Ras Malai (Milk Dumplings in Saffron Cream)
Soft homemade paneer discs poached in syrup and soaked in cardamom and saffron milk, a party dessert worth the effort.
- Time1 hr 45 plus chilling
- LevelHard
- Costabout £0.45 a head
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Heat the 1500 ml milk until it boils. Take off the heat, stir in the lemon juice and wait 1 minute until the milk splits into curds and clear whey.
- 2
Pour through a muslin lined sieve. Rinse under cold water for 30 seconds to remove the lemon taste, then squeeze out all the water and hang for 10 minutes.
- 3
Tip the curds onto a work surface. Knead with the cornflour for 5 minutes until smooth and soft with no graininess. Shape into 12 balls and flatten slightly.
5 min - 4
Boil the water and syrup sugar in a wide pan. Slide in the discs, cover and boil gently for 15 minutes until they double in size. Lift out and gently squeeze out the syrup.
15 min - 5
Meanwhile, simmer the 750 ml milk with the rabri sugar, saffron and cardamom for 20 minutes until reduced to about 500 ml.
20 min - 6
Add the discs to the warm saffron milk. Cool, then chill for at least 4 hours. Serve cold, topped with pistachios.
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.
