Have you witnessed milk being reincarnated as cheese?
Mango Rasmalai
Serves 4
Chhena here refers to the cheese curds that form after curdling the milk.
For the chhena and sugar syrup:
1 L full fat milk
Juice of 2 limes
1 tsp all-purpose flour
250 gm sugar
1 L water
For the malai:
500 ml full fat milk
100 gm sugar
100 ml mango puree
7-8 pistachios
7-8 almonds
1 tsp cardamom powder
2 tbsp almond slivers
You will also need:
250 ml ice cold water
To make the chhena and sugar syrup:
1. In a pot on medium heat, bring milk to a boil and then pour lime juice into it. Turn off the heat. Give it a quick stir and then leave it to curdle. This will take 20 minutes. We’re expecting white clumps and a yellow translucent liquid (whey) to remain as residue. If the residue is yet opaque, then it means that your milk has not curdled completely. In that case, remove the cheese curds. Bring the remaining milk to a boil and pour juice of half a lime over it and turn the heat off. Separate the clumps from the residue. For best results, use fresh milk.
2. Pass the cheese curds through a muslin cloth and squeeze it to drain excess water.
3. Pour ice cold water over the curds to get rid of the citrusy taste and then drain excess water. There should be little to no water remaining in the muslin cloth. We are looking for a crumbly texture here.
4. Transfer the chhena to a flat surface, add flour and begin working it to form a ball. Work it for a good 10 minutes to achieve a soft mouthfeel.
5. Divide into 16 pieces and roll each of them into flat disks or cylinders.
6. In a deep pan on medium heat, add water and sugar. Bring it to a boil. Add the disks and reduce heat. Let the disks cook for 15 minutes with the lid on. Then turn the heat off and let them rest for another 10 minutes in the liquid.
7. Transfer to a large container.
To make the malai:
1. Blend milk, mango puree, sugar, pistachios, almonds and cardamom powder in a blender. Transfer the mixture to a pot and keep stirring for 15 minutes on medium heat to thicken the liquid.
2. Let cool before pouring the mixture over the disks. Refrigerate for 5-6 hours or overnight.
3. Garnish with almond slivers and serve cold.
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