Panipuri or golgappa is a

deep-fried Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow frying used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. N ...

breaded hollow spherical shell - about in diameter - filled with a combination of

potatoes The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

, raw

onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classified ...

chickpeas The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae, cultivated for its edible seeds. Its different types are variously known as gram," Bengal gram, garbanzo, garbanzo bean, or Egypt ...

, and spices. It is a common snack and

street food Street food is food sold by a Hawker (trade), hawker or vendor on a street or at another public place, such as a market, fair, or park. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption ...

in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. It is often flavoured with

chili powder Chili powder (also spelled chile, chilli, or, alternatively, powdered chili) is the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties of chili pepper, sometimes with the addition of other spices (in which case it is also sometimes known as chili p ...

chaat masala Chaat masala, also spelled chat masala, is a powdered spice mix, or Spice mix#Masala, masala, originating from the Indian subcontinent, typically used to add flavor to chaat. It typically consists of amchoor (dried mango powder), cumin, coriander, ...

, herbs, and many other spices. Panipuri is known as Fuchka in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

and is a popular street food there and is often regarded as a national street food dish. It is especially common in Dhaka, where it can be found widely across the city, served by numerous street vendors.

Names

Panipuri has many regional names in the

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

and

South India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...

: panipuri;

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

: pani-patashi;

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

: fulki;

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

: pani-ke-batashe/padake;

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

: phuska/puska;

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

: pakodi;

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

: gup-chup;

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

: gol-gappa;

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

: golgappa/phuchka;

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

: phuchka and

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

: jalpooree/phuchka.

History

According to culinary anthropologist

Kurush Dalal Kurush Dalal is an Indian archaeologist, historian and culinary anthropologist. He is based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Education and career Dalal has a Ph.D. in ''Early Iron Age in Rajasthan'' from Deccan College, Pune University. He was a faculty ...

, chaat originated in the North Indian region of what is now

. The origins of golgappa trace back to India. He also noted that it possibly originated from Raj-

Kachori Kachori () is a deep-fried, spicy, stuffed pastry originating from the Marwar region of Rajasthan, India. It is made of maida filled with a stuffing of baked mixture of moong dal or onions (usually, depends on the variation), besan, coria ...

: an accidentally-made smaller

puri Puri, also known as Jagannath Puri, () is a coastal city and a Nagar Palika, municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state ca ...

giving birth to panipuri. Panipuri spread to the rest of India mainly due to the migration of people from one part of the country to another in the 20th century. On 10 March 2005, the word "panipuri" was added to the

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...

Evolution over time

Oil free Pani Puri - Gujarat - SHAILI 001

Pani puri has evolved significantly over time. Also known as "golgappa," the dish consists of a small, hollow, fried wheat and/or semolina shell filled with spiced mashed potatoes and served with either a green or a brown-coloured dipping water; or both. This "water" is technically a diluted chutney. Over time, variations of the filling and the flavoured water emerged, reflecting the regional preferences and availability of ingredients. The flavoured water, also known as the "pani," is an essential component of the dish and is often the main source of flavour. The brown water is known throughout India as ''khatta meetha pani'', which translates to as "sweet and sour water". The main composition of this water is tamarind and

jaggery Jaggery is a List of unrefined sweeteners, traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, North America, Central America, Brazil and Africa. It is a concentrated product of Sugarcane juice, cane jui ...

. The hotter alternative to this water, which is also typically the standard dipping green liquid for this dish, is known as ''theeka pani'', which means "spicy water". It consists of herbs like

mint Mint or The Mint may refer to: Plants * Lamiaceae, the mint family ** ''Mentha'', the genus of plants commonly known as "mint" Coins and collectibles * Mint (facility), a facility for manufacturing coins * Mint condition, a state of like-new ...

and coriander along with green chillies. Both waters can include a garnishing of

boondi Boondi is an Indian snack made from fried chickpea flour. It is either eaten as a savory snack or sweetened as a dessert. West Bengal's Kamarpukur Sada Bonde awarded GI tag. In Sindh and Rajasthan, the dish is called ''nukti'' (, Dhatki: ...

, a concoction made of fried chickpea flour. Some regional variations also use sweet flavours like fruit juices or dates, as well as many optional toppings like sev. Bangarapet panipuri is renowned for its distinctive white-colored pani, retaining a spicy kick that has been traditionally handed down through generations.

Gallery

File:Panipuri and Chutney.jpg File:Dahi Phuchka.jpg File:Crispy Pani Puri.jpg File:5-water Pani Puri.jpg File:Sooji Batashe used in Panipuri.jpg, Sooji Puri used in panipuri File:Home made Indian Panipuri.jpg, Homemade panipuri File:Paani poori of India.jpg

References

{{Mumbai topics Deep fried foods Street food Vegan cuisine Indian fast food Indian snack foods Indian wheat dishes Pakistani snack foods Bangladeshi snack foods Bihari cuisine Uttar Pradeshi cuisine

Names

History

Evolution over time

Gallery

See also

References