Pani puri: India's famous street snackCEFR B2
30 Aug 2025
Adapted from Abhinash Das, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Zoshua Colah, Unsplash
Pani puri is one of India’s best‑known street snacks: a small, deep‑fried hollow shell filled with spiced potatoes, chickpeas, raw onion and tangy spices, then dunked into flavoured water such as mint or tamarind. Its simple format and strong flavours make it a quick snack from busy city streets to rural corners.
Food historians link an early form called phulki to Magadha (544–322 BCE), and several traditional tales, including one from the Mahabharata about Draupadi, try to explain its origin. The snack appears under many regional names—golgappa, phuchka and gupchup—and each area adds its own twist. In West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha it is often called Phuchka and filled with Ghugni (black chickpeas or spiced peas). In Uttar Pradesh and Delhi it is Gol Gappa, usually with mashed potatoes and tangy tamarind liquid. In Maharashtra and Gujarat the classic versions use green or white peas with mint‑coriander water and a sweet tamarind‑jaggery water. Indian chef Sanjeev Kapoor posted a Facebook recipe that shows these regional differences.
Pani puri has spread abroad through Non‑Resident Indian communities and restaurants and is served in countries such as:
- United States
- United Kingdom
- Canada
- Malaysia
- Australia
Notable public moments include a group of students in Budapest who praised it in April 2025, Curry Corner in Minneapolis offering free pani puris in June 2024 with a video that reached 3.9 million views, and visits in 2023 when former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tasted pani puri and Japan’s Ambassador Hiroshi Suzuki enjoyed it in Varanasi; Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared that moment on X on June 11, 2023. Google marked July 12 as “Pani Puri Day” in 2023 with a Doodle honouring a 2015 world record when Indori Zyaka served 51 unique flavours. The snack has inspired fusions, for example Mexican‑Indian and Italian styles. While some social stereotypes persist, reports note that regulated stalls and homemade preparations use filtered water and fresh ingredients, and many vendors now use gloves and clean utensils. Pani puri remains a symbol of shared taste and memories, often seen in videos, memes and songs.
Difficult words
- dunk — to put quickly into a liquiddunked
- hollow — having an empty space inside
- tangy — a sharp, slightly sour taste
- origin — the place or reason something began
- regional — relating to a particular area or region
- fusion — combining styles or elements into onefusions
- vendor — a person or business that sells goodsvendors
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Which regional version of pani puri would you like to try and why? Mention ingredients from the article.
- How do events, social media and famous visits (like politicians tasting the snack) help a street food become internationally known? Give reasons.
- What are the benefits and possible risks when vendors use filtered water, gloves and clean utensils? Give examples from your own city or a place you know.
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