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Rasmalai recipe | How to make soft rasmalai

By swasthi , on August 13, 2019, 151 Comments

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Rasmalai recipe – Learn how to make easy & soft rasmalai at home. This detailed post will teach you how to make perfect juicy & soft rasmalai at home that not only tastes delicious but also melts in your mouth. Rasmalai is a Bengali delicacy that is very popular among the Indian Sweet Lovers. Ras malai – Ras literally translates to “juice” and malai to “cream”.

rasmalai recipe

Rasmalai is a classic Indian festive dessert made with milk, an acidic ingredient, sugar and saffron. It is eaten all over India and is mostly bought from the halwai or the sweet shops.

Making rasmalai at home is similar to making rasgulla. Both of these are easy but quite tricky to make them perfectly soft and juicy.

It is a three step process – Curdling the milk to make chena or paneer, then boiling the chena dics in sugar syrup & lastly resting them in thickened milk or rabri.

These flattened puffed discs – Rasmalai soak up the creamy milk and turn delicious. Lastly they are chilled and then garnished with nuts. These juicy delights are a melt in the mouth and are loved by everyone.

In this post I have shared 2 ways to make rasmalai – the traditional way and the short cut method using the tinned or ready made rasgullas & condensed milk. The second method just takes about 10 minutes and are great to make if you long for a quick dessert anytime. Please scroll down for the second method.

Now back to the making traditional rasmalai.

3 key pointers to make soft rasmalai

  • Making soft chena
  • Proper kneading
  • Boiling the rasmalai dics for the right amount of time on a right flame or heat.

How to make super soft chena?

Boiling & curdling milk correctly will give to the super soft chena. If the chena is not soft then rasmalai will not turn soft but instead will turn hard.

The first step is to bring the milk to a boil & then curdle it to make soft chena. Well there are 2 methods to curdle milk to make soft chena.

Method 1 – Using homogenized &/or pasteurized milk: This first method is to curdle the milk immediately after the milk comes to a boil whilst milk is still on the stove.

Curdle first by adding the acidic ingredient & then turn off the stove. Immediately pour ice cold water or add ice cubes to stop it from cooking further.

This ice cold water or ice cubes will keep your chena super soft as it stops further cooking. This method is best if you are using pasteurized or/& homogenized milk.

This method has consistently yielded me soft chena. Do not follow this method if you are using non-homogenized milk or buffalo milk.

If you follow this method using non-homogenized milk then you will end up with rubbery & hard chena.

Method 2 – Using non-homogenized milk (not packet milk, but fresh from milkman): This method is to bring the milk to a boil. Turn off the stove and rest for about 5 to 10 minutes to cool down the milk slightly. Then curdle the milk by adding the acidic ingredient.

This method will work if your milk is unprocessed & is pure without any additives.

This method will not work if you are using pasteurized & homogenized milk. Infact the milk will not curdle at all unless you continue to boil the milk.

But back in India this is the method most people follow as they use non-homogenized milk. I have seen my mum following this method to make the softest paneer.

Tips

Now my tip is to bring the milk to a boil, then turn off the stove and try adding the acidic ingredient. If the milk doesn’t curdle then put it back on the stove and continue to boil until the milk curdles.

But remember to use ice cold water or ice cubes to stop the cooking further after the entire milk has curdled. This will give you the soft chena.

Faqs

1.Why does my rasmalai turn hard?

Hard chena, over kneading the chena, boiling the chena discs for too long will result in hard & dense rasmalai.

2.Why do my rasmalai or chena discs break or dissolve in sugar syrup?

Too much whey in the chena will dissolve them in the syrup while boiling.

3.How long do I need to hang the chena to drain whey?

This depends of the kind of milk used. If using non-homogenized milk 45 to 60 mins is just good enough. If using homogenized then it depends again on the kind of milk.

Some may take up to 6 hours. So do not go by the time go by the texture which I have explained below.

4.What is the right texture of chena after draining?

When the chena is still moist yet has no dripping whey in it then it is good for kneading. Here is a picture with details.

I consider chena to be perfect if it passes this test. Take a small portion of the chena and smear it to a smooth surface like your kitchen countertop or chopping board.

Chena must be non-sticky & grainy or crumbly. Very sticky chena indicates too much moisture . So hang it for longer.

Too grainy, dry or very crumbly chena indicates over drained. In this case you can knead with a moist hand. You can also dip your hand in whey as many times as required and knead.

chena for rasmalai

5.How long to knead chena for soft rasmalai?

The main purpose of kneading chena is to make it smooth and soft without being grainy. So do not go by the clock, knead it until you get a soft, crumb free and smooth texture.

Over all the time it takes to knead depends on how grainy your paneer is. More acidic ingredient can make your chena more grainy. So just knead until your chena is crumb free and soft.

kneading chena for rasmalai

You can also check this Collection of 100 diwali recipes for the festive season.

For more Indian sweets recipes, do check
Rasgulla
Gulab jamun
Kalakand
Malpua with Rabri
Peda recipe
Kaju katli
Besan ladoo

Easy rasmalai recipe

rasmalai recipe

Rasmalai recipe | How to make soft rasmalai

Rasmalai is a popular Bengali sweet delicacy made with Indian cottage cheese or chenna (paneer) discs. These discs are cooked in sugar syrup first to make them fluffy. Later served with chilled thickened milk. Rasmalai is garnished with chopped nuts. This recipe will give you the best soft and mouth melting rasmalai.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time2 hours
Total Time2 hours 10 minutes
Servings12 discs
AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )

Ingredients for rasmalai

  • 1¼ liter milk or 5 cups full fat milk for chenna
  • 1 to 2 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar (mix with 2 to 3 tbsp water) or 4 to 6 tbsp curd
  • 1 liter ice water or ice cubes

For sugar syrup

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3½ cups water
  • ¼ tsp cardamom powder or elaichi powder

To make rabri

  • ¾ liter milk (3 cups full fat)
  • ½ cup sugar for rabri
  • pinch saffron or kesar (optional)
  • 2 tbsp pista or almonds sliced

How to make the recipe

Make thickened milk for rasmalai

  • Pour 3 cups milk to a heavy bottom pot and boil. 
  • Add saffron and sugar when the milk comes to a boil. 
  • Reduce the flame to medium. Stir every 2 to 3 minutes to prevent the milk from scorching at the bottom.  
  • When a layer of cream forms, just move it aside. 
  • Boil until the milk thickens and reduces to half the quantity. Set this aside to cool. 
  • Cool half of this and chill in the fridge. Keep the other half warm.

Make chenna

  • Bring 5 cups milk to a boil in a pot.  Turn off the stove.
  • Pour lemon juice and keep stirring until the milk has curdled completely.
  • If it doesn't curdle then add some more and stir.
  • Next if it fails to curdle then turn on the stove & regulate to a low flame. Stir until it curdles.
  • Turn off the stove. Pour ice water or add ice cubes to the pot and set aside for 2 mins. 
  • Drain to a muslin cloth lined over a colander.
  • Pour fresh water over the chena and rinse well. You can also do it under running water for the sour taste to vanish.
  • Wrap the chena in the cloth. Squeeze off excess whey and make a knot.
  • Next hang it for about 45 minutes to 1 hour for the excess whey to drain off.
  • Chena should not have any excess dripping whey & should not be completely dry. It must be moist and grainy but not very sticky or dry. Please check the images above the recipe card.

Kneading chena

  • Transfer the chenna to a plate. At this stage chenna should not have any excess whey in it. 
  • Knead well for about 3 to 5 minutes until smooth. Chenna should not be grainy but must be smooth. Do not go by the time but focus on the texture – smooth, non grainy and non-sticky texture is required.
  • Make 12 equal balls and flatten them to make discs. 
  • If the discs are slightly cracked on the sides, roll the sides gently. Set these aside.

Sugar syrup

  • Bring 3½ cups of water to a boil with 1 cup sugar. 
  • Stir until the sugar dissolves completely. Then add cardamom powder.
  • When the sugar syrup begins to boil rapidly, then add the discs gently. 
  • Cook covered for about 9 to 10 minutes on a moderately high flame.
  • Turn off the stove. Remove the pot from the stove to avoid cooking further.
  • Keep the lid closed for the next 20 mins to avoid them turning flat or shrinking.
  • When done they will sink in the syrup.

How to make rasmalai – Assembling Rasmalai

  • Take off the discs to a plate and cool them. 
  • Squeeze them gently in between your palms to remove sugar syrup.
  • Add these to the half of the warm thickened milk or rabri. 
  • Rest them for 3 to 4 hours. Pour the other half of the chilled rabri to this just before serving.
  • Garnish rasmalai with chopped nuts.

NUTRITION

Calories: 213kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 72mg | Potassium: 234mg | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 270IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 190mg | Iron: 0.1mg

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rasmalai recipe

Method 1

Preparation for rasmalai recipe

1. Making rabri. Pour 3 cups milk to a heavy bottom pot. Bring it to a boil on a medium flame. Add saffron/ kesar and keep stirring every few minutes to prevent burning.

making rabri with milk for rasmalai recipe

2. Next pour sugar. I used organic sugar. You can use white sugar as well.

adding sugar for rabri in rasmalai recipe

3. Adjust the flame as desired to suit your convenience. Do not use high flame milk may overflow the pot. Keep stirring every 2 to 3 minutes, moving aside the malai/cream that comes on top. Turn off when it gets condensed to half the quantity.

Chill half of this in the fridge. Keep the rest in the same pot.

saffron flavored condensed milk for rasmalai recipe

Make chenna for rasmalai

4. While the rabri is getting done, bring 5 cups milk to a boil in another pot for making chenna/paneer. If you are using non-homogenized milk then take off the milk from the stove and allow to rest for 5 mins. Then add the vinegar.

If using homogenized milk, add the curd or lemon juice or vinegar once the milk comes to a boil.

boiling milk for chenna in rasmalai recipe

5. Keep stirring until the milk curdles completely. If needed add more lemon juice or vinegar. Switch off the stove.

curdling milk

6. When you see it has curdled completely, immediately add ice cubes or ice cold water. This is very important to keep the chenna soft.

addition of ice cubes

7. Drain it up in a thin clean muslin cloth.

draining chenna in cloth

8. Wrap up the paneer in the cloth bringing together all the edges. Put the cloth under running water, making sure the paneer is wrapped well in the cloth. Rinse it well under the running water to remove the smell of lemon or vinegar.

Tie up the paneer in the cloth like shown in the picture. Squeeze off the excess water. Hang it up on a hook for 45 minutes to 1 hour for the whey to completely drain.

hanging paneer for draining in rasmalai recipe

9. At this step you must have chenna that is just moist with no dripping water and not sticky. Knead it well until you get smooth, grain free and non-sticky chena. You must not knead to the extent that chenna begins to release grease or fats.

Please check the pictures I have shared in the intro to know the right texture.

kneading paneer for rasmalai recipe

How to make rasmalai

10. Divide it to 12 equal portions. Make balls and flatten them gently. You can also make rasgulla or chum chum. If you find the edges cracked up, gently smoothen them. Cover and set them aside.

making balls discs for rasmalai recipe

11. Bring 3 1/2 cups water to a boil with 1 cup sugar.

boiling sugar syrup

12. When the syrup begins to boil, add cardamom powder.

addition of elaichi

13. Next when the syrup begins to boil rapidly, add flattened discs of chenna. Cover immediately and cook on a moderately high flame for exactly 9 minutes.

boiling discs in sugar syrup for rasmalai recipe

14. The discs would have doubled in size. Keep it covered and take off the pot from the stove. Rest for atleast 20 mins.

cooked balls in syrup for rasmalai recipe

15. Take out one by one and cool. Gently squeeze them in between your palms to remove the absorbed sugar syrup. You can also do it with a spatula and spoon.

sugar syrup

16. Add them to the warm rabri.

rabri

17. Add chopped pistachios, almonds and cashews. You can also simmer for just one to 2 minutes on a low flame for the milk to be absorbed by the discs. Do not overcook at this stage, they may break.

Pour the chilled rabri to this and serve rasmalai chilled.

Add chopped pistachios
bengali rasmalai

Method 2 – Easy rasmalai in 10 minutes

Using ready made rasgulla and milkmaid.

Ingredients
12 rasgullas
1 tin milk maid condensed milk (392 grams)
2 cups milk
⅛ Tsp. Green cardamom powder / elaichi
Few saffron strands
Chopped Pistachios and almonds for garnish

Instructions

1. You can use any ready made rasgulla. Squeeze the syrup out of the balls. Do not press them too hard, they will break. Make sure that the syrup is extracted from the balls else they will not absorb the milk. Set these aside.

easy rasmalai recipe using condensed milk

2. Pour milk and condensed milk in a pan and bring it to a boil.

making easy rasmalai recipe with condensed milk

3. Add saffron and cardamom powder. Simmer it for around 5 to 6 mins so that the milk blends well with milkmaid. Alternately, You can melt the saffron in little hot milk and add too.

Add saffron and cardamom powder

4. Reduce the flame to medium. Add the rasgulla to the condensed milk.

Reduce the flame to medium

5. Cover with a lid and simmer for a min or two. Overcooking can break them.

6. Easy rasmalai using rasgulla is ready in less than 10 minutes.
Garnish with nuts. You could add the chopped nuts at step 4 too.

Note: It will be sufficient even if you use ¾ th can of condensed milk (392 gms) and 1.5 cups of milk. We have a sweet tooth, so I use up the entire can and we enjoy the creamy milk too. So adjust to suit your need.

rasgulla for easy rasmalai recipe
Rasmalai is an Indian cheese dessert that tastes delicious & juicy with a melt in the mouth texture. #rasmalai #rasmalairecipe

Filed Under: Latest Recipes, North Indian Vegetarian, Popular Indian recipes, Sweet Recipes

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About swasthi

I’m Swasthi shreekanth, the recipe developer, food photographer & food writer behind Swasthis recipes. My aim is to help you cook great Indian food with my time-tested recipes. After 2 decades of experience in practical Indian cooking I started this blog to help people cook better & more often at home. Whether you are a novice or an experienced cook I am sure Swasthi’s Recipes will assist you to enhance your cooking skills.
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Reader Interactions

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Comments

  1. Zorian says

    September 24, 2017

    5 stars
    looking damn tasty, let’s give it a try!!

    Reply
  2. afreen says

    June 12, 2017

    5 stars
    Hi swasthi.. Tried this recipe it turned out well.. But der was a mild taste of lemon even though I washed the chenna.. Plz suggest

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      June 18, 2017

      Hi Afreen
      Probably you can try diluting the lemon juice and use. You can also try using curd instead of lemon juice

      Reply
  3. Femida leeya says

    May 3, 2017

    5 stars
    Hi. Thanks for posting recipe. I tried it n when put discs in syrup they doubled in size and were soft but when I put them in reduced milk they went a bit hard. How to avoid that.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      May 5, 2017

      Welcome Femida
      Sorry for the late reply. Did you put hot discs in the hot rabri/ reduced milk. They can turn hard that way, otherwise no idea why they would have turned hard.
      Usually if they are overcooked then they turn hard.

      Reply
  4. shaik says

    February 28, 2017

    5 stars
    Thank you

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      March 1, 2017

      Welcome

      Reply
  5. Harika says

    February 19, 2017

    5 stars
    Hi Swathi
    How much does you cheena weight after hung. And what is the size of the disc you are making.
    I am making cheena from scratch but using the shortcut rabri.

    Thanks

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      February 20, 2017

      Hi Harika
      The weight of chenna depends on the quality & kind of milk – homogenised & pasturised will yield less chenna.
      I have not weighted chenna for this recipe.
      You can make whatever size you like. I divided to 12 portions

      Reply
  6. Harika says

    February 10, 2017

    5 stars
    HI Swathi.
    Awesome recipe. Did not know how simple it is to make it at home. Quick question – after you put the ice cubes into the cheena do you (1) let it strainit immediately? (2) when you strain it in the muslin cloth, do the discard the ice cubes or tie the know with the ice cubes.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      February 11, 2017

      Thanks Harika
      As soon as you drop the ice cubes in hot curdled milk, they will melt off completely. So there is question of discarding them
      🙂

      Reply
  7. ayesha says

    February 10, 2017

    Hi mam i tried ras malai it came out very well thnks thnks a lot??

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      February 10, 2017

      Welcome Ayesha. Happy to know it turned out good

      Reply
  8. habibeh says

    December 19, 2016

    5 stars
    Hi dear I’m habibeh and from iran.I made this sweat but because I don’t tast it befor I don’t know how it should be can u let me what s the rught tast of this sweat I mean its like what?

    Reply
  9. Kevin says

    October 27, 2016

    Hi please tell me if the kalakand with condensed Milk can b made with soft home made paneer

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      October 27, 2016

      Hi Kevin
      yes it can be made. You can find the recipe of kalakand here

      Reply
  10. Sheena dola says

    October 10, 2016

    Swasti what type of milk brand should be used for rasmalai ?? Please help.

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      October 10, 2016

      Hi Sheena
      Best is to use non homogenised fresh full fat milk.. However I made it with homegenised but Australian fresh full fat milk. Brand name “pura”. Hope this helps

      Reply
  11. Soma says

    September 27, 2016

    I tired your gavar receipe…it came out execellent…Thank you!

    Reply
  12. AbhishekSuraniya says

    August 14, 2016

    Mast hai bhi mava methi

    Reply
  13. Saida Fathima says

    August 1, 2016

    5 stars
    Wow even my mom tried it it’s awesome ❤️❣?? pls put some more I love it my mom is going to try some of these recipes I am going to try kaju katli

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      August 3, 2016

      Thanks Saida
      Glad to know you liked them. Surely will keep posting.

      Reply
  14. Aman Dadhwal says

    July 18, 2016

    I love this recipe

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 20, 2016

      thank you

      Reply
  15. mohammadreza says

    July 17, 2016

    its too good

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 19, 2016

      Thank you

      Reply
  16. Rajkumar singh says

    July 15, 2016

    very nice

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 19, 2016

      thank you

      Reply
  17. Saniya says

    July 15, 2016

    Hi Swasthi

    Lovely presentation. I tried it came out better than what I was expecting. I have few questions.

    1. Can I skip the 12 part i.e boiling the discs in sugar syrup? Can I directly boil them in rabdi? My mother in law has worked in a restaurant before and she said they directly boiled the paneer balls in rabdi. Also I am asking this because even after boiling the paneer balls in sugar syrup they didn’t turn out sweet
    2. Can I add milkmaid in boiled milk to make the rabdi more creamy
    3. My discs came out too soft.. We like it if they are little stiff so I think not boiling them in water will make them a bit stiff

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      July 19, 2016

      Hi Saniya
      Thanks for trying. Not sure how the results will be if not boiled in sugar syrup. Actually boiling them in sugar syrup, makes them light and airy.
      To make rabdi more creamy, you can simmer the milk for longer. If you add milkmaid it may turn out more sweet.
      To make them stiff some ppl use a bit of sooji or corn flour.
      Hope this helps

      Reply
  18. Antra says

    June 26, 2016

    Cool *

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      June 27, 2016

      Thank you

      Reply
  19. appu says

    June 11, 2016

    5 stars
    very very tasty yummy rasmalai….thank u

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      June 13, 2016

      welcome Appu

      Reply
  20. Sheena says

    June 10, 2016

    5 stars
    Great recipe

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      June 10, 2016

      Thanks Sheena

      Reply
  21. Suresh J says

    June 5, 2016

    5 stars
    very nice and test

    Reply
    • swasthi says

      June 5, 2016

      Thanks

      Reply
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