Rosogolla / Bengali Rasgulla

Making rosogolla is tricky and easy at the same time. Either you get the technique right...or you just mess it up. And it's so easy to make a mistake at so many levels that in the end you are just left wondering in your sleep that where the hell did you go wrong. so after years of trials and errors and failing miserably....suddenly I found myself making the perfect, soft and spongy rosogolla. The one that does not get hard once cold, even inside the fridge and retains its perfect round shape even after cooking and I could not be happier.

So here I am, sharing the accurate ways of making rosogolla / rasgulla which gives me perfect results every time. And if you are lucky to get them straight the first time, you are definitely in for a treat. 

Rosogolla / Bengali Ragulla Recipe

Makes 18

Ingredients:

3 litres of full fat cow milk

1 kg white granulated sugar

3 tbsp white vinegar

500ml cold water

a good amount of ice cubes 

Method:

Make the channa / henna

• In a large pot bring the milk to a boil.
• As soon as it starts to boil switch off the flame.
• Mix the vinegar with the cold water and pour it in small quantities into the water. After each pour slowly stir the milk with a ladle. Continue this process until the milk is separated completely or you can see cloudy water and the clotted milk curd properly.
• Immediately strain the milk in a colander lined with a thin cheesecloth.
• Pour cold water on the channa / chenna to reduce it's temperature and then tie the cloth tightly.
• Hang the chenna in a place where it can sit untouched for about an hour.

Make the rosogolla dough

• Take the warm chenna on a flat work surface and knead it with the back of your palm gently and patiently until they become soft and fluffy and you can not feel a single lump in it.
• Make balls from the cottage cheese, each ball weighing around 10-12 grams. The rosogollas will puff up in double of their size. So if you make the ball already large, it can crack or break or the inside may remain uncooked.
• The balls should be smooth and no cracks should be visible. 
• Once all the balls are ready cover them with a clean and damp kitchen towel.

Make the sugar syrup

• In a large pot add in 4 cups of sugar along with 3 cups of water. Cook on low to medium flame until the sugar melts. Switch the flame to medium high and boil the syrup for around 3 minutes. Transfer the syrup in a large bowl and let it cool down a bit.
• In the previous pot take 2 cups of sugar and add in 12-14 cups of water. Crack the flame to high and let the syrup come to a rolling boil.

Make the rosogolla

• As soon as the syrup starts to boil, add the balls in them one by one. Do not crowd the pot as they will double in size. They need plenty of space to float around. Cover the pot and cook covered for for 5 minutes on high flame and then 10-12 minutes on medium flame. Do not open in between.
• In the meantime prepare you're bowl of ice water ready.
• Once they have doubled in size and you can see small cracks in them, switch off the flame and leave them covered for another 15-20 minutes. After 15 minutes, open the cover of the pot and gently with a clotted spoon take out the puffed rosogollas. Submerge them in ice water first and put the remaining dough balls to boil again. Repeat the same process.
• Let the cooked rosogolla stay inside the ice water for about 15 minutes and then transfer them to the thicker sugar syrup.
• Let the rosogolla soak in the syrup for about 6 hours and then serve.