Panipuri and Golgappe: The most missed street food in lockdown.

 Panipuri and Golgappe: The most missed street food in lockdown.

On any typical evening in India, be it a big city or a small market, the main highways are crowded and the atmosphere is the same, and there is a crowd in front of a corner pani puri or golgappe shop surrounded by eager shoppers. The noise is heard.

The pani puri man's hands seem to be flying as he serves the impatient customers by dipping the puris (fried round balls of flour and semolina) into various bowls, filling them with spices and dipping them in chutneys. His clients come from all walks of life and all ages. Some are coming towards them from magnificent cars while others are walking from their homes. Perhaps nothing unites the people of India more than the love of pani puri or other types of chaat (fried flat snacks).

'Chaat' is a folk word derived from चटन्य and also forms the word 'Chatura' and 'Chatupta'. It consists of a variety of street foods and is served by breaking and mashing a variety of deep-fried items and making a mixture with a variety of chutneys. It is relished in India as it satiates the hunger when lunch is digested and there is still time for dinner and pani puri has a special place in all kinds of delicious chaats. .

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At first glance, Panipuri doesn't seem like anything special. The word itself is a compound of pani and puri, a type of water in which the chutneys are mixed, and puri, which is filled with water. The size of the whole is the size of the space or circle formed in the middle when you put your finger and thumb together.

However, pani puri requires more care and a bit of skill to eat. Poke a hole in the puri with your finger then add your choice of ingredients like boiled and mashed potato pieces, healthy sprouts, finely chopped onions or peas and then tamarind sweet and sour spicy chutney water and gulp. Eat it and then enjoy the different taste together in your mouth. Keep in mind that all these works have to be done quickly, otherwise the whole will get wet and break and water will flow out of it. It opens up many layers of your taste buds at once and creates a flavor explosion in the nose and mouth.

Really eating Pani Puri will make your mouth water and your eyes tear. It is an experience that is more pleasant than description.

There is no doubt that Pani Puri is the snack found in street markets that has been missed the most due to the lockdown imposed in the country since March 25. However, many cooks have tried to conjure up its magic at home, partly to overcome their lack of chaat taste and partly to make up for the lack of eating chaat on the streets again, as India Lockdown is still going on in some parts of the country.

According to independent news agency IANS, The Hindu newspaper has written that during the lockdown, there has been a 107% increase in people searching for pani puri recipe on Google India.

Also, during the last few weeks, social media channels have seen anecdotes about pani puri, talking about its excellent taste and how much people miss it, etc. Meeta Sengupta, an education adviser from Delhi, wrote to me in an email: 'Water is full of joy. Burst, fill, swallow and then take a breath.'

Mumbai-based journalist Karisma Upadhyay explained: 'I think my desire comes from a place where we feel happy and 'normal'. When things around are random like that and then you get the taste in your mouth that your mouth and mind are in harmony with. When you put pani puri in your mouth, you know that the perfect combination of cool, spicy, tangy, sweet and crunchy comes together. And just for those few moments everything feels right.'

While some brave cooks like food blogger Amrita Kaur started making puris (recipe included at the end) from scratch, kneading dough, then frying dozens of puris. But most people buy it from the store and bring it whole.

There are many stories about the origin of Panipuri. Tabakhi sociologist Dr. Kurosh Dalal says that the preparation of chaat (probably the precursor to panipuri) originated in the northern Indian region of present-day Uttar Pradesh during the reign of Emperor Shah Jahan in the late seventeenth century. According to Dalal, the royal doctors advised the common people to consume more fried and spicy salty foods (and yogurt) to balance the alkaline quality of the Yamuna river water. It should be noted that at that time Delhi, the new capital of India, was settled on the banks of the Yamuna. The puri was bite-sized and filled with chaat masala, which consisted of mashed potatoes—boiled and mashed potatoes—spread to the rest of the country by migrant workers who took jobs in Delhi and Mumbai in the last century. Come in line.

Like the finest chaat, pani puri is best enjoyed on the roadside. Although high-end restaurants have started serving it in a slightly different way over the last few years, replacing the sauce with vodka shots, chudder and guacamole, it hasn't become very popular. One of the reasons for this is that street vendors know the taste of their customers and tailor the mix of each water sequence accordingly. 'Only sweet and sour tamarind chutney', 'don't put sprouts in it', 'and add masala' and everyone claims to love their own mysterious water and mixture makes the taste unique.

Food writer Anubhuti Krishna hails from Uttar Pradesh and is a fan of pani ki puri but has never tried to make it at home because, she says, 'I know I can make my favorite at home. The flavors can't be replicated and it's respectable for us UP guys (from Uttar Pradesh).'

Although Pani is preferred throughout the country throughout the twelve months, it is not the same everywhere, ie its quality is not fixed. If you see, its name is also different everywhere. Panipuri is the Mumbai term, while in Delhi it is known as Golgapa. In Kolkata it is known as Pashka and in Uttar Pradesh it is called Patashe or Batashe of Ashe Pani. This difference is also due to the basic ingredients of making the puri, sometimes it is sajji and sometimes it is flour and the things that are filled in it are also different. And like politics or cricket, Indians love to argue about which pani puri is the best, which city is the best, and which pani puri makes the smoothest pani puri.

Sengupta uses ready-made puri (available in stores). He spoke of his Bengali-Punjabi home where the water is 'sweetened with the taste of ginger' and lots of asafoetida and mint are added to it to create a variety of flavours. And Krishna says the debate is pointless, but he likes the taste of Lucknow because it has 'soft peas which combine with the spicy water to give a completely different taste and the puri or batasha there is more. Khastha happens.'

Sengupta recalled that it was 'like an explosion in the mouth, but still soul food.' It is a compliment that expresses the sentiments of millions of panipuri lovers.

Amrita Kaur's recipe for making pani puris (makes 40-50 puris)

Spiced water:

A cup of fresh coriander

A cup of fresh mint

Two or three green chilies

A teaspoon of roasted cumin powder

Half a teaspoon of asafoetida

A small ball of raw tamarind

Juice of one lemon

A teaspoon of black pepper

A teaspoon of chaat masala

Two to three spoons of jaggery powder

Salt to taste

Mix it all and add two liters of cold water and then leave it

Sour sweet water:

Take a small ball of tamarind and soak it in water to extract the pulp

Three spoons of jaggery

A pinch of black salt

A pinch of roasted cumin powder

A pinch of black pepper

Cook the tamarind and jaggery together, and then add a pinch of black salt, roasted cumin and black pepper powder to make a chutney.

Add extras such as boiled and peeled potatoes and/or crispy boondi (small, fried pea sized) with it.

the whole:

A cup of semolina

A spoonful of refined flour

A tablespoon of oil

Half a teaspoon of baking soda

A pinch of salt

Oil for frying

Mix them all and knead with little water to make soft dough. Leave it for 30 minutes. Then knead it and then roll it like a big bread and then cut it into small pieces with the help of a cup, cutter or disc and deep fry it on medium heat in more oil.

And add pani ki puri as per taste.