Rasgulla (Paneer Balls In Syrup) Recipe

Ingredients

4 cups whole milk (DO NOT use ultra-pasteurized, shelf stable milk)
NOTE: this works best with un-pasteurized, non homogenized cows milk, but that's hard to find. Always use whole milk, as the Chenna needs the fat)
3 tablespoons white vinegar
1 cup ice (cubes)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 1/4 cups water
1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
1/2 teaspoon rosewater (or a little more, to taste)
6 saffron threads (for garnishing)
NOTE: if this is your first time, you may want to add 1 1/2 teaspoons of cornstarch or flour to the curds to keep the chenna from falling apart while cooking in the syrup.

Nutritional

Serving Size: 1 (310.2 g)
Calories 296.8
Total Fat - 5.4 g
Saturated Fat - 3.1 g
Cholesterol - 18 mg
Sodium - 176.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate - 58.1 g
Dietary Fiber - 0 g
Sugars - 57.9 g
Protein - 5.2 g
Calcium - 191.5 mg
Iron - 0.1 mg
Vitamin C - 0 mg
Thiamin - 0.1 mg

Step by Step Method

Step 1

In a heavy pot (I use a Le Creuset dutch oven) heat the milk to boiling and remove from heat. Add about two tablespoons of the vinegar and stir. The milk should curdle. If not, add the rest of the vinegar and stir. Add the ice cubes to the curdled milk and stir to cool the mixture down.

Step 2

Line a strainer with cheesecloth, then pour in the curds. Some people rinse the curds by pouring water over them, but I don't. Tie up the cheesecloth and hang for 35-45 minutes, letting the liquid drain. You can place the cheesecloth bundle in a colander to drain, or hang the bundle from your kitchen faucet. You want it to drain, but not too dry, so don't let it hang longer than 45 minutes max.

Step 3

Place the sugar and water in a heavy pot large enough to hold the rasgullas without crowding them (they will double in size). Bring to a boil.

Step 4

Meanwhile, knead the chenna for about 10 minutes, or until your palm starts to feel a little greasy and you can see a bit of greasy shine on the chenna. Stop - don't overknead!!! Divide the chenna into 12-18 tiny balls. Remember, these will double in size when cooked!

Step 5

Add the cardamom powder and rosewater to the boiling syrup. Stir to combine. Then gently add the chenna balls, one by one. Do not stir. You can shake the pan gently to move the balls around during cooking.

Step 6

Cover the pot and boil over medium flame for 10 minutes. Open the lid every 3 minutes to check everything is ok and not too crowded. They will be doubled in size when done.

Step 7

Allow cooked rasgulla to rest and cool completely.

Step 8

To serve, place a few balls in a nice individual serving dishes and spoon syrup over. Garnish with a strand of saffron. You can also serve the rasgulla as Rasmalai - see my recipe!