Bengali Sandesh
Soft, fudgy Bengali sweets made from fresh curdled milk, kneaded with sugar, cooked briefly and shaped into small pieces.
Photograph credit: Closeup of Delicious Indian Sandesh with Pistachios by Jahra Tasfia Reza · Pexels License · Pexels
Why does sandesh feel so different from other Indian sweets? Because it is made of fresh milk curds, not milk reduced by hours of boiling, and so the texture is soft and delicate rather than dense. The curds, called chhena, are made by curdling hot whole milk with lemon juice and draining the whey.
Use full-fat milk. Low-fat milk gives a dry, crumbly chhena. Heat it until it just boils, add the lemon juice a spoonful at a time, and stop when the milk separates into white curds and clear, greenish whey. Strain through muslin and rinse under cold water to remove the lemon taste. Hang or press the curds for 30 minutes to drain.
Knead the drained chhena for 5 minutes on a smooth surface, using the heel of your hand, until it is soft and smooth with no grain. The kneading is what gives sandesh its melting texture.
Cook the dough with sugar in a pan for a few minutes, until it just comes together. Mould it while warm into small pieces, press a pistachio on each, and chill.
What People Ask
How long does Bengali Sandesh take to make?
15 minutes of preparation and 15 minutes of cooking, plus 30 minutes of draining, so allow 1 hour from start to finish. The method also needs time for chilling, which it does not time, so treat that as a minimum. The recipe serves 12.
How to Make Bengali Sandesh
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Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy pan. Add the lemon juice a spoonful at a time, stirring, until the curds separate from the whey.
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Strain through muslin, rinse under cold water, then squeeze out the whey. Hang or press for 30 minutes.
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Knead the chhena for 5 minutes on a smooth surface until completely smooth and soft.
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Cook the chhena and sugar in a non-stick pan over a low heat for 6 minutes, stirring, until the mixture comes together and leaves the pan. Stir in the cardamom.
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While still warm, divide into 12 pieces, shape into discs and press a pistachio half into each. Chill before serving.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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Tips That Matter
- Rinse the curds well to remove the lemon taste.
- Knead until you cannot feel any grains.
- Do not overcook the dough; it should stay soft.
Serve It With
Masala chai · Fresh fruit · Rasgulla · Saffron milk
Storage
Keeps in the fridge for 2 days. Serve at room temperature.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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