Method

Puri Shells:

Making the dough:

1. Mix semolina flour, oil, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl (use your hands). Once the mixture comes together, mix in the all-purpose flour and mix again.
2. Add 3 tbsp of water and mix again. Slowly add in the water while you mix, 1 tbsp at a time until the flour absorbs all the water.
3. If the dough is too sticky/soft, add in more semolina flour. If the dough is too hard, add in some water and continue to knead.
4. The consistency of the dough should be slightly elastic. Remember, you’ll need to roll out the dough later so it should stay intact after rolling and not fall apart.
5. Once the dough comes together nicely, cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Shaping the puris:

1. After 30 minutes, knead the dough again. Divide the dough into 2 parts so it’s easier to work with.
2. Cover one part of the dough with a damp towel while you roll out the other part into a flat round. Make sure you roll it thinly, otherwise the puris wouldn’t puff up when you fry them later.
3. Using a circle cookie cutter or cup, cut small round discs from the dough. You can roll the round discs out more so the puris are bigger. Make sure to cover the puris with a damp kitchen towel so they don’t dry out. Repeat until you get all the small discs out from the dough.

Frying the puris:

1. Prepare a deep pot or pan with hot oil to deep-fry the puris. Adjust the heat to medium — you’ll be frying the puris at this temperature. (At a low temperature, the puris won’t puff up, but at a too-high temperature, they’ll burn very quickly. So, it’s important to constantly adjust the temperature.)
2. Slide a few puris into the oil. They will puff up as soon as you add them in. Do not overcrowd the pan. Use a slotted spoon to flip them once they puff up. Fry till both sides are golden.

Potato Stuffing:

1. Wash and peel the potatoes. Use a fork to poke holes in the potatoes. Add the potatoes into a pot of water and start boiling.
2. Once the potatoes are fork-tender, remove from the pot and set aside.
3. Dice the potatoes before adding into a bowl. Mix in the rest of the seasoning.
4. Taste and add more salt if needed. The potato stuffing is done and ready to serve!

Spicy Mint Water (Pani):

1. If you have a high-speed blender or food processor, skip this step and go straight to step 2. Otherwise, finely chop the mint and coriander leaves, ginger and green chillies so they can be easily blended with the immersion blender.
2. Blend everything until smooth. Add in 1 cup of water. Reduce or add more water until it reaches the consistency that you want. Then, this is ready to serve!

How to Enjoy Pani Puri:

Make a small opening at one side of the puri shells and add in the potato stuffing. You can either drizzle the pani water into the shells or dip the entire shell into the pani water for extra flavour. 

Notes:
Some of these spices might be difficult to find. Here are some substitutes you may wish to use:
*Substitute ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder with ¼ tsp cayenne pepper and ½ tsp paprika
**Substitute 1 tsp chaat masala powder with 1 tsp curry powder (ratio will be 1:1)

Recipe by Shuangyu (@Aflouryspace)