Given that it’s the first day of Ramanan today and it’s also #SweetToothFriday, QUIZINE IN QUARANTINE is bringing you a hugely popular dessert dish today. Today’s dish is the amazing Rasmalai! This dish is popular across Pakistan, India and Bangladesh but originated in Bengal. These sweet dumplings are spongey and creamy on the tongue, often topped off with crushed pistachios, they also have a wonderfully nutty taste.
The two words that make up the dessert ‘Ras’ and ‘Malai’ translate to juice and cream respectively which probably helps paint a picture of how these goodies taste. The original way of making these sweets is a bit complicated and involves splitting buffalo (or cow) milk and separating the curd from the whey. You then discard the whey and use the curd or ‘Chenna’ to make your Rasmalai.
This recipe is a lot simpler and will take half the time and preparation but will still taste fantastic. Have a go at it!
INGREDIENTS
80g powdered milk (for the dough mixture)
20g powdered milk (for malai mixture a.k.a the milky liquid base)
1tsp baking powder
1tsp flour
1tbsp ghee (or butter)
1 or 1.5 eggs (depending on size)
1 litre full fat milk
1 tbsp crushed pistachios
5 crushed cardamom
Pinch of saffron
80g sugar
1. Add powdered milk, baking powder and flour into bowl and mix.
2. Add ghee (or butter) into the mixture.
3. Whisk egg and slowly add to bowl while mixing with hand until it feels like a sticky dough.
4. Allow to rest for approx 10 mins.
5. Tear bits from the dough and roll into ball shapes and place on plate/tray.
TIP: Rub your hand in ghee/butter to make the process easier, this will ensure the dough doesn’t stick to your hands.
6. Pour milk into hot pan and add crushed cardamom, saffron, sugar and 20g of powdered milk. Boil milk until reduced by a third.
7. Reduce heat of stove allowing milk mixture in pan to cool. It is important to ensure the milk is not boiling before the next stage.
8. Add balls into milk mix in pan. Cover and allow to cook on medium heat for approx 5 mins. Do not be tempted to lift lid at this stage, it must stay covered.
9. Check in on your Roshmalai, lift the lid and lightly swirl the plan, do not use any utensils to stir as it may break that fragile balls. Cover and cook for another 5 mins.
10. Your sweets should now be cooked, they should have expanded in size by three fold. Now switch off the stove/turn out the fire and allow the dish to cool until it reaches a warm temperature. The cooler the milk, the thicker it will be.
TIP: If your malai still feels thin at this stage, you can add some more powdered milk to thicken.
11. Ensure you have allowed sufficient res Pour contents into a bowl and place inside the fridge for approx 2 hours. And then you’re done. Sit back and enjoy one of the most popular desert dishes in the sub continent!
Watch our video below to see how it’s done!