Instant Pot Rasmalai

Scrumptious instant pot rasmalai is a famous Indian sweet dish often made during the festive season. This instant pot version makes everything a lot easier since we cook in one-pot. Read on to find out how do I make the instant pot Rasmalai recipe. 

After making instant pot rasgulla, I was pretty confident that Rasmalai will also be successful in the instant pot. If you haven’t checked the rasgulla recipe yet, here it is.

Instant Pot Rasgulla

What is Rasmalai?

Rasmalai or roshomalai is a milk-based sweet dish originated in East Bengal of India. This dish consists of steamed paneer patties dunked in “rosh” or saffron milk.

This lightly sweet dessert is a very popular Diwali mithai and special dessert often made during the Indian festive season. 

What does instant pot Rasmalai taste like?

Rasmalai is a lightly sweet, saffron and cardamom flavored dish that has soft and spongy paneer patties in a creamy milk. This is one of the most popular Indian dessert dishes often served during special occasions.

Why my Rasmalai is not spongy?

The chenna or paneer used in Rasmalai should be drained well and kneaded soft. If the chenna is drained for a long time, refrigerated and is not kneaded well, the Rasmalai patties usually turn hard and dry. However, when kneaded till soft, the patties turn spongy once pressure cooked in hot syrup. 

Why my Rasmalai is hard?

The answer of this question is same as the last  question. If the chenna is drained for too long, and is not kneaded well, the patties may turn hard when cooked in the sugar syrup. 

How long does Rasmalai last?

Rasmalai is best to enjoy within first three days. Store it in an air-tight container for no more than 3-days. 

How to make Instant Pot Rasmalai?

It’s very easy to make instant pot Rasmalai. The process involves three major steps. First, we make the creamy saffron milk and chill it.

Second, we make the Rasmalai paneer/Chenna patties and cook them in the sugar syrup. Then immerse the parties in the saffron milk and serve. The instant pot Rasmalai is best enjoyed when served chilled. 

• Instant Pot 6 qt
• Food processor or a dough maker 

Ingredients:

To Make Paneer:

• ½ gallon full-fat milk
• 4 tablespoon strained lime juice mixed with ½ cup hot water 
• Muslin cloth

To Make Sugar Syrup:

• 1 cup organic sugar
• 2 ½ cup Water
• ¼ teaspoon of whole cardamom seeds

For the Saffron Milk:

• 500 ml whole milk
• ¼ cup condensed milk 
• ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
• A pinch of saffron 
• 2-3 tablespoons sugar(optional)
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped pistachios(or nuts of choice)

Instructions to make Instant Pot Rasmalai:

Make Paneer:

• I have the detailed recipe of “Instant Pot Paneer” here with a video. The process involves pressure cooking milk in high for 0 minutes till milk is hot.
• Then add the acidic lime water and stir well till the Paneer separates from the whey. 
• Take the Paneer in a Muslin cloth and rinse it with cold water. Press and keep it aside for an hour till the Paneer has no water in it.

Making Rasmalai Patties:

• I strongly suggest using fresh paneer while making this dish. You make paneer, drain it for an hour and proceed to the next step. I don’t like to refrigerate the paneer and use it the next day. 
• Take paneer in a large plate and knead the paneer by pressing it with your palm.  The paneer will be grainy at this point but it turns super soft after kneading. 
• This step is very important. Alternatively, you can use a food processor to quickly knead the paneer. Don’t over beat the paneer or it will release some fat and break while making the patties. The best way to do in a food processor is by applying intermittent pulses and knead for about a minute. 
• After the knead or processing, the paneer should be very soft. 
• Take a spoonful of paneer and roll it between your palms to make a circle. Now press it slightly to make thin patties out of it. Set aside. 

Make Sugar Syrup:

• While you make other patties, set the instant pot into a sauté mode.
• Add sugar and water and let it come to a boiling temperature,
• Now add the patties to the boiling syrup and cook on low pressure for 15 minutes while the vent is in sealing position. Alternatively, you can steam them for 15-minutes with the vent in release position. Both the methods work well for cooking the Rasmalai patties. 
  

• After the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally.
• Meanwhile proceed to the next step for making the saffron milk. 

Make Saffron Milk:

• Set the instant pot to a sauté mode. Add ¼ cup of water. This helps milk not to stick to the bottom of the inner pot. 
• Now add milk, condensed milk, saffron and cardamom and mix well. 
  

• Let the milk come to a boil. At this point, add sugar if necessary. Mix well.
• Let the milk boil for a few minutes till the milk thickens. 

Make Instant Pot Rasmalai: 

• After the natural pressure release, transfer the patties to a large along with little syrup.
• Since we are making Rasmalai, we will have to drain the sugar syrup.
• Carefully, press each patty between your palms till the sugar syrup drains well. You don’t have to squeeze it till dry. Just drain the excess sugar syrup.
• Now transfer the patties to saffron milk and mix well. You can either let the patties simmer in the milk for a minute or add the patties directly to the cooked milk and chill it. I like to simmer a little so that the patties soak the ras or the milk really well. Garnish with nuts and saffron.
• Let this chill for an hour. The patties also soak more milk while chilling.
• Serve chilled. 

Notes

• Squeeze out water from the paneer till it becomes very dry yet not hard like cubed paneer. The idea is to get crumbly paneer.
• You may use white sugar or turbinado sugar to make the syrup. With the latter one, your rasgullas will turn brown. 
• Have a straining system ready helps a lot as soon as you start to separate paneer from the whey water. 
• I prefer to add a strainer lined with muslin cloth on a large bowl. 

• This way, the bowl collects the dripped whey and paneer stays on the strainer. 
• My instant pot Rasmalai is lightly sweet. You can make adjustments to the sweetness accordingly. 

📖 Recipe