English
বাংলা
The story
Most payesh in Bangladesh is made with rice. Sherpur's version swaps the rice for chhana, the fresh curd cheese that comes from splitting milk. Local accounts trace it to the British period and to the Ghosh families of Ghoshpatti in Sherpur town, the milk-trading quarter where much of the district's sweet-making still happens. In those days it is said to have travelled as a prestige gift between zamindar households, and some of it reached Kolkata, where it earned a name beyond the district.
The method is simple to describe and hard to do well. Milk is split to make chhana, which is kneaded with a little flour and rolled into small balls, often no bigger than a chickpea. These are first cooked in sugar syrup, then simmered in milk that has been boiled down until it is thick and creamy, with cardamom for scent. Reporting from Sherpur puts the ratio at roughly two kilograms of milk for every kilogram of finished payesh, which explains why it is never cheap.
Today dozens of sweet shops in Sherpur town make it, and it is also sold in Sribardi, Nalitabari, Nakla and Jhenaigati. It is a fixture at weddings, Eid, puja and family visits. The Department of Patents, Designs and Trademarks announced its Geographical Indication status in December 2024, and the certificate was handed over in 2025.
How to spot the real Sherpur chhanar payesh
Good chhanar payesh has small, even chhana balls that are soft enough to press with a spoon but hold their shape in the bowl. The milk around them should be thick and creamy, ivory to pale tan depending on how long it was reduced, and it should taste of slowly cooked milk and cardamom rather than of milk powder. Warning signs are rubbery or chalky balls, a thin watery sauce, a pasty floury thickness that suggests starch was added, or a sharp sour smell, which means it is past its best. Only shops in Sherpur can make the GI version, so ask a seller where and by whom it was made.
Buying tips
Chhanar payesh is a fresh milk dish, so ask the seller when the batch was cooked, how it will be packed (a sealed food-grade tub inside a cool box is ideal) and how long delivery takes. Outside Sherpur, choose a seller who ships the same or next day, and avoid long journeys in summer heat. On Midmart each shop sets its own delivery charge, and buying from two shops means two parcels and two charges. Midmart does not take your payment or deliver the order: you agree payment and shipping directly with the seller, so settle these details before confirming.
Keeping it fresh
Refrigerate it as soon as it arrives and eat it within two or three days. Keep the tub covered so it does not pick up fridge smells, and use a clean spoon each time. It is usually served chilled or at room temperature; do not reboil it, as the chhana toughens and the milk can split.
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Shops from where it is made
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