Golgappa Recipe (Delhi Style) | Golgappa Pani
A trip to Delhi in North India can never be complete without having the Golgappa there – one of the most popular street food snacks. Not just this, while a Golgappa Recipe is a typical Delhi way of making it, this dish is famous under different names in other parts of India. So, it becomes the quintessential pani puri in Maharashtra, puchka in West Bengal and gupchup in Bihar and Jharkhand. In this recipe, I have also shared the way to make a tangy, yummy Golgappa Pani – an essential element of any Golgappa meal.
This recipe shares the North Indian style of making golgappa pani along with the stuffing – specifically the golgappe you get in Delhi and NCR belt.
I have lived in Gurugram (Gurgaon) for some time and occasionally we would have golgappe outside. The stuffing here is different than the Pani puri stuffing one gets in Mumbai. It has white chickpeas or black chickpeas with some boiled potatoes.
The golgappa pani or spicy water is made of mint leaves in some places and in some places its jaljeera pani or hing pani or amchur (dried mango) pani. The meetha pani is the usual sweet tamarind chutney.
In this post I have shared jaljeera made from mint leaves and spices. I had shared this jaljeera recipe some years back and I use the same recipe to make the spicy and sour water.
The Golgappa puri can be made of atta (whole wheat flour) or sooji/rava (cream of wheat or semolina). You can use either. The atta golgappe are bigger in size than the ones made with sooji.
Whenever I visit Delhi or gurgaon, I do try to have golgappe from there along with my favorite chana bhatura and Aloo tikki.
The jaljeera pani can be made a few hours before and then refrigerated. In the post I have shown making the jaljeera pani and the golgappa stuffing.
- For the golgappe made with sooji, you can check this post – Golgappa puri.
- For the meetha pani or imli chutney, you can refer to this Imli chutney.
Serve golgappe as soon as you make them.
How to make Golgappa Recipe
A) Making Golgappa Pani
1. Soak 1 tablespoon of tightly packed tamarind in ¼ cup hot water for about 20 minutes.
2. Take ⅓ cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves in a small grinder jar. Only use the mint leaves. Do not add the stems as then the pani can become bitter.
Rinse the mint leaves well with water before adding them to the grinder jar.
3. Add the soaked tamarind along with its water. Make sure there are no seeds in the tamarind.
4. Add the following spices – 1.5 teaspoons cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon fennel, ½ teaspoon black pepper and seeds removed from 1 black cardamom. Discard the outer cardamom cover. To get the seeds, lightly crush the cardamom in a mortar-pestle. Then remove the seeds.
5. Now add 1 teaspoon amchur (dry mango powder), 1 teaspoon chaat masala, 1 pinch asafoetida (hing) and black salt as required.
If you do not have dry mango powder, then you can add some lemon juice. Instead of dry mango powder, kachri powder or bel powder can also be used. Instead of black salt, you can use rock salt or sea salt.
6. Grind to a smooth chutney.
7. Take the jaljeera chutney in a bowl. Also add 1.5 cups water.
8. Mix very well. Check the taste of golgappa pani and add more salt and dry mango powder if required. You can also add some lemon juice if you want.
If in case the pani tastes bitter (due to the type and quality of mint leaves), then add some lemon juice to balance the bitterness. If you want then you can keep this golgappa pani in the refrigerator.
Making golgappa stuffing
9. Rinse and then soak ⅓ cup white chickpeas and ⅓ cup black chickpeas in enough water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours. Later drain all the water and rinse the chickpeas very well in running water.
10. Add the chickpeas in a stovetop pressure cooker. Also add 2.5 cups water. You can also use just one type of chickpea.
11. Add ½ teaspoon salt.
12. Pressure cook on medium heat for 18 to 19 minutes. When pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, then only open the lid and check if the chickpeas are cooked well or not.
If not, then pressure cook for some more time till the chickpeas are cooked well.
13. Drain all the water and take the chickpeas in a bowl.
14. In another stovetop pressure cooker, take 2 to 3 medium sized rinsed potatoes. Add enough water just about covering the potatoes. Also add ½ teaspoon salt.
Pressure cook them for 5 to 6 whistles or 9 to 11 minutes on medium heat. In the picture below there are more potatoes as I added them in another chaat recipe.
15. When the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, remove the potatoes. Let them cool a bit. Then peel and chop them. Add the chopped potatoes to the cooked chickpeas.
16. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder, ½ teaspoon chaat masala and ¼ teaspoon black salt or add as required.
17. Mix everything well. Keep aside.
Assembling golgappa
18. Keep all the elements of golgappa before assembling them – jaljeera pani, tamarind chutney, chana and potatoes stuffing.
Take the golgappa puri in a small plate. Crack open the top with a spoon or with clean fingers.
19. Place the chickpeas and potato stuffing inside the golgappa puri.
20. Spoon some sweet tamarind chutney less or more as per your preferences.
21. Now spoon the jaljeera pani or golgappa pani less or more as required.
22. Have them immediately.
23. You can also arrange all the golgappa elements on the dining table and let people make the golgappa for themselves.
Few more popular snacks you may like are:
Step by Step Photo Guide Above
Ingredients
for jaljeera or golgappa pani
- ¼ cup hot water
- 1 tablespoon tightly packed tamarind
- ⅓ cup mint leaves – loosely packed
- 1.5 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
- 1 black cardamom – seeds remove and kept
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon amchur (dry mango powder) – can also use lemon juice or kachri powder or bel powder
- 1 teaspoon Chaat Masala
- 1 pinch asafoetida (hing)
- 1.5 cups water added later
- black salt as required – can also use rock salt or regular salt
for golgappa stuffing
- ⅓ cup white chickpeas
- ⅓ cup black chickpeas
- 2.5 cups water, for cooking chickpeas
- ½ teaspoon salt for cooking chickpeas
- 2 to 3 potatoes
- water as required for cooking potatoes
- ½ teaspoon salt for cooking potatoes
- ½ teaspoon Kashmiri Chilli Powder or add as required
- ½ teaspoon Chaat Masala or add as required
- ¼ teaspoon black salt or add as required
other ingredients
- 1 medium bowl tamarind chutney
- 25 to 30 golgappe
Instructions
making golgappa pani or jaljeera
- Soak 1 tablespoon tightly packed tamarind in ¼ cup hot water for about 20 minutes.
- Take ⅓ cup loosely packed mint leaves in a small grinder jar. Only use the mint leaves. Do not add the stems.
- Add the soaked tamarind along with its water. Make sure there are no seeds in the tamarind.
- Add the following spices – 1.5 teaspoons cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon fennel, ½ teaspoon black pepper and seeds removed from 1 black cardamom.
- Now add 1 teaspoon amchur (dry mango powder), 1 teaspoon chaat masala, 1 pinch asafoetida (hing) and black salt as required.
- If you do not have dry mango powder, then you can add some lemon juice. Instead of dry mango powder, kachri powder or bel powder can also be used. Instead of black salt, you can use rock salt or sea salt.
- Grind to a smooth chutney.
- Take the jaljeera chutney in a bowl. Also add 1.5 cups water.
- Mix very well. Check the taste of golgappa pani and add more salt and dry mango powder if required. You can also add some lemon juice if you want.
- If you want then you can keep this golgappa pani in the refrigerator.
making golgappa stuffing
- Rinse and then soak ⅓ cup white chickpeas and ⅓ cup black chickpeas in enough water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours. Later drain all the water and rinse the chickpeas very well in running water.
- Add the chickpeas in a cooker. Also add 2.5 cups water. You can also add just one type of chickpea.
- Add ½ teaspoon salt.
- Pressure cook on medium flame for 18 to 19 minutes. When pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, open the lid and check if the chickpeas are cooked well or not. If not then pressure cook for some more time till the chickpeas are cooked well.
- Drain all the water and take the chickpeas in a bowl.
- In another pressure cooker, take 2 to 3 medium sized rinsed potatoes. Add enough water just about covering the potatoes.
- Also add ½ teaspoon salt. Pressure cook them for 5 to 6 whistles or 9 to 11 minutes on medium flame.
- When the pressure settles down on its own in the cooker, remove the potatoes. Let them cool a bit. Then peel and chop them. Add the chopped potatoes to the cooked chickpeas.
- Sprinkle ½ teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder, ½ teaspoon chaat masala and ¼ teaspoon black salt or add as required.
- Mix everything well. Keep aside.
assembling golgappa
- Keep all the elements of golgappa before assembling them – jaljeera pani, tamarind chutney, chana and potatoes stuffing. Take the golgappa puri in a small plate. Crack open the top with a spoon or with clean fingers.
- Place the chickpeas and potato stuffing inside the golgappa puri.
- Spoon some sweet tamarind chutney less or more as per your preferences.
- Now spoon the jaljeera pani or golgappa pani.
- Have them immediately.
- You can also arrange all the golgappa elements on the dining table and let people make the golgappa for themselves.
Notes
- Instead of black salt, you can add sea salt or rock salt as well.
- For the stuffing, you can even use just one type of chickpeas, instead of two.
- You can adjust the spices and seasonings, as per your likings. In case the pani is bitter because if the quality of mint leaves, then add some lemon juice to balance the bitterness.
Nutrition
This Goolgappa Recipe post from the archives first published on May 2018 has been republished and updated on January 2023.
Is there an alternative to using fresh tamarind- for example how much tamarind be paste could you use?
You can use tamarind paste or sauce as an alternative. Since tamarind paste is more concentrated, start with about ½ to ¾ teaspoon of tamarind paste for this recipe, and adjust to taste. Add a little more if you prefer a stronger tangy flavor.