Rasgulla / Roshogulla

Rasgullas need no introduction. They are a sweet lover’s delight. Spongy balls of chenna soaked in sugar syrup are just what you need when you crave for something sweet and sinfully delicious at that !! The good news is that unlike most other sweets, there is not a drop of butter / oil in it so well... a tad bit more healthy than its vicious cousins ( Just thought of gulab jamuns…Yeah, yeah…my mind races fast when it comes to anything remotely sweet :) )

This was my first attempt at rasgullas and I had the guts to serve them to my Bengali friends ( Yeah… I do have bouts of unbelievable courage sometimes ). Heart racing and fingers crossed, I waited for their comments. They were all praises and found these rasgullas just perfect. My cheeks immediately turned a scarlet pink ( See…this is what happens when you are too overwhelmed to gracefully accept compliments with a smile and a thank you…I did neither  !! )

So here’s the recipe…Make some rasgullas today and get ready for those praises flowing in ( you know  what I mean :) )

Recipe credits : My friend, Ranjeeta

Ingredients :

Chenna from 1 1/2 litre milk
Sugar - 1 1/2 cups ( 300 gms )
Water - 4 cups
Cardamoms, crushed ( optional ) - 4 -5
You can also add kesar ( saffron ) or rose water to the sugar syrup as flavoring

Method :

1.  Keand the chenna into a smooth dough and pinch out small portions( See how to make chenna here ). Make small balls with smooth surface. Ensure that there are no cracks on the surface of the balls. Please bear in mind that the rasgullas will double in size on cooking so make smaller sized balls…a little smaller than small lemons .
2.  Boil water in a large wide mouthed pan and then add the sugar. Stir to dissolve all the sugar. Now add the crushed cardamoms to it.
3.  Add the small chenna balls into the boiling water and cover the lid. Do not add too many at a time since the rasgullas will expand , thereby crowding them a bit. Boil for about 10 - 15 minutes ( first 5 minutes on high flame and then lower the flame to medium ).
4. The rasgullas will increase in size and spring back when pressed. This is when you know they are done.
5. Remove from flame and cool completely and WAIT ( I know its tough !!! ) Chuck the rasgullas with the sugar syrup in the refrigerator for a few hours ( I would recommend waiting for about 8 - 10 hrs to get perfect sweet rasgullas ) so that the sugar syrup seeps into the rasgullas.  Serve chilled.

Homemade chenna / paneer

I have come across recipes, some calling for chenna and others for paneer. I always thought that both are same but a slight doubt still lingered in my mind and hence I turned to google for more light on this. Wikipedia says that the slight difference lies in the fact that  chenna  is softer because unlike paneer, it is not pressed ( or, in some cases, pressed for a shorter period than paneer ). Nevertheless, most people use these names interchangeably.

Well, whats in a name ? Both paneer and chenna are my favorite ingredients to work with. The freshness of homemade paneer / chenna is truly something to talk about. So here I am , sharing this wonderful recipe for you to raise that wow factor of your paneer dishes a few notches higher :)

Ingredients : 

Full fat milk - 1 litre ( gave me 164 gms paneer )
Lemon juice - 2 tbsp ( or more if required )
You can use vinegar instead of lemon juice.

Method :
1. Line a strainer/ colander with a muslin cloth and place the strainer over a vessel to collect the whey.
2.  Heat milk in a pan and bring it to a boil.
3. Remove from flame and wait for about a minute.
4. Add the lemon juice slowly, stirring all the while till the milk curdles ( you will see the milk solids separate from the greenish whey ). Don’t add any more lemon.
5.  Quickly strain this curdled milk through the strainer / colander. The cheese will get collected in the cloth and the whey will drain out into the vessel underneath. You can use this whey in dals, soups or for making chapati dough.
6.  Run cold water through the cheese. This is to make it soft and also to remove the lemon flavor.
7.  Bring the edges of the cloth together and tie into a knot.  Squeeze out all water by pressing over the cheese.
8.  Tie this cloth with the cheese above your kitchen sink and keep hanging for about 2 - 3 hrs. This will drain out all the water.
9.  After draining the water by hanging, remove the cheese on a clean  towel / napkin and place some heavy weight on the cheese so that any moisture , if still present is removed. The pressing time will be half and hour for chenna and about 2 hours for paneer.
10.  Then gently press the chenna with your palm back and forth to remove lumps and knead into a smooth dough. If you want neatly cut squares of paneer, shape the dough into a rectangular slab ( see picture above ) and refrigerate for a while till it becomes a little harder , just enough to cut into sqares with neat edges.