Rasgulla

Name: Rasgulla Recipe (Homemade Indian Sweet)
Yield: 15 servings
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1 litre whole milk; 3 tablespoons lemon juice; 1 teaspoon cornflour; 1 cup sugar; 4 cups water

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Rasgulla is a classic Indian dessert made from fresh chena (milk solids) shaped into soft balls and cooked in fragrant sugar syrup. The key to success is thorough mashing of the chena for 10 minutes to achieve the signature spongy, melt-in-mouth texture.

🌍Indian

Servings

15

Recipe Source

View original recipe

From Cookwithmanali

Ingredients

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5 Ingredients

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Instructions

1
Heat milk in a heavy bottom pan.
2
Once the milk comes to a boil, switch off the flame and add 1/2 cup of water to bring down the temperature a bit.
3
Add lemon juice till the milk curdles.
4
Drain the curdled milk using a muslin cloth. You are now left with what is known as "chena" or "paneer".
5
Squeeze the muslin cloth to remove all the water from the chena.
6
Take the chena in a plate and add cornflour to it.
7
Mash the chena with your hands for 10 minutes to make it soft and smooth. This is an important step to make sure that the rasgullas are soft.
8
Make small balls from the chena after the mashing is done.
9
Meanwhile in a pan mix the sugar and water and let it boil at high temperature.
10
Put the rasgulla balls in the boiling sugar syrup.
11
Cook the rasgullas in sugar syrup for 18-20 minutes on high flame.
12
Refrigerate the rasgullas with the syrup and serve chilled.

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Tips & Notes

Pro tips

Mash the chena vigorously for the full 10 minutes—this step directly affects softness; rushing it results in grainy, tough rasgullas.
Once sugar syrup is boiling at high temperature, gently place rasgulla balls into it; they will sink and float to the surface as they cook, signaling doneness at 18–20 minutes.
Cool the rasgullas completely in the syrup before refrigerating; they absorb syrup and firm up slightly as they chill, reaching ideal texture when served cold.
Use a muslin cloth to drain curds; cheesecloth works, but muslin gives finer drainage and better chena texture.

Substitutions

Lemon juice → vinegar (white or distilled, use same amount; will curdle milk just as well)
Cornflour → rice flour (use same amount; alternative binder with similar effect)

Storage & make-ahead

Store rasgullas in the refrigerator submerged in sugar syrup for up to 3–4 days; serve chilled directly from the fridge.

Equipment

heavy-bottom pan (for boiling milk) · muslin cloth (for draining curds)

Common Questions

Why is mashing the chena important in rasgulla?

Mashing chena for 10 minutes breaks down the curds and makes them soft and smooth, which ensures the rasgullas absorb syrup evenly and stay tender rather than dense.

How long should rasgullas cook in the sugar syrup?

Cook the rasgulla balls on high flame for 18–20 minutes. They will sink initially and float to the surface when done; this is the cooking indicator.

Can I use low-fat or toned milk instead of whole milk?

Whole milk yields the best results because it has higher fat content, creating richer chena and softer rasgullas. Low-fat milk will produce fewer and firmer solids.