Delhi-Style Golgappa (Stuffing & Pani Recipe)
Delhi Street style golgappas stuffed with a spicy potato & dried peas filling, sweet tamarind chutney and a tangy golgappe ka pani (water) are perfect to satisfy your chaat cravings.
Ingredients
For The Golgappa Stuffing
- 2 cup potatoes boil, peel and break into small pieces
- ⅓ cup matar (white dried peas) see instructions on how to boil
- 2-3 green chilies (hot variety), adjust to taste
- ¼ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon chaat masala
- ¼ teaspoon red chili powder (hot), adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- 1 tablespoon fresh cilantro leaves finely chopped
To Make Panipuri Water or Golgappa Pani
- ¾ cup fresh cilantro leaves tightly packed
- ⅓ cup fresh mint leaves tightly packed
- 3 green chilies (hot variety), adjust to taste
- ¼ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 6 black peppercorns
- ½ tablespoon ginger chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt adjust to taste
- ⅓ cup tamarind pulp use less quantity if you are using tamarind paste since its quite concentrated and salty
- ⅛ teaspoon hing powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder (hot), adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon chaat masala
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice optional, adjust quantity depending how sour tamarind is
- 1 teaspoon kala namak black salt
- ¼ cup sugar adjust to taste, if you like pronounced sweet taste, add more sugar
- 1 litre water
- 12-15 ice cubes
For Serving Golgappe
- 25-30 golgappe
- ½ cup tamarind chutney or as needed
Instructions
MAKE POTATO STUFFING
- Soak the white peas overnight in excess water. Next morning, drain the water and add the soaked peas to a pressure cooker. Add 1 cup fresh water and a bit of salt. Pressure cook for 3-5 whistles on medium heat or until the peas are tender but hold shape. Drain the peas and reserve the remaining liquid(you will have about ? cup)to be used while making the stuffing.
- In a large bowl, add the boiled potato, boiled matar(dried white peas), all the chaat spice powders, green chillies and salt.
- Add few tablespoons of the reserved water from boiling the peas and using a spoon, lightly mix to combine. Make sure to not mash up everything else the filling starts getting gooey.
- Using the reserved water (as needed )from boiling the peas while making stuffing keeps the texture soft and moist. Do try this trick, this enhances the taste immensely as well.
- Taste and adjust the salt or spices as desired. Add finely chopped cilantro, cover and refrigerate the potato stuffing until ready to serve.
PREPARE THE PANI PURI WATER
- Rinse the cilantro and fresh mint leaves thoroughly under cold water and roughly chop them. Chop the green chilies and ginger as well.
- In a blender jar, add the chopped cilantro, mint leaves, ginger, and sliced green chilies. Add the ground whole spices - black peppercorns, fennel seeds and seeds of black cardamom to the blender.
- Add a few tablespoons of water to the blender and blend the ingredients into a smooth paste.
- Place the tamarind pulp in a large bowl or you could use a pitcher as well
- Strain the blended green herb paste over the tamarind pulp using a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Press the paste with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible.Tip - Straining the blended paste contributes to a smoother taste of the panipuri water. If not strained, your pani could be stringy. Dont skip this step.
- Add chaat masala powder, roasted cumin powder, black salt, hing, and red chili powder. Squeeze the lemon juice and mix in the sugar. Stir with a spoon or whisk until fully dissolved.
- Add cold water gradually to the concentrated mixture, stirring continuously, until the desired consistency is reached. The pani should be thin and watery.
- Taste the golgappa pani and adjust the salt, chaat spice powders, sugar, and lemon juice as needed. The pani should be tangy, spicy, and slightly sweet.
- Refrigerate the pani puri pani for at least an hour before serving.
To Serve Golgappa
- Arrange the golgappa shells on a large platter or tray. Place bowls of the prepared potato filling, golgappa pani, and sweet tamarind chutney (if using) nearby.
- Gently poke a hole in the center of each golgappa shell using your thumb or a index finger. Using a small spoon, fill up the shells with a spoonful of the prepared filling mixture.
- Optional: If you prefer a sweetish taste, drizzle a little sweet tamarind chutney over the filling. You could also add few boondi (fried tiny gram flour balls) for added crunch.
- Dunk the entire shell into a bowl of pani and fill it up and straight eat it up. The entire process takes less than 7-8 seconds. Too long and the shells will get soggy and start breaking. Alternatively, using a ladle or spoon, pour the golgappa pani into each filled shell.
- Golgappa is meant to be served immediatly and eaten in one bite, so pop the entire filled shell into your mouth to experience the full range of flavors and textures.
Notes
- Please keep in mind that any kind of chaat is highly customizable. Your chaat tastes will certainly differ from mine, so please adjust the spices and other elements like salt and tanginess accordingly. Always start with fewer spices.
- Adjust the amount of green chilies as desired in the stuffing and pani.
- Be mindful of the amount of salt you add to both the potato stuffing mixture and the golgappa pani. The combined flavors should not result in a very salty pani puri.
- You could add pineapple juice or mango juice to pani puri water for a fruity taste.
- Prep everything ahead of time and keep refrigerated so that you can serve quickly when desired.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!