Rasmalai is a dessert from the Bengal region. Ras means juice or juicy and Malai means "cream," which refers to the clotted cream-filled thickened milk. The dessert is known as rasa malei in Odia, rossomalai in Bengali, and ras malai in Urdu, Punjabi, and Hindi. Ras malai is made of flattened chhena balls drenched with cardamom-flavoured malai (clotted cream). To split milk, a little vinegar or lime juice is added after it has been boiled. The milk solids are drained, chilled, and made into the dough after the whey is removed. Small balls of the dough are formed, and the balls are boiled in hot water with a little rosewater added. The balls are then boiled in milk while being filled with saffron, pistachios, and kheer. Rasmalai is the king of desserts. The chhena balls soaked in cold kesar pista rabdi are everything you crave. It is the kind of dessert that you can eat any time of the day. It is indeed a treat to the taste buds.
Here's how you can make rasamalai at home-
Ingredients
1. Chhena Dough
2. 1 litre Milk
3. 2 tbsp Lemon Juice
4. 1½ cups Sugar
5. 4 cups Water
Rabdi
1. 1 litre Milk
2. 3 tbsp Sugar
3. 1 tsp Corn flour
4. 10-12 Saffron strands
5. 1/4 tsp Green Cardamom Powder
6. 2-3 tsp chopped Pistachio
Rasmalai/pinterest.com
1. Using 1 litre of milk and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, make fresh paneer (chhena). Tie chhena in a fresh piece of muslin or cheesecloth. Gently squeeze it to get rid of the extra water, and then hang it over the hook (or tap) for about 30 to 45 minutes to let the extra water drain.
2. Untie the muslin towel after around 30 minutes and transfer the chhena to a plate.
3. Break apart the chhena using your hands. It should be juicy but crumbly. Rasmalai may break while cooking if it contains too much moisture. Press the chenna between paper towels gently to absorb any extra moisture.
4. Mix the crumbled chhena and make a dough of it using your hands.
5. It should be divided into 12 equal halves. From each portion, form a little ball, gently flatten it between your palms, and shape it into a round pattie. The patties should be thick; do not press them too much as this may cause them to become thin on the sides and break while cooking.
6. Boil for 5 minutes over medium heat with a cover on the pan. Open the cover and gently flip each patty using a spatula after around five minutes.
7. Once more, put a lid on top and simmer for 7 minutes. Remove the lid and switch off the flame. As you can see, after cooking in sugar syrup, the pattie's size nearly doubles.
8. It should take 1-2 hours for it to reach room temperature after being carefully transferred to a big bowl. Then, drain each patty and gently press it between two spoons to squeeze out any remaining sugar syrup. When performing this process, use caution since if you exert too much pressure, it may break.
9. Pour one litre of milk into a heavy-bottomed pan and warm it over a medium temperature. Reduce temperature to low once the rolling boil has reached, then stir in saffron threads.
10. Stir it constantly to keep it from burning. Mix 1 tablespoon of maize flour with 1 tablespoon of water, 3 tablespoons of sugar, the corn flour-water mixture, and 1/4 teaspoon of cardamom powder. Stir continuously so that no lumps are formed.
11. Turn the heat up to medium, whisking constantly, and boil the sugar until it melts for about 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the drained patties and pistachios.
12. Cook for 4-5 minutes. This facilitates the absorption of the milk and the taste from the inside by the patties.
13. Transfer it to a serving bowl after. Place it in the refrigerator for at least two to three hours after allowing it to cool to room temperature.
14. Serve Cold.
