Pani Puri

If I had to live off one type of cuisine for the rest of my life, I'd choose Indian street food. Although I'm from Fiji, I've been obsessed with Pani Puri, Pav Bhaji, Vada Pau, Chaats and many more similar foods for as long as I can remember. If you don't find me ordering 10 plates of Pani Puri's at the restaurant, you'll find me making them at home.

Serves: Filling is enough for approx. 30 Pani Puri's

Ready in: 20 minutes

Difficulty: ★☆☆

Ingredients 

Filling

1 large potato, cubed 

1/2 can chickpeas 

1 medium red onion, finely diced 

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp cumin seeds 

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp oil 

Salt to taste

Handful of coriander, finely chopped 

Store bought 

Ready to eat Puri's

Tamarind chutney

Mint chutney
Sev or fried noodles 

Method 

Heat a pan over medium heat and add oil followed by 1/2 of the diced onion and cumin seeds. Fry onions until slightly translucent then add garam masala and turmeric powder. Sauté for a minute then add potatoes and chickpeas. Add salt and simmer on medium heat until water has evaporated.

Turn heat to medium-low and add 1-1.5 cups of boiling water to the pan and reduce liquid until potatoes are cooked through and filling is dry.

Remove filling from pan and place in a large dish. Add remainder of the onions and coriander. Stir lightly to combine.

Assemble Pani Puri's by making a hole on top of the Puri, fill with potato and chickpea mixture, top with Sev and add tamarind and mint chutney. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Notes 

You can buy pre-fried Puri's or deep fry the Puri chips yourself. These will be available at your local Indian grocery store.

You can make the Tamarind and Mint 'Pani' at home or simply dilute readymade Tamarind and Mint chutney with a little bit of water.