It’s my son, Arjjun’s birthday today. He is turning 18. When I asked him what he wanted for his special day, he said he wanted Ras malai:)
Ras malai which is a traditional sweet from West Bengal is made with just 2 main ingredients, milk and sugar and some saffron. It’s really wonder that such a divine dessert could be created with just 2 ingredients 🙂

Ingredients

For the gullas ( paneer balls)

Milk – 1 lit

Citric acid crystals – 1/2 tsp

Sugar – 3/4th cup

Water – 3 cups

For the malai

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Full cream milk – 1 lit

Sugar – 4- 5 tbsps

Saffron – 2 big pinches ( almost a tsp)

Method

To make the malai

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Soak the saffron in 1/4th cup of warm milk.

Boil 1 lit of full cream milk in a heavy bottom pan till it reduces to half and becomes thick.

Add the sugar and mix well. Let it cool for sometime.

Now add the saffron milk and mix well.

Keep it aside till required.

To make the gullas ( paneer discs)

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In a pan, add 1 lit milk and let it boil.

Dissolve the citric acid crystals in 2 tbsps of water and keep it ready.

When the milk starts boiling, add the dissolved citric acid slowly, till the milk curdles ( paneer) completely ( the whey will look clear and pale green in colour once the milk curdles completely.

 

Strain the curdled milk ( paneer) using a muslin cloth. Wash the paneer with running water well. Make a potli ( pouch) of the muslin cloth and tie it to the tap( 15-20) mins and let it drain completely.

Transfer the dry, crumbled paneer to a plate.

Knead it well using your palm till it becomes very smooth and starts releasing the fat.

Divide the paneer into 12-15 portions.

Roll it into a smooth balls and gently pat and shape into discs of uniform size.

Meanwhile, add the sugar and water in a pan. When it starts boiling, add the paneer discs very gently.

Close the pan with a lid and cook for 12-15 mins on a medium flame.

To check if the discs are cooked, drop it into a bowl of fresh water. If it sinks, it means that it’s cooked completely. 

  

 

Keep the discs immersed in the fresh water for few mins.

  
Remove the discs from the water and gently squeeze it. Add it to the malai.

 Let it be immersed in the malai for few hours. 

Serve the ras malai chilled:)