Allergens in Sandesh: milk.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 2 litres, full fat Milk
- 3 tbsp juice, mixed with 3 tbsp water Lemonfor curdling
- 100g, powdered Sugar
- 1/2 tsp, ground Cardamom
- a few strands, for pressing on top Saffronoptional
- 2 litres cold, for rinsing the chhena Water
Cookware
stovetop
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Have a colander lined with a double layer of muslin ready over a bowl before you start heating the milk.
- Use diluted lemon juice, not neat. Neat acid makes tough, rubbery chhena.
- The chhena must hang 30 minutes and no longer. Over-drained chhena will not knead smooth.
- Powder the sugar in advance; granulated sugar leaves a gritty sandesh.
Method
- Bring the milk to a full boil in a heavy pan, then turn the heat off completely.
- Wait 60 seconds, then add the diluted lemon juice a spoonful at a time, stirring slowly, until the curds separate and the whey runs pale green.Add the acid only as far as you need. The instant the whey turns clear, stop.
- Pour into the muslin-lined colander and rinse the curds under cold water for 30 seconds to wash off the lemon and stop the cooking.Skipping the cold rinse leaves the sandesh tasting sour.
- Gather the muslin, squeeze gently, and hang for 30 minutes.
- Tip the chhena onto a clean surface and knead with the heel of your hand for 8-10 minutes until it goes from grainy to completely smooth and slightly greasy.This kneading is the entire recipe. Under-knead and you get crumbs, not sandesh.
- Work in the powdered sugar and cardamom and knead 2 minutes more.
- Transfer to a non-stick pan and cook on the lowest heat for 6-8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and pulls away from the sides in a mass.Stop while it still looks slightly wet. Cooked a minute too long, sandesh turns dry and chalky.
- Spread on a plate and cool 15 minutes until it is comfortable to handle but still warm.
- Divide into 12 while still warm, roll each into a ball and flatten slightly, pressing a strand of saffron or a thumbprint into the top.
- Cool completely before serving.
Storage
Keeps 3 days refrigerated in an airtight box. Bring back to room temperature for 20 minutes before eating; fridge-cold sandesh tastes of nothing.
Nutrition Low estimate
One serving of Sandesh (552 g) is about 415 calories, or 76 calories per 100 g.
Medium protein: 16 g a serving, 16% of the calories
| Per serving552 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 415 kcal | 76 kcal |
| Protein | 16.3 g | 3 g |
| Carbohydrate | 50.8 g | 9 g |
| of which sugars | 51.2 g | 9 g |
| Fibre | 0.2 g | 0 g |
| Fat | 16.9 g | 3 g |
| of which saturated | 9.6 g | 2 g |
| of which unsaturated | 5.2 g | 1 g |
Whey poured away when the milk is curdled means much of the weighed input is never eaten, so the real figures are likely lower. Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: Vegetarian Indian recipes · Gluten-free Indian recipes · No onion no garlic recipes · Bengali recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.