that the sugar syrup is boiling.
   2. Gently slide the chena discs into the syrup.
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   3. On a high-flame, let the chena discs boil in the sugar syrup for 5 minutes.
   4. Lower the heat to ensure that the sugar syrup stops boiling and starts simmering.
   5. Cover the vessel and let the discs cook for 10 minutes.
   6. Turn off the heat and leave the discs in the syrup for 5 minutes.
   7. Remove the cover and you will find that the discs have doubled in size.
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5. Making the Ras (Make It When Your Chena Discs are Boiling)
   1. Warm about 2 tbsp milk in a small bowl and add the saffron strands to the warm milk.
   2. Cover and set aside.
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   3. Over a medium flame, boil the 500 ml milk till it reduces to 3/4 the original volume.
   4. Turn off the heat.
   5. Add the sugar and saffron along with the milk it is soaked in.
   6. Stir well so that the sugar dissolves.
   7. Set aside.
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6. Putting It All Together
   1. Ensure that the flavoured milk/ras is warm.
   2. Remove the coiled chenna discs from the syrup.
   3. Place them on a plate to cool till they are just warm.
   4. Now press each disc gently between your palms to remove the extra syrup.Pin
   5. Slide the chena discs into the flavoured milk/ras.
   6. Add the dry fruits to the Ras Malai.
   7. Let the Ras Malai rest for at least an hour. Ensure that the Chena Discs are completely soaked in milk.
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   8. Refrigerate the Ras Malai for at least 2 hours. I left them overnight.
   9. Serve chilled.

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Rasmalai | Rossomalai

Do also visit the Foodie Monday Blog Hop Pinterest page to see what my fellow bloggers have posted.

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