Bengali Rasgulla – Manjula’s Kitchen

Mix lemon juice in half a cup of warm water and keep aside.

Boil the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, making sure the milk doesn’t burn. When the milk boils, gradually add the lemon juice and stir the milk gently. The curd starts to separate from the whey, turn off the heat.

When the milk fat has separated from the whey, drain the whey using a strainer lined with cheese cloth or muslin cloth. Wrap the curd in a muslin cloth and rinse under cold water and wring out well. This process removes the acidity from the lemon.

To remove excess water, squeeze the cloth or press the wrapped breadcrumbs under a heavy pan for about an hour. Taking out the right amount of water from the paneer is the most important part of this recipe.

To check if there is enough water out of the panel, take a small piece of paneer on your palm and rub with your fingers. After rubbing the paneer for about 15-20 seconds, you should be able to make a firm but smooth ball.

Once the paneer is drained, place it on a dry, clean surface and knead the paneer for 3-4 minutes until the paneer is almost rolled into a smooth soft dough.

Knead the paneer by pulling your palm hard against the paneer. Keep scooping it back to gather and knead more. If the paneer is too crumbly, add a teaspoon of water. Your palm will be a little greasy.

Divide the dough into 12 equal parts and roll them into smooth balls. To make the balls apply some pressure first and then release as you form the balls.

Mix sugar and water in a pressure cooker over medium heat and bring to a boil.

Add the paneer balls and close the pressure cooker. When the pressure cooker begins to steam, turn the heat to medium and cook for about seven minutes.

Make sure the pressure cooker is big enough to hold the finished Rasgullas, as they will expand to about double their volume while cooking in the syrup.

Turn off the heat and wait a few minutes before opening the pressure cooker. Pour cold water over the pressure cooker before opening it.

Rasgullas should be slightly spongy. After rasgullas have been placed in the fridge, the sponginess decreases and becomes soft in texture.

Serve the rasgulla chilled.