 | |
| Type | Chaat |
|---|---|
| Region or state | Indian subcontinent, particularlyNorth India |
| Main ingredients | Puri (atta and/orsemolina flour),chickpea,potatoes,coriander leaf water,tamarind water |
| Variations | Sev puri,dahi puri, severalregional variations |
Panipuri (also known byother names, includingphuchka andgolgappa) is a snack associated with thecuisines of the Indian subcontinent consisting of adeep-fried sphericalpuri shell, hollowed out for a filling and dipped in flavoured waters. Panipuri is primarily astreet food and is part of thechaat category of light snacks. It is commonly filled with some combination ofpotatoes,chickpeas, spices, andchutney. The flavoured waters, or pani, are typically a spicycoriander leaf ormint chutney calledteekha pani and a sweettamarind chutney calledmeetha pani. A few centimetres in diameter, it is afinger food eaten in one bite. Panipuri is the most common street food in theIndian subcontinent, and it is popular across the region, in both urban and rural areas.
Several variations exist, using different ingredients in the filling, waters, and dough. Cities have local variations, such as Delhi-style golgappe, which is filled with both potatoes andblack chickpeas; Kolkata-style phuchka, which uses mashed potatoes and has a sour and citrusy, rather than sweet, flavour; and Mumbai-style panipuri, which usesragda. In Bangladesh, phuchka uses a filling of potato-basedchotpoti and is garnished with eggs. InUttar Pradesh, where the dish is known aspani ke batashe, many flavours of pani are used. Primarily associated withNorth India, panipuri is also popular inSouth India, sometimes altered for regional tastes. Vendors of the dish are predominantly from North India.
The origin of panipuri is unknown. The dish spread across India in the 20th century, resulting in variations using local ingredients. Beginning in the 1990s, chefs developed non-traditional variations, includingvodka panipuri and panipuri served withshot glasses. Panipuri inspired trends in the 2020s, when theCOVID-19 pandemic inspired people to make panipuri at home, and vendors wentviral for serving non-traditional versions. As a result of migration from the Indian subcontinent, panipuri is served at restaurants globally.
The Hindi wordpani means 'water', referring to the waterychutneys used in the dish, andpuri refers to rounds of deep-fried dough.[1][2] The termpanipuri (orpani puri) is used in most parts of India,[2] includingMumbai and the rest ofMaharashtra,Gujarat,Karnataka,Madhya Pradesh, andTamil Nadu, as well as in Nepal.[3] It is also the most common term in other parts of the world that are home to theIndian diaspora.[2]
The termsgolgappa[a] andphuchka[b] have also entered English usage.[4]Phuchka is anonomatopoeia for the sound of eating the food.[5] It is used in Bangladesh, Nepal, and the Indian states ofJharkhand,Bihar,Assam, andWest Bengal,[6][2] including inKolkata.[1] According toThe Business Standard, this term originated in Assam.[7] The dish is calledgolgappa inDelhi and surrounding parts ofNorth India, includingMadhya Pradesh,Haryana, parts ofUttar Pradesh,Punjab,Himachal Pradesh, andJammu and Kashmir.[8][1][2]
Variations are known by many other regional names in theIndian subcontinent.[2][9] InRajasthan, parts of Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, the term ispani ke batashe[c], meaning 'spherical snacks with water'.[8][1][2] InChhattisgarh, southern Jharkhand, parts ofOdisha, andTelangana (includingHyderabad), it is calledgup chup, which may be an onomatopoeia.[9] The termphulki is used in Nepal, Eastern Uttar Pradesh, andGujarat,[8][9] andpakodi[d] is used in Madhya Pradesh and inland Gujarat.[9] The termpadaka is specific toAligarh, Uttar Pradesh.[8][9] The translationwater balls is sometimes used in Britain.[10]
Panipuri is based onpuri, a fried wheatflatbread.[11] The puri used in panipuri is made using a thin circle of dough, about 3 to 6 centimetres (1.2 to 2.4 in) in diameter,[12] which inflates during frying to form a hollow spherical shell that holds its shape.[1] It is crispier than regular puri, which is achieved by using oil instead of water in the dough, limitinggluten formation.[13] The puri itself may be referred to as a pani puri, golgappa puri, or phuchka puri.[14]
Each puri is punctured with a finger, then filled,[1] often withpotatoes orchickpeas, along withchutneys.[5] The filled puri is then quickly dipped in watered-down chutneys, known as pani, which are often chilled.[1] Panipuri is afinger food[2] and is eaten in one bite;[1] taking multiple bites is seen as improper.[2]
Regional variations differ based on ingredients in filling or the pani, as well as the type of flour used in the puri.[1][2][15] The common feature of all variations is the puri base.[16] The puri is most commonly made ofsemolina flour, though it may also be made of wheat flours, includingmaida andatta,[17][1] or with a mix of semolina and atta. The use of atta is more traditional, but many producers favour semolina for its longer shelf life. Puris using semolina are also thicker and denser, making them crunchier and less prone to breaking from the water.[16]
The filling may containmashed potato, choppedonion,peas,bean sprouts,[1]chilli powder, andchaat masala,[8] sometimes with the addition ofmint ortamarind chutney.[5] The panis are typically a spicy green sauce known asteekha pani (lit. 'spicy water'), containing herbs likemint orcoriander, along with a red sauce knownmeetha pani (lit. 'sweet water') made of tamarind, similar tosaunth chutney.[1][2] Different flavours of pani are used in some places, including lemon[5] orasafoetida.[18] The waters can include a garnishing ofboondi, made of fried chickpea flour, or spices such asstar anise.[2] Many mass-produced panipuris use cheaper ingredients for pani, such ascitric acid.[19]
It is classified as achaat, a broad category of small snacks combining multiple ingredients, which are consumed in the early evening and typically asstreet food.[1] The hollow puris used in panipuri are also used in variations such assev puri, in which the potato filling is topped withsev (crunchy strands of chickpea flour);[2]dahi puri, which addsdahi (yoghurt) to the potato filling; and pakodi puri, filled with smallpakodas.[14] A deflated version of the puri is used forpapri chaat andbhel puri.[2]
Panipuri combines sweet and sour flavours,[5][20] and theastringency and cooling of tamarind may balance againstspiciness.[21] There is also a contrast between thecrispy exterior and the soft filling.[13] The flavour profile of panipuri—combining sourness, saltiness, and heat—is similar to other chaats and otherIndian street foods.[22]
Panipuri is typically served by street food vendors, though versions also exist at restaurants. Street vendors of the dish, known as panipuriwallas, each use their own recipes. They prepare panipuri with tweaks according to each customer's order,[1] such as using different levels of spiciness.[2] Panipuri is served one at a time[23] and may be assembled by the vendor or the customer; culinary presenterPadma Lakshmi wrote in her 2016 memoir, "Nowadays, you’re often presented with the components and required to assemble each bite yourself ... Pani puri is never as good as when a master makes it."[20] Some vendors serve panipuri directly from their hands to the hands of the customer, which is not done with other street foods,[24] while some vendors useleaf plates.[23] People consume panipuri quickly—to prevent it from becoming soggy—and then leave, unlike with other street foods.[25] A round of panipuris may end with one served without the water, which is known asdry orsookha.[26][27]
When served at restaurants, the dish may be served with the filling on the side, for the customer to add, or already filled in the puri, though the pani is always added after serving.[5] As a street food, panipuri is rarely eaten at home.[28] However, among theMarwari people, panipuri and other chaats may also be homemade.[19]
Panipuri is a particularly popular snack in the summer.[20] As a light snack, it is popular in the evening.[29] It is also sometimes served as wedding food.[30] According to cultural scholar Bhaskar Mukhopadhyay, panipuri is an example of a food that is eaten for fun rather than practical value.[31]
As panipuri is a popular street food, its safety has been seen as apublic health issue.[32] Panipuri is aperishable product whose ingredients may get contaminated with bacteria.[33] The risk offoodborne illness is caused by poor hygiene during preparation and serving as well as contamination of water or raw vegetables[34] as these are not cooked before consumption.[35] Hygienic risks occur as vendors often store the water used for panipuri in open containers and serve the dish by hand.[36] Studies analysing panipuri served by street vendors have found bacteria such asE. coli,Staphylococcus,Salmonella, andListeria,[37] as well as fungal contaminants.[38] A 2024 analysis by theFood Safety and Standards Authority of India found that 22% of samples of panipuri in Karnataka were below standards due to substances classified as unsafe orcarcinogenic.[39][40] The same year, this agency found 16% of samples in the city ofChennai to be unsafe for consumption.[41] To avoid health risks, many street vendors usemineral water, and the fast food chainHaldiram's serves the dish using a sealed bag of puris.[42]
The phuchka made in the eastern Indian subcontinent is distinct from panipuri as the puris are made of atta, the green water is especially spicy, and the tamarind water is sour rather than sweet.[2] The latter is known in Bengali astok jol ('sour water').[43] The typical filling uses mashed potatoes or boiledBengal gram chickpeas.[2] In West Bengal, phuchka is often flavoured withgondhoraj lime,[8] which gives Kolkata-style phuchka its distinctive flavour.[44][45] This style is filled with mashed potatoes, green chilli, and spices. They usually do not use chickpeas,[46] and may instead usewhite peas.[45] The atta puris are slightly larger[2] and much thinner than most panipuris.[47] According to chef Vikramjeet Roy, many Kolkatans prefer for the snack to be more fragile.[16] Some vendors in Kolkata serve a sweet pani in addition to the sour pani.[43]Doi phuchka is a variation of phuchka that contains dahi, making it similar to the dahi puri of Mumbai.[48]
In Bangladesh, phuchka is filled withchotpoti, containing potatoes and onions, and topped with shredded eggs. It is served with tamarind water.[49][50] Phuchka and panipuri are distinct items in Bangladesh, with the latter using smaller puris and a filling of potatoes, chickpeas, and peas; Bangladeshidoi phuchka uses the same filling, topped with dahi, beets, and sev, rather than flavoured waters. Bhelpuri, in Bangladesh, is a variant of panipuri that uses larger puris, topped with potato, tomato, and cucumber.[51]
A spiced filling of potatoes andblack chickpeas is used in both the golgappa of Delhi and pani ke batashe from in and around Uttar Pradesh.[2] Delhi golgappe use thicker and crispier puris than the ones used elsewhere.[2] Both atta and semolina are used in the city,[47] though semolina is more common. Delhi-style golgappe use a green water made with both mint and coriander and a red water made with less tamarind than usual and without star anise.[2] A form of golgappa in Delhi, historically served atkhomcha stalls, uses a sour and spicy water known ashara pani (lit. 'green water'), which is similar tojal-jeera and consists ofamchoor spiced with asafoetida,peeli mirch, cumin, and salt.[19]
Pani ke batashe use a similar filling to Delhi golgappe, with the optional addition of saunth.[19] It is distinguished by the spices in the pani,[2] with the sourness of the tamarind pani more closely resembling Kolkata phuchka.[52] Pani ke batashe are usually made ofdried mango; other flavours include tamarind, lemon, cumin, dates, and asafoetida. At restaurants in theHazratganj neighbourhood ofLucknow, Uttar Pradesh, pani ke batashe is served with five flavours of pani and is thus calledpaanch swaad ke batashe (withpaanch swaad meaning 'five flavours').[2]Dahi-saunth ke batashe, a version similar to dahi puri, includes chopped potatoes and spices. Historically, atta puris were popular in Lucknow, while semolina puris were popular inAgra, where they had a wide shape, and in Delhi, where they were more round.[19]
Mumbai-style panipuri is typically filled withragda, made from mashed white peas, and served with tamarind and mint waters.[2] Bean sprouts[5] and boiled potatoes are also common ingredients in Mumbai.[53] In Gujarat, the traditional filling for panipuri is diced potatoes and boiledmung beans, while the pani contains dates and boondi.[2] In theVastrapur neighbourhood ofAhmedabad, Gujarat, vendors serve panipuri with eight panis, including garlic and onion.[54]Pakodi, the version of panipuri from parts of Gujarat, often excludes the tamarind water, instead using more mint and chilli, and onions are used in the filling. Some versions ofpakodi addsev.[2]
Many vendors inSouth India—especially in rural areas—make versions of panipuri that are spicier and less sweet, to match the popular tastes inthe region's cuisine, sometimes usingrasam in place of pani.[29] The city ofBangalore has both mashed potato panipuri, widely served by North Indian migrants at small stalls, and chickpea panipuri, served by locals at carts that also sell other chaats.[55] Onion is often added to panipuri in Bangalore.[2]Gup chup, eaten in parts of southern and eastern India, uses a chickpea filling without potatoes.[2]
Restaurants as well as street food vendors have developed non-traditional versions of panipuri,[10][50] including dessert versions[56] as well as non-vegetarian fillings.[16] Restaurant adaptations include the use ofavocado as a filling or flavouredvodka as the pani.[1][10] Another upscale version is panipurishots, in which panipuris are served onshot glasses of various flavours of pani,[57] which combines familiar Indian cuisine with international influences.[58] Restaurant versions of panipuri often use semolina puris as atta puris cannot hold together.[16]
Food writerVir Sanghvi states that the popularity of modern variations comes from the versatility of flavoured water as well as the ease of using puris as a base for other flavours, achieving a role similar to pastry doughs inEuropean cuisine.[57] ChefManish Mehrotra stated that panipuri is versatile, with infinite options for ingredients.[10]
It is not known when or by whom panipuri was invented.[2] While ingredients such as puri and tamarind existed in ancient India,[59] potatoes were not introduced until after theColumbian Exchange.[60] Several stories on the origin of panipuri exist,[e] and food historianPushpesh Pant said that it is futile to attempt to determine the true origin.[60] One theory recounted by theNational Geographical Journal of India in 1955 states that the small, crunchy version of puri originated inVaranasi, with the remaining ingredients of panipuri added during theMughal Empire.[51] According to culinary anthropologistKurush Dalal, panipuri was adapted from chaat, which originated in the North Indian region of what is now Uttar Pradesh during the reign of the seventeenth-century Mughal emperorShah Jahan.[1] Dalal states that the fillings of panipuri evolved fromkachori and were adapted based on personal tastes.[60]
Panipuri spread to the rest of India mainly due to internal migration in the 20th century,[1] gaining new names and variations of ingredients.[2][19] Most of the early variations maintained the traditional flavours, with minor additions such as sweet tamarind water, jal-jeera, and garlic.[10] While amchoor was originally used as a sour flavour in Uttar Pradesh, tamarind was used instead in Bengal and Maharashtra, leading to phuchka and panipuri. The white peas that were traditional in Uttar Pradesh were replaced in Kolkata by Bengal gram and in Delhi bykabuli chana, a variation which remains hyperlocal to the city. According to Vishal, the phuchka of Kolkata evolved from the pani ke batashe of Lucknow, replacing peeli mirch with cheaper green chillies and adding gondhoraj lime, thus explaining its spicy and sour flavours. Vishal also writes that Mumbai panipuri began using ragda as it was easy to prepare, while the addition of sprouts may have been influenced by the local dishesusal andmisal.[19] The first panipuri stalls in Bangalore included Nagarthpet Panipuri, established by Uttar Pradeshi migrant Om Prakash Sharma in the 1940s.[61] Phuchka spread to Bangladesh after the 1947partition of India.[51]
According to Vishal, panipuri gradually became simplified. For example, chaat establishments in Lucknow in the 1980s offered pani ke batashe with many options for pani, before restaurants from the 1990s served all golgappe withhara pani andmeetha pani, while golgappe in Agra shifted from jal-jeera to basic sweet, sour, and spicy panis. Vishal attributes the simplification in part to commercial incentives to keep costs low.[19]
Modern variations of panipuri arose sometime around the 1990s, according to Sanghvi. One of the chefs developing variations of the dish wasSanjeev Kapoor, working at a restaurant in New Zealand in the 1990s,[57] where he createdgrape juice panipuri,[14] which became one of the first modern versions to gain popularity.[56] Restaurants also began serving vodka panipuri around this time; several chefs, includingHemant Oberoi of theTaj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, claimed to have invented it.[57] Vodka panipuri from the restaurant chainPunjabi by Nature became well-known in the early 2000s.[10] According to Sanghvi, panipuri shots may have been invented by chefManish Mehrotra, who began serving the item in 2009. Further variations on panipuri were created by chefsGaggan Anand, whose dish Yoghurt Explosion usedspherification to create a ball of yoghurt with a filling, and Himanshu Saini, whose restaurantTrèsind Studio in Dubai served unique versions of panipuri as itssignature dish.[57]
By the 2000s, panipuri vendors in Delhi began advertising their use of mineral water.[42] Panipuri was the subject of a media wave in 2011, when some supporters of theMaharashtra Navnirman Sena party attacked vendors in Mumbai and Pune, in response to a video of a vendor urinating into a jar used for pani.[62]
In addition to Bangladeshi-style phuchka, panipuri and bhelpuri became popular in Bangladesh around the 2010s. They became more popular street foods in Dhaka than traditional phuchka,doi phuchka, and chotpoti, particularly among youths.[51] Bangladeshi-style phuchka was introduced to the United States by 2018, when a phuchka cart calledTong was founded inJackson Heights, New York City, by Bangladeshi immigrant Naeem Khandaker. Several other phuchka carts opened on the same city block in following years—by 2023, there were over eight—mostly established by former employees of Khandaker.[4]
During theCOVID-19 lockdown in India, homemade panipuri became popular as street foods were not available. In the five weeks following the first lockdown order on 25 March 2020,Google searches for panipuri recipes doubled, and the food was a common topic on social media.[1] Kolkata-style phuchka became a nationwide trend around this time.[45] According toCondé Nast Traveller,online virality led to a wave of new interpretations of panipuri—as well as other street foods such asMaggi noodles—in 2020 and 2021. These included a panipuri set on fire, which was created at Chaska Chaat inNagpur before being imitated elsewhere, and a large, overloaded variation calledbahubali paani puri, served at Chirag ka Chaska in Nagpur.[10] Around the early 2020s,Punjabi restaurants began serving versions of the dish, includingbutter chicken panipuri.[57] Non-traditional variations of panipuri also began being served by street vendors, becoming popular for their visual appeal and hygiene;[63] viral phenomena included includingshawarma panipuri served by carts in Hyderabad[64] and phuchkachops served by a vendor in Kolkata.[65]
Chaats such as panipuri surged in popularity in South India—including in rural areas and around the cities ofMadurai andCoimbatore—in the 2020s. They overtook the popularity of local snacks.[29] The dish was still associated with North India;[57] in 2022, Tamil Nadu politicianK. Ponmudy disparagingly described Hindi speakers as "selling pani puri".[57][66] Panipuri, like other Indian dishes, became popular in China in the 2020s, inspiring thehashtag #IndianCrispyBall and being depicted in the video gameGenshin Impact.[67] The popularity of panipuri also grew in the United States, with the dish being served at theWhite House several times by 2024.[68]
Panipuri is the most popular street food in theIndian subcontinent.[33] It is a highly popularfast food in India and in Nepal.[69] Many panipuri wallas achieve fame within their neighbourhoods for the ways they prepare the dish.[10] The typical price in India is 30rupees (US$0.41) for six panipuris, as of 2021.[2] Becoming a panipuri vendor has a low cost requirement, making it a popular occupation for internal migrant workers. Panipuri vendors are usually migrants from theHindi Belt; there was a particularly high proportion ofRajasthanis until the 21st century.[62]
Panipuri is popular in both urban and rural areas[1] and among all ages and social classes.[33][1] It is popular across genders, though it is particularly seen as a women's snack. Film criticSohini Chattopadhyay noted that female film characters are shown eating panipuri more than other foods. Urban geographer Hugo Ribadeau Dumas found that, inPurnea, Bihar, in 2022, most women preferred panipuri over other street foods. Ribadeau Dumas attributed this phenomenon to the social acceptability of panipuri as a frivolous snack for women, as depicted in film and advertising, as well as gender norms against public leisure activities for women, as other street foods take more time to eat.[25]
Stores sell pre-packaged puri shells for panipuri.[1] Restaurants often purchase pre-packaged shells from bulk suppliers, although some make them fresh with custom recipes.[16] A ready-to-fry version, consisting of thin sheets of dough,[16] has been available at stores since around the 2010s.[1]
Panipuri is a traditionalstreet food of Delhi, where vendors are typically migrants from Uttar Pradesh or Bihar.[70] Compared to other street foods in the city, selling panipuri requires the lowest investment. Most vendors migrate to the city with the intent to enter this job, often learning to make the dish before migrating; this commonly involveschain migration as a panipuri vendor invites others within their social network to set up a shop in the same neighbourhood.[71] Some of the city's panipuri vendors expand to sell other chaats, such aspapri chaat oraloo tikki.[72] Restaurants in Delhi commonly serve non-traditional panipuris.[73]
According to ethnographer Arindam Das, phuchka is culturally associated with Bengali identity; for example, the 1981 film36 Chowringhee Lane depicts anAnglo-Indian character eating the food with Bengali friends to represent the intermingling of their cultures.[74] In Kolkata, the most famous phuchka vendors include those of theVivekananda Park neighbourhood,[48] and the city'sITC Royal Bengal hotel serves the dish more than any other hotel in India.[16] A tradition in Kolkata is for the vendor to serve a dry phuchka for free at the end of a round.[27] The nearby village ofShahid Pally is nicknamed "Phuchkagram" as most of its families are employed in the phuchka industry, producing most of the supply in Kolkata and surrounding areas.[75][76] In Bangladesh, panipuri andchotpoti are served by the same street vendors.[51] Bangladeshi phuchka was listed by the American media networkCNN in its "50 of the best street foods in Asia" in 2022.[77][50]
In Mumbai, panipuri is popular on beaches.[78] In Pakistan, golgappe were historically served from street carts, although snack restaurants have become more popular.[79]
Panipuri is also served as a street food in South India, requiring less cost and labour than regionally traditional snacks such aspaniyaram.[29] The city ofHyderabad has many popular panipuri stalls; theHussain Sagar neighbourhood had over one hundred vendors of the snack in 2025.[30] Panipuri and other chaats are also popular in the South Indian city ofMysore, alongside dishes more local to the region, having historically been sold by migrants from Uttar Pradesh or Bihar.[80] In the city ofVijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, street vendors sell panipuri on a plate with a spoon.[81]
Indian migrants have introduced panipuri to other parts of the world.[2] InLondon, it was popularised by chefsVineet Bhatia andAtul Kochhar.[16] Restaurants inDubai serve several regional styles,[2] while restaurants inWashington, D.C., mostly serve it filled with chickpeas and potatoes.[5] Modern versions of panipuri are served by chefs globally.[82]
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