Ras malai, rasamalai, or rossomalai is a dessert originating from the eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent. The dessert is called ''rossomalai'' in

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

, ''ras malai'' in Hindi, and ''rasa malei'' in

Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...

. It is popular in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. The origin of the sweet is impossible to verify but there are several underlying stories. K.C. Das Grandsons claims that it was invented by

K.C. Das Krishna Chandra Das (1869–1934), commonly referred to as K.C. Das, was a Bengali confectioner, entrepreneur, businessman and Bengali cultural icon of the early 20th century. Born in 1869 in Bag bazar, Kolkata, Krishna Chandra was the only s ...

in Kolkata. The Sen brothers of Comilla operating under the

Matri Bhandar Matri Bhandar ( bn, মাতৃ ভাণ্ডার) is a Bangladeshi traditional confectionery store well known for Rasmalai. The taste of Rasmalai of Matri Bhandar has been appreciated in various national and international important places an ...

brand also claim to be the original maker of the dessert. Bangladesh has begun the process of registering geographical indication status for Comillar rasmalai.

Origin and etymology

It is believed to have originated somewhere in Eastern Indian subcontinent, presumably in the Bengal region. According to ''The Diner's Dictionary: Word Origins of Food and Drink'' published by Oxford University Press "The term comes from Hindi ''raś'' 'juice', and '' malai'' 'cream'.

Ingredients

Ras malai consists of flattened balls of

chhena Chhena () or chhana () are a style of cheese, originating from the Indian subcontinent, made from water buffaloDalby, A 2009, ''Cheese: A Global History'', Reaktion Books, p. 73, Kapoor, S & Kapoor, A 2006, ''Sanjeev Kapoor's No-oil Vegetarian C ...

soaked in malai (

clotted cream Clotted cream ( kw, dehen molys, sometimes called scalded, clouted, Devonshire or Cornish cream) is a thick cream made by heating full-cream cow's milk using steam or a water bath and then leaving it in shallow pans to cool slowly. During this t ...

) flavoured with cardamom. Milk is boiled and a bit of vinegar or lime juice is added to split it. The whey is discarded and the milk solids are drained, cooled and kneaded into a dough. The dough is divided into small balls and the balls are cooked in hot water with a bit of rose water added. The balls are then cooked in milk with saffron,

pistachio The pistachio (, ''Pistacia vera''), a member of the cashew family, is a small tree originating from Central Asia and the Middle East. The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food. ''Pistacia vera'' is often confused with other sp ...

s and kheer as stuffing.

Variations

Different types of ras malai can be found in different areas. In Dhaka and Rangpur, the rasmalais are similar in shape to the rasgullas,and round discs.

References

External links

Bangladeshi desserts Culture in Comilla Bengali desserts Sweets of West Bengal Indian desserts Pakistani desserts Muhajir cuisine North Indian cuisine Bengali cuisine {{Bangladesh-cuisine-stub

Origin and etymology

Ingredients

Variations

See also

References

External links