How to Make Pani Puri Water Without Tamarind

Pani Puri recipe with step-by-step pictures. Learn how to make this mouth-watering, Indian street food at home from scratch!

Pani Puri is a popular Indian street food known by various names all over the country. In Mumbai, it is known as pani puri, as golgappa or gol gappay in Delhi, and puchka in Kolkatta and pani ke batashe in Uttar Pradesh, gupchup in Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Telangana. Different names for the same yummy thing!

• So what is pani puri?
• Ingredients needed
• A few tips…
• You may also enjoy the yummy 'chaat' snacks
• How to make Indian pani puri – Step by step instructions
• Pani Puri Recipe | How To Make Pani Puri

So what is pani puri?

Pani means water in Hindi and puri is a hollow, deep-fried, crispy sphere. The puris are cracked very gently with the thumb to create a cavity that is stuffed with some sort of filling, dipped in sweet chutney and finally dunked in spicy and tangy water. That is pani puri for you!

The filling can either be made with

• Ragda (curried white peas)
• Boiled and mashed potatoes mixed with black chickpeas or moong sprouts spiced with seasonings
• Plain or spiced moong sprouts stuffing.
• Boondi

A single serving of this yummy Indian street food comprises of 6 pani puris. The gamut of textures to flavors in this chaat snack is a real explosion (literally!) in your mouth. From the crunch of the crisp puris to the warm ragda filling and then the tangy, sweet and spicy flavors of the chutneys, it is seriously addictive for a reason!

I'm literally salivating as I write this post since that is what the very mention of these two words would evoke in most Indians. Whether you are a child or an adult, I doubt you can ever get tired of eating that stuff! It's so delicious!

However, with most things prepared on the roadside, hygiene is a really big question! Since this is mostly prepared by hands, from the cracking of the puris to dunking them in water, to the source of the water itself, one really wonders how hygienic it is! Well, of course, if you have a really strong immune system, lucky you 😀

Quite frankly, before moving to the US, I never made pani puri at home. I'm one of those who depended on my immune system. But I really started missing out while I was there. So I took matters into my own hands and made everything at home.

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the basic things you'd need to make it at home. But if this is totally new to you, you'd definitely like to read further. So let's get going with that!

Ingredients needed

You will need the following to make this yummy street food at home;

• Puri or poori
• Filling or stuffing (ragda/aloo masala/moong sprouts), totally your choice
• Meetha pani aka sweet chutney
• Teekha pani aka the spicy water

Let's talk about all these elements in detail!

Puris

I've already done a very detailed recipe in my earlier post on this topic. You can read all about that here – golgappa puri recipe

Filling/stuffing

You have quite a lot of options when it comes to the stuffing. I personally, love using ragda for the filling, as that is what I've been eating all my life. It's the stuffing of choice in Mumbai.

• For the ragda recipe: You will need to soak the dried peas overnight or at least 8 hours. The next day, pressure cook it with salt, red chilli powder, and turmeric. That's about it. This is the pretty basic recipe, you don't really need to add too many flavors to the ragda, coz the pani's are super flavorful. However, if you do wish to make the ragda with onion, tomatoes, and more spices, you can refer the recipe for that here, which I've shared in my ragda patties post.
• Moong sprouts: You will need steamed moong sprouts if you like this as the filling. You can read my moong sprouts pulao post to learn how to sprout moong beans.
• Aloo masala stuffing: Take about 2-3 medium boiled and mashed potatoes, and add finely chopped onion, cilantro/coriander leaves, green chillies, about 1/4 cup of ragda or boiled black chickpeas, roasted cumin powder, black salt, red chili powder, about a teaspoon of lemon juice and salt, to taste. Mix everything well, and your aloo masala stuffing is ready. Add all the ingredients as per your taste, there is really no fixed recipe for this stuffing.
• Plain boondi

Golgappa pani

So there are two kinds of water as mentioned above,

Teekha pani (spicy water)

You can make the spicy pani aka green pani at home with fresh ingredients, you don't really need any pani puri masala to make this water. In a pinch, you can use the popular Everest pani puri masala instead of the individual spices mentioned in the recipe.

To make the spicy water, first, you will need to prepare the pani puri paste. That consists of mint leaves, cilantro/coriander leaves, lots of green chillies (of course you can adjust to your heat tolerance), ginger, and few 'chatpata' spices. If you can get hold of some raw mangoes, please use them, it adds an amazing flavor to the spicy water.

The recipe of the teekha pani was shared by one of the members, Mrs. Indira Sharma, of our FB foodie group. She's been making it for years now. I've simply adapted her recipe and let me tell you it's the best and only recipe you will ever need for making the 'spicy pani' which is a bomb of flavors!

Ditch the ready-made store-bought stuff, and make it at home instead. You won't regret you did!

Meetha pani (sweet chutney)

This is nothing but the sweet chutney aka date-tamarind chutney. Add some water to dilute it to a slightly runny consistency. That's about it.

Some people add the meetha chutney into the spicy water, but I like to serve it separately, as some people like it mild, some like it spicy, and some like it with just the sweet chutney, especially kids. So you can absolutely customize that to suit everyone's needs!

Serving this 'chaat'

Lay out the puris, sweet chutney, spicy pani, stuffing of choice (here it is ragda) in separate containers.

Take a puri, crack it gently with your thumb, spoon in some warm ragda, followed by sweet pani, then dunk the puri in spicy pani, and slurp away!!

I'm sure even 6 of this delicious homemade pani puris won't suffice. You can easily lose track of how many you indulge in!

A few tips…

• I've shared a lot of tips to make the perfect puri for this recipe, so do check those out, find the link below in the steps. A perfect, crispy, puffed puri is the heart and soul of this recipe, as it is the vessel that carries all that yumminess! In a pinch, you could choose to buy the read-made ones as well.
• Adjust the seasoning of the pani as per your preference. I really love using more mint as compared to coriander leaves for the spicy pani. You can add an equal amount of coriander and mint leaves if you like.
• Do not skip the raw mango for the spicy pani, it really adds a little extra to the flavor.
• Chill the spicy water for a few hours, it really helps the flavors to mingle and develop more as it sits.
• If you like soft boondi, you may add it to the spicy water before refrigerating. If you like it crispy, add it to the water just before serving.
• Remember to have everything ready before you serve. Then simply assemble and enjoy as many as you like to your heart's content 🙂

You may also enjoy the yummy 'chaat' snacks

• Dahi puri
• Ragda patties
• Dabeli
• Veg Frankie

Now, that you have learned about the components in detail, let's head over to the illustrations and learn how to make this popular Indian street food at home 🙂

How to make Indian pani puri – Step by step instructions

Hpw to make puri?

For the detailed recipe to make perfect, crispy puri's, head over to this puri recipe.

How to make ragda?

1.Wash and soak the chickpeas overnight in sufficient water.

2.Next morning pressure-cook the soaked and drained peas with turmeric, red chilli powder, salt to taste, and 2 cups of water on medium to high heat for 6 whistles.

3.Open the cooker once it depressurizes. The peas should turn tender and slightly mushy, if not put the lid back on and cook for 2 more whistles.

How to make golgappa pani?

Teekha pani

1.Add all the ingredients in a blender. Grind to a smooth paste using little water.

2.Transfer the chutney into a sufficiently big bowl and add 1 cup of water at a time, mix and taste for seasonings. You can add as much water as you want to thin it out, but remember to check for seasonings and adjust the salt, spice, and tang as required. I add about 3 cups of water. (You may strain the chutney through a fine-mesh sieve, in that case, add all the spice powders after straining the chutney).

3.Chill the pani in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours. This also allows the flavors in the water to develop better. I like to serve the sweet chutney separately, but you can mix about 1/4 cup of date-Tamarind chutney to the spicy pani and mix well. Add a few tablespoons of boondi to the pani just before serving.

Meetha pani

Make a batch of my date-tamarind chutney, then dilute it with little water to your desired consistency. I keep my chutney a little thick but feel free to adjust as per your preference. Keep in mind that you will need to add more seasonings if you dilute the chutney with more water, so taste and adjust.

How to make golgappa?

1.Crack the puri gently with the tip of your fingers.

2.Add in some ragda filling or any other filling of your choice. You can also add some chopped onions.

3.Spoon in about a teaspoon of sweet date-tamarind chutney.

4.Finally, dunk it in spicy pani. Gobble it up immediately or else it will get soggy!

★ If you try this recipe, I would love to hear from you! I'd appreciate it if you could rate and leave a review below in the comments. Your reviews help others know the recipe better too. Feel free to share your feedback and suggestions at [email protected] Thanks so much 🙂

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Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml

• About 30 Puris, store-bought or homemade

For the ragda filling

• 1/2 cup white peas
• 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp red chilli powder
• salt, to taste

For the teekha paani

• 1 cup loosely packed mint leaves, about 15 grams
• 1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro/coriander leaves, about 10 grams
• Juice of 1/2 lemon, about 1 tbsp
• 30 grams of raw mango, about half a raw mango, cut into pieces
• 4 green chillies, adjust as per desired heat
• 2 teaspoons roasted cumin seeds
• 1 inch piece of ginger
• 1 teaspoon black salt
• 1 teaspoon chaat masala
• 10 peppercorns
• salt, to taste, add accordingly as you are also adding black salt
• 1/2 teaspoon hing (asafoetida)

Other ingredients

• boondi, as required

HOW TO MAKE PURI?

• For the detailed recipe to make perfect, crispy puri's, head over to this puri recipe.

HOW TO MAKE RAGDA?

• Wash and soak the chickpeas overnight in sufficient water.

• Next morning, pressure-cook the soaked and drained peas with turmeric, red chilli powder, salt to taste, and 2 cups of water on medium to high heat for 6 whistles.

• Open the cooker once it depressurizes. The peas should turn tender and slightly mushy, if not put the lid back on and cook for 2 more whistles.

TEEKHA PANI

• Add all the ingredients in a blender. Grind to a smooth paste using little water.

• Transfer the chutney into a sufficiently big bowl and add 1 cup of water at a time, mix and taste for seasonings. You can add as much water as you want to thin it out, but remember to check for seasonings and adjust the salt, spice, and tang as required. I add about 3 cups of water. (You may strain the chutney through a fine-mesh sieve, in that case, add all the spice powders after straining the chutney).

• Chill the pani in the refrigerator for at least 2-3 hours. This also allows the flavors in the water to develop better. I like to serve the sweet chutney separately, but you can mix about 1/4 cup of date-tamarind chutney to the spicy pani and mix well. Add a few tablespoons of boondi to the pani just before serving.

MEETHA PANI

• Make a batch of my date-tamarind chutney, then dilute it with little water to your desired consistency. I keep my chutney a little thick but feel free to adjust as per your preference. Keep in mind that you will need to add more seasonings if you dilute the chutney with more water, so taste and adjust.

HOW TO MAKE GOLGAPPA?

• Crack the puri gently with the tip of your fingers.

• Add in some ragda filling or any other filling of your choice. You can also add some chopped onions.

• Spoon in about a teaspoon of sweet date-tamarind chutney.

• Finally, dunk it in spicy pani. Gobble it up immediately or else it will get soggy!

• The prep time in the recipe is taken as 20 minutes considering you have the puris and the sweet chutney already prepared. If you need to make everything, the prep and cook time will increase. Please refer to the individual post on puri and sweet chutney for reference on timings.
• Measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml, 1 teaspoon = 5 ml

How to Make Pani Puri Water Without Tamarind

Source: https://aromaticessence.co/pani-puri-recipe/

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