Recipe
🍰 DESSERT
Roshogolla
Spongy cheese-curd balls simmered in light sugar syrup, the springy sweet of Bengal.
Bangladeshi · medium · serves 6
prep 30 min · cook 25 min
~319 cal · 3g protein · 73g carbs · 2g fat · 0g fiber · 72g sugars · 2g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Roshogolla (rasgulla) is one of the most beloved sweets of Bengal, a soft, spongy ball of fresh cheese curd soaked in a light, clear sugar syrup. Its origins are a proud point of rivalry across the region, and it is a fixture of celebrations and everyday indulgence alike.
Chhana, fresh curds made by splitting milk with acid, is kneaded until perfectly smooth, rolled into balls, and simmered in a boiling sugar syrup, where they swell to double their size and turn springy and sponge-like. Served chilled in their syrup, they are light, delicately sweet, and famous for the way they yield and bounce back under the spoon.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and egg-, nut- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
2 cups chhana (fresh milk curds)
1 tbsp
2 cups sugar
4 pods
1 tsp rose water
Instructions
1
Knead the chhana with the semolina until completely smooth and free of grain, then roll into small crack-free balls.
✎ Chef’s note
Knead the curds until they turn smooth and slightly greasy on your palm. This is the single most important step for a springy, crack-free roshogolla.
2
Boil the sugar with plenty of water and the cardamom into a light syrup.
3
Drop the balls into the rapidly boiling syrup and cook, covered, until they double in size, about 15 minutes.
4
Cool in the syrup with the rose water, then chill and serve.
Bengali sweet-shop tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Dhaka. Ilish, the hilsa, is the national fish and a seasonal one, running up from the sea into the rivers with the monsoon and landed in quantity at Chandpur and Mawa. At the Bengali new year it is eaten as panta ilish, fried fish alongside rice that has been left overnight in water.
🗺️
Bangladesh. Hilsa is the national fish and the argument is about which river it came from, with Padma hilsa held to be the finest. It is oily, bony and eaten with the bones negotiated rather than removed, cooked with mustard oil and mustard paste. Panch phoron, the five-seed mix, is fenugreek, nigella, cumin, black mustard and fennel, added whole.
🌍
Asia. A grain line runs across the continent. Rice dominates the wet south and east, wheat the drier north and west, and the tools follow it: the wok and the steamer where rice is milled, the tandoor and the griddle where wheat is ground. Tea travels the other way, drunk green, black, salted, buttered or with milk depending how far it got from China.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Bangladesh
Bhuna KhichuriToasted rice and moong dal cooked rich with ghee, whole spices, and caramelized onion, monsoon comfort from Dhaka.
Ruti with Aloo BhajiSoft whole-wheat flatbread with a lightly spiced potato-and-onion curry, the everyday Dhaka breakfast.
Shorshe IlishHilsa fish in a pungent mustard-and-green-chili sauce, the prized national dish of Bengal, eaten with rice.
Browse all Bangladesh recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Rolling pin.
Storing it: Store in an airtight container. Most keep 2 to 3 days at room temperature, and longer refrigerated.
Make it a Bangladesh meal
Bhuna KhichuriDinner
BorhaniDrink
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Frequently asked questions
What is Roshogolla?
Spongy cheese-curd balls simmered in light sugar syrup, the springy sweet of Bengal.
Where does Roshogolla come from?
Roshogolla is a Bangladeshi dish from Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Can Roshogolla be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Roshogolla recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Roshogolla safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Roshogolla take to make?
About 55 minutes total (30 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 6.
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