Raskadam

Back again with another Diwali recipe- Raskadam! I love anything sweet and totally love rasgullas. But my most favourite Bengali sweet is… well, you guessed it. It’s raskadam. Soft and creamy, melt-in-the-mouth khoya covers soft and spongy rasgulla. We add saffron while making the rasgullas, which lends its bright yellow colour to them. The rasgullas are easy to make and the outer covering takes barely any time. Roll them over desiccated coconut and voila! An easy yet classy Bengali sweet is ready to devour! This dish is full of sweetness and has varied textures at each level. Take a bite, and know for yourself!

A few other similar sweets

Rasmalai https://laksmiscookbook.blogspot.com/2018/10/rasmalai.html

Rasgulla https://laksmiscookbook.blogspot.com/2018/10/rasgulla.html

Cham Cham  https://laksmiscookbook.blogspot.com/2019/10/cham-cham.html

Preparation time: 15 to 20 minutes| Cooking time: 15 to 20 minutes

Course: Dessert| Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

Milk- 1litre

Lemon juice- from one full lemon

Saffron strands- ½ tsp

Corn flour- 1tblsp

Sugar- 1 cup

Water- 1 cup

Unsweetened kova- 250 gms

Powdered sugar- ½ cup

Desiccated coconut- ½ cup

Method:

1.      Heat one litre of milk and ½ tsp of saffron strands in a large vessel. When it starts boiling, lower flame and let it boil for around 5 to 10 minutes. This will turn the milk into yellow colour, due to the addition of saffron.

2.      Now add the lemon juice. First add a spoon and see if the milk curdles. If not, add a little more. Keep boiling the milk in medium flame. Within three or four minutes, the milk will fully curdle. Switch off flame

3.      Use a muslin cloth and strain the whey water. Pour a glass od cold water over the chena (paneer obtained from curdling the milk), to remove the smell of lemon.

4.      Squeeze the muslin cloth and remove the excess water from the chena. Take care that same amount of moisture is still there in the chena.

5.      Immediately, when the chena is still warm, transfer it to a plate. Use the edge of your palm and start pressing the chena. This will make it soft. You need to keep pressing for 10 minutes.

6.      Now add a tblsp of corn flour to the chena and mix well. Make small balls out of the chena.

7.      Add a cup of sugar and a cup of water in a pressure pan. Let it boil in low flame until the sugar dissolves.

8.      Now add the chena balls to the sugar syrup and close the lid of the pressure pan. Pressure cook this for 1 whistle. Switch off flame immediately.

9.      Let the pressure release on its own. Then transfer the rasgullas (the pressure cooked chena balls) to a container immediately. Now we will have to coat these rasgullas with sweetened kova to turn them into raskadam.

10.   To prepare the sweetened kova, grate 250 gms of unsweetened kova. Add ½ cup of powdered sugar to it. Mix everything well.

11.   Make small balls out of the kova and flatten them. Place a rasgulla on it and fully cover it, by shaping it.

12.   Roll these balls over desiccated coconut.  Chill them for some time to set them. Raskadam is ready to be devoured.

Notes:

·        If the mentioned amount of lemon juice is not enough to curdle the milk, feel free to add more

·        When you are making balls out of the chena, make sure that there are no cracks. Or else the rasgullas might break while being cooked.

·        Cook the chena balls only for one whistle and switch off immediately.

·        After the pressure releases, immediately transfer the rasgullas to another container. Or else they might turn hard.

·        If the unsweetened kova becomes gooey after adding the powdered sugar, you can place it in the freeze for some time to set it. 

Step by step pictures

heat milk and saffron strands in a large vessel

boil in low flame until the milk turns yellow in colour

add lemon juice and boil for 3 to 4 minutes

in low flame to curdle the milk

strain the curdled milk in a muslin cloth

wash the chena with cold water to remove 

the smell of the lemon. squeeze the cloth

 and remove the excess water

immediately transfer to a plate

press the chena for 10  minutes, 

using the back edge of your palm

add one tblsp of corn flour to the chena

mix everything well

make small balls out of it

boil one cup of sugar and one cup of water

in a pressure pan on low flame.

after the sugar dissolves, add the

 chena balls to the sugar syrup.

close the lid and pressure cook for 1 whistle

switch off flame immeditely. let the 

pressure release on its own.

immediately transfer the rasgullas to a container

grate 250 gms of unsweetened kova

add 1/2 cup of powdered sugar to that

mix well

make small balls out of the kova

and flatten it.

place a rasgulla on it and fully

cover it by shaping it

roll these balls on desiccated coconut

chill them to set

raskadam ready