This is a special treat that hails from the East Indian state of Bengal. It is 100% spongy, soft goodness and literally melts in your mouth. Biting into its sweet succulence is just as enjoyable as savoring the taste. I enjoy making this at home because I can control the level of sweetness and of course justify eating many more of these delicious white globes. They taste best chilled and garnished with a few strands of saffron and crushed pistachios.

Ingredients (Rasgulla)

  • 4 cups milk
  • White vinegar and water  (as needed)
  • 1 cup sugar (or more if desired): 4 cups water, for the sugar syrup
  • 4 cardamom pods
  • 4 strings of saffron
  • 1 tsp rose water

Method

Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 12-15 min

Serves 8-10

  1. First, heat your milk in a saucepan until the boiling point is reached; at this point turn off the flame. While the milk is cooling, prepare the vinegar. Mix an equal amount of vinegar and water to start (ex. 2 tbsp vinegar with 2 tbsp water), to create a dilution.
  2. Slowly add this vinegar mixture to the milk to begin the curdling process. Stir all the while. You want the milk to fully separate from the water to create cottage cheese. This will happen when you see large clumps of white and the water has become a yellow-green hue that is not cloudy anymore.
  3. At this point, use a cheese cloth to drain the cheese and begin to push out all excess water. It is very important no moisture is left in the cheese. To get rid of the vinegar taste wash the cheese in cold water, but make sure to always push out excess liquid.
  4. When the cheese is completely dry, begin kneading the cheese to remove cracks. You will know to stop kneading when you can form a ball with no cracks (only smooth). When you reach this point, create the balls and set aside.
  5. In another large pot ,that resembles the shape of a large bowl, combine other ingredients for the sugar syrup and cover. When the sugar water reaches a bowl, begin adding the balls. Cover this and let the balls boil for 6 min (they will not burn). After 6 min, uncover the pot and let boil for 6-8 more minutes until the balls have taken up lots of moisture.
  6. When finished, set in the fridge to cool in a bowl with extra syrup.
  7. Garnish with pistachios and enjoy!