Sasmita Chhena Jhili, a signature Odia sweet dish is from Nimapada in the Puri district of Odisha. This is prepared by deep-frying small chhena shapes first and then soaked in cardamom flavored sugar syrup.
India is a diverse country with various cultures co-existing in it. From tandoori items of the north to spicy dishes of the South; from mouthwatering sweet dishes of the East to the savory items of the West, there is a wide array of food available in our country. If you have a sweet tooth but have only tasted Bengali desserts and not Odisha sweet dishes (as these two states have many similarities), then you are missing out on a lot of heavenly delicacies. Odias, all around the globe simply love these heavenly dishes.
In this eastern state of India, Odisha has a vast number of milk-based sweets like Chhena Poda, Chhena Gaja, Rasagulla, Rasabali, Chhena Jhili, Chhena Muduki, and lots more.
Today’s post is all about Chhena Jhili.
Chhena Jhili, a signature Odia sweet dish is originated from Nimapada in the Puri district of Odisha. The man who started preparing this sweet was Aarta Bandhu Sahoo from the Shyam Sundarpur Village of Nimapada. This small town is lined up with shops selling Chenna Jhillis.
How to make Chhena Jhili –
The major ingredient of this sweet, one can easily guess from the name itself is Chhena / Indian Cottage Cheese.
So basically to make these sweet, first prepare chhena at home. One can use the store-bought chhena, but freshly prepared chhena plays pretty well to make soft, juicy chhena jhili. Check here How To Make Homemade Chhena.
First, knead the chhena using the heel of your palm for 10-12 minutes till a smooth texture dough comes out. Into this, add maida (all-purpose flour) along with powdered sugar, cardamom powder, and baking soda. Mix again and knead a bit till everything incorporates pretty well.
Then, make balls of 1 tbsp chhena dough. Keep aside the balls in the plate and cover the plate. Then, Pick 1 ball first, roll like a log of 3 inches approximately. After that join both ends of the log gently, keep on a plate. Make similar shapes from the rest of the balls and deep fry them in batches till golden brown in color over medium heat.
After frying, immediately drop those chhena jhilis into a warm sugar syrup flavored with cardamom. Keep aside for 2-3 hours, all the fried chhena jhili will soak the syrup and become super soft.
Chhena jhili is now ready to serve simply as it is or by sprinkling some finely chopped dry fruits!
Are Chhena Jhili and Chhena Jalebi same ?
- Both sweet dishes have almost the same ingredients, But chhena jalebi uses mawa or even milk powder to make the dough of whereas there is no need for this in the later one.
- Chhena jalebi has a spiral shape, but chhena jhili has a unique shape. Check the recipe card steps.
This Nimapada special sweet has simply a melt-in-the-mouth texture. It is a super simple and quick sweet recipe that requires just a few ingredients.
In India, the festive season is already going on. And Chhena is one ingredient that we, Indian use most commonly to make various sweets. So then surely try this Odia sweet delicacy, Chhena Jhili for your festive indulgence.
Event-related to this post :
The February month challenge in the ‘Shhhhh Cooking Secretly Challenge’ group was ‘Post Pregnancy Food’, suggested by Aruna. Well, I was partnered with Preethi Prasad for this theme, she gave me 2 secret ingredients Dalia and Cardamom, and I gave her the secret ingredients Dry ginger and Cumin seeds. And, as usual, using my two ingredients I have come up with this Dalia Kheer for the theme contribution.
📖 RECIPE CARD
Chhena Jhili, an Odia sweet
Ingredients
- 1 cup Chhena
- 2 tsp All purpose flour (maida)
- 1 tsp Powdered sugar
- ½ tsp Cardamom powder
- 1 pinch Baking soda
- 1 cup Granulated sugar
- 1 cup Water
- 2-3 no. Cardamom pod (crushed)
- Oil for deep frying
Instructions
- In a pan, take granulated sugar along with water.
- Turn on heat and allow the sugar to melt completely over medium-high mode.
- Then add crushed cardamom pods and boil over medium heat for 1-2 minutes more or until the syrup turns slightly sticky. Do not make 1-string consistency.
- Turn off the heat and keep aside the sugar syrup.
- Now in a plate, first take fresh chhena and start kneading using heal of your plam for 10-12 minutes till a smooth texture dough comes out.
- Into that, add maida (all purpose flour) along with powdered sugar, cardamom powder and baking soda.
- Mix again and knead a bit till everything incorporates pretty well.
- Meanwhile heat oil in a deep pan for frying.
- Then make balls of 1 tbsp chhena dough. Keep aside the balls in the plate and cover the plate.
- Pick 1 ball first, roll as a log of 3 inch approximately. Then join both end of the log gently, keep in a plate.
- Make similar shapes from rest of the balls and arrange over the plate.
- Deep fry them in batches till golden brown in color over medium heat.
- After frying, immediately drop into warm sugar syrup.
- Keep aside for 2-3 hours, all the fried chhena jhili will soak the syrup and become super soft.
- Serve simply as it is or sprinkle some finely chopped dryfruits !
Notes
- While deep frying, do not overcrowd the pan with so many chhena jhilis.
- Always deep fry in batches, and this depends upon the size of the pan.
- Instead of maida, semolina can be used too.
- Kneading the chhena is a crucial part, else there is always crack while shaping the chhena jhili. With the heel of your palm, knead chhena for at least 10 minutes, and then add the rest ingredients into it.
- Prefer to use fresh homemade chhena. Check here How To Make Homemade Chhena.
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Chhena Jhili look so succulent and mouth watering. Can imagine that with each bite, the sugar syrup oozing out. Thank you so much for sharing a traditional Odia sweet dish. Bookmarking this recipe to try out when I am back in my own kitchen. Happy Diwali to you and your family.
You are absolutely right. Both states have so much similarities. I love chhena jilipi but never tasted chhena jhili. Sugar syrup soaked fried chhena jhili looks mouth melting and super yummy. I would love to try it sometime.
Chena Jhili looks so moist and delicious. Amazing to see such traditional sweets from different parts of India. I shall give it a try sometime.
Chenna Jhili looks so amazing . I remember having it years back when we had a Odia neighbour. It is succulent and addictive. You are tempting me to make it at home . Will try it soon.
Chenna Jhili sounds so yummm. I can feel the taste of juicy fried dumpling, just by reading the description. It’s indeed a pleasure knowing about lesser known recipes.
syrupy, oozy and delicious Chhenai Jili must be a treat to make and savour… wonderful share..
Chhena Jhili looks super delicious, hubby use to bring this whenever he goes on puri trip. It’s been long I dint had, I have your recipe now, surely will try it some day.
Interesting recipe Sasmita, completely new to me. Thanks for the details on how to shape it. I would certainly try this as I am sure it would be liked by my family.
Chenna Jhili looks mouth-watering and delicious. I have never tried it but I believe it has the taste of gulab jamuns. I would love to try it.
Good to know about Chhena Jhilli, a traditional Odisha sweet. It looks delicious, must try it sometime at home.
Chhena jhili looks super tempting Sasmita ! Thanks for sharing such traditional Odia dishes with us.
Very interesting recipe Sasmita, The syrupy oozing goodness of chenna jhili sounds very exciting. Perfect treat for the festival days.
very good article.