Choshir Payesh | Choshi Pitha Recipe
Choshi is a small, oval-shaped Pithe, made with either rice flour or all-purpose flour. These little dumplings are simmered in a sweet mixture of milk and jaggery, transforming into a delightful Choshir Payesh. This special Bengali dessert istraditionally prepared during Makar Sankranti. A single chosi is about the same size as a grain of basmati rice. This means that if you're making choshi at home, you'll need to be very careful and precise.
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Servings: 6 People
Calories: 1110kcal
Cost: Rs 200
Ingredients
To make Choshi:
- 100 g Gobindobhog Rice
- 1 tablespoon Semolina
- 1 pinch Salt optional
- 1 Cup Hot Water
To Make Choshir Payesh:
- 1 cup Choshi
- 2 liters Full-Cream Milk
- 300 g Date Palm Jaggery aka Patali Gur
- 1 teaspoon Ghee
- 1 Bay Leaf optional
Instructions
To make Choshi:
- Wash Rice 2-3 times under running water and sundry the rice completely. This will take around two days to completely sundry the rice.
- Now, make a fine powder of the rice. You can make the Rice Powder in bulk and use it as and when required.
- Take 100g Rice Powder and Semolina in a bowl along with a pinch of salt and mix thoroughly.
- Now add 2-3 tablespoon hot water and start kneading.
- Add water little by little to make a tight dough.
- Once the dough is prepared, cover it with a wet cloth and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Now take a pinch-sized dough and, using your finger, give it an elliptical shape. It should look like a rice grain both in size and shape.
- Following the same process, make the rest of the "Choshi".
- The size of Choshi varies from person to person; however, I prefer the rice grain size.
- Once prepared, sundry the Choshi completely. You can store excess Choshi in an airtight container.
To make Choshir Payesh:
- Take the milk in a deep-bottom pan and start boiling it after adding 2 cups of water and 1 bay leaf till the milk reduces to ⅔.
- Add Ghee in between.
- Once the milk reduces to ⅔, add 1 Cup of Choshi to the milk and keep cooking on a low flame.
- Cook until the milk thickens and the Choshi turns translucent in color.
- Add Date Palm Jaggery and mix thoroughly, and cook for 5 minutes, and then switch the flame off.
- Serve Choshir Payesh at room temperature. I, however, prefer to serve it after storing it for one day in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Instead of making Choshi at home, you can easily buy it from the market. If you do want to make it yourself, using store-bought rice flour is a convenient alternative.
- Some people like to fry the Choshi before adding it to the milk, but I prefer not to. Adding it directly helps to thicken the milk faster with the rice residue and adds a wonderful flavor.
- I don't include any dry fruits in my Choshir Payesh, but feel free to add your favorites to make it even richer.
- You can use sugar instead of date palm jaggery, or even a combination of both. However, the jaggery really gives the Choshir Payesh a unique and delicious taste.
Nutrition
Serving: 200ml | Calories: 1110kcal | Carbohydrates: 150.4g | Protein: 38.4g | Fat: 42.1g | Saturated Fat: 25.5g | Cholesterol: 159mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 75g
