Instructions

How to make Chena/Chana

• Take a heavy bottomed vessel , pour milk in it.
• Bring the milk to boil and keep stirring to avoid burning of milk from bottom.
• Once the milk comes to boil , simmer the gas , start adding lemon juice and keep stirring ( if required , add more lemon juice).
• Cook for few seconds until the milk solids get separate from the water. This water is called whey water, it is good for health . You can use it for making any curry or kneading your roti dough. Switch off the heat.
• Pour this curdled milk to the already lined muslin cloth or thin cotton cloth over a strainer, squeeze out all the whey water then rinse cheena or cottage cheese under the tap water as much as possible. If you do not rinse the chena properly, you will get the smell of lemon while having sandesh .
• Now hang the cloth covered chhena with tap for 30 minutes . Then remove it from tap. It will help to squeeze more water from chhena .
• After that, remove the cloth from the chhena. The chhena should not have too much moisture nor be too dry.
• Take the chhena in a wider plate. Knead it well with your palms for 8 to 10 minutes to get smooth texture. This kneading process is very important and it decides the texture of sandesh.

How to Make Khoya or Mewa

• Heal milk in a heavy bottomed pan on high flame, when the milk will start boiling .
• Simmer the gas and keep boiling it on low flame till it reduces to ¼ the volume or the milk solids become lumpy .
• Using spatula, scrape the milk solids from the sides and add these to the bowl .
• Switch off the gas and cover the bowl . Let the mewa be cool at room temperature .

How To Make Sandesh

• Place a thick bottomed non stick pan on stove on a low flame .
• Add chena , with continuous stirring cook on a low flame for 2-3 minutes.
• Add khoya or mewa , sugar and green cardamom ( powdered ) , mix properly, continuous stirring on low flame until lthe moisture would begin to dry up, remove the pan from heat and allow the mixture to cool.
• Grease all moulds with ghee, and also rub your two palms with ghee.
• Take small portion of the sandesh mixture on a flat surface, knead it with your fingers and put them in the sandesh mould then pressing from top and sides to give a perfect shape of sandesh.
• Demould sandesh.
• Do this with remaining sandesh mixture using different shaped moulds . If you do not have mould then you can give any shape according to your choice.
• Sandesh is ready to serve .