Rosogolla: Indian Milk Chhena Balls Poached in Cardamom Syrup

Steps

1. 1Bring the milk to a boil

   Pour the milk into a heavy-bottomed pot and bring it to a full boil, stirring now and then so it does not catch. If the milk is unhomogenized, take the pot off the heat and wait about 5 minutes. If it is ordinary homogenized milk, keep it on the stove and turn the heat to low.

2. 2Curdle with lemon and stop the heat

   Add 2 tbsp lemon juice and stir gently until the milk separates completely into white curds and clear whey. If it stays cloudy, add more lemon juice a little at a time, up to 3 tbsp in all. Turn off the heat and leave it for 2 minutes, then pour in the ice water to stop the curds cooking. You are done when the curds float in thin, yellowish whey with no milky haze left.

3. 3Strain and rinse the chhena

   Line a colander with the thin cloth and set it over a bowl in the sink. Pour in the curds and whey and let the whey run through. Rinse the chhena under running water, moving it gently with your fingers so every part is washed. Stop when the curds no longer smell of lemon.

4. 4Squeeze and hang

   Gather the cloth around the chhena and squeeze out the water. Tie it up and hang it, from the tap over the sink, for 1 to 1½ hours. Unwrap it when nothing more drips from the cloth. The chhena should feel crumbly and moist, with no water seeping out when you press it.

   Moisture decides whether the balls hold

   Chhena that is too wet cracks open in the boiling syrup; chhena that is too dry turns hard and splits. Crumbly, cool and just damp is the state to aim for before kneading.

5. 5Knead until smooth

   Turn the chhena out onto a clean, smooth plate. Press and push it with the heel of your hand, gathering it back together and pushing again. Knead for 3 to 5 minutes, about 3 minutes if you used homogenized milk. Stop as soon as it is smooth and soft with a faint sheen, before it turns greasy or wet.

   Stop kneading early

   Over-kneaded chhena gets oily and damp, and those balls shrink in the syrup. Stop at smooth, even if it feels too soon.

6. 6Divide and roll

   Divide the dough into 18 equal pieces. Roll each between your palms with light pressure until the surface is completely smooth. Keep them small. A finished ball has no cracks or creases at all, even where the dough met as you rolled.

7. 7Make the syrup

   Put the sugar, cardamom pods and water in the wide pot and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring it to a boil, then lift out the cardamom pods. Stir in the rose water now if you are using it. Set the heat to medium so the syrup holds a steady, rolling boil before the balls go in.

8. 8Boil the balls with the lid on

   Lower the balls into the boiling syrup one at a time and cover the pot immediately. Keep the syrup boiling for 9 to 10 minutes. At about 5 minutes, open the lid, stir the syrup once gently with a skewer without touching the balls, and cover again. You will see the balls floating and rocking in the bubbling syrup.

   Hot syrup and steam

   Boiling sugar syrup burns badly. Lift the lid away from your face and keep your hands clear of the steam when you stir.

9. 9Rest with the lid closed

   At 10 minutes, turn off the heat and leave the lid on. Do not open the pot for at least 20 minutes. The balls puff in the trapped heat, then settle as the syrup cools. When you finally lift the lid, they are noticeably bigger, white and porous, and float in calm syrup.

   Medium heat, no peeking

   A fierce boil makes rosogolla rubbery, cracked or shrunken, and a crowded pot leaves them no room to swell. A steady medium boil, a closed lid and a full rest give the spongy white ball.

10. 10Cool and chill

    Let the rosogolla cool completely in the syrup. If the syrup tastes thin, dissolve the extra ¼ cup sugar in about ¾ cup of the syrup, let it cool and pour it back. Move the balls and syrup into a bowl and chill them. They are ready when they are cold right through and a split ball shows an even, open white crumb.