Chhena or Paneer Jalebi

Chhena Jalebis are made from indian cottage cheese. If you want to make gluten free Jalebis, use gluten free plain flour available at natural health department stores or make your own gluten free flour at home. Here I am posting video on how to make fresh chhena

Chhena or Paneer Jalebi II

Author: Bhavna

Ingredients

For the Batter:

  • 2 cups (about 200gms)Paneer(Chana) – freshly prepared from 2 litres of milk
  • ½ cup Khoya (milk mawa)
  • 4 tbsp Maida (Plain flour)
  • 2 tbsp Sooji (semolina)
  • ½ tsp Baking powder
  • 1 tsp Cardamom powder
  • Few drops of yellow food color if desired
  • Oil or Ghee for frying Jalebis
  • For sugar syrup:
  • 3 cups Sugar
  • 3 cups Water
  • Cardamom powder – 1tsp
  • Rose water or saffron can be added for flavor

Instructions

  • Prepare chhana freshly at home adding a Tbsp of lemon juice or vinegar in boiling milk. Drain the excess water and run tap water through the chhana to get the smell of lemon/vinegar from it. Try to get out all excess water out of it.
  • Take chhana and khoya in a flat bottomed vessel and mix well. Rub it continuously with your palm and knead it for quite sometime till it becomes a soft & smooth dough without any lump and doesn’t stick in hand.
  • Add maida , semolina and cardamom powder and baking powder and knead it well to form a soft and smooth dough.
  • Keep the dough in a bowl covered by a moist cloth or cling film. Put the bowl in room temperature for 1 ½ – 2 hours.
  • Divide the dough into equal sized round balls . Now roll each balls with your palm into a long thick rope. Coil the rope into one and half turn leaving small space in between, as shown in the picture.
  • Heat oil in a pan and when it’s smoking hot, put the flame in low. Slowly drop the jilipis in oil and deep fry till they turn golden yellow.
  • Prepare the sugar syrup with putting sugar and water in given ratio and by boiling the syrup till the sugar gets melted completely with the consistency is near to one string. Put some crushed cardamom in the syrup.
  • Take out the fried jilipis from the pan and drop into the warm syrup and keep them fully immersed in it for 3 to 4 hours.
  • Juicy Chhana Jalebis are ready to be served.