Crunchy puris for Gupchup/Puchka/Golgappa

These are the basic puffed crunchy Puris we need for the Golgappas and verity of Puchka chats.
For making this we'll need

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup fine semolina
about 1/4 cup of water
Oil for frying

Combine flour and semolina in a bowl and knead it using a little water. Sprinkle in more water (as needed) to form a medium hard dough. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes. Then set it aside for at least 30 minutes covered with wet towel. After the resting time get the dough to the kitchen counter(or any flat surface, to make it easier to knead) and knead it for another 10 minutes. Keep it covered with wet towel through out the preparation to keep it from drying.

Take a small portion and using a rolling-pin roll it into a big sheet. Then use the cookie cutter to cut out circle shapes from the rolled sheet. Roll out the circles again to make them a little thinner. And cover them with wet towels till they're ready to fry. Fry them on a medium hot oil till golden and crisp. 
If the Puris doesn't seem crisp enough then bake them in the oven for about 20 minutes in 200°F. 

Ragda Patties

Ragda Patties is a Marathi snack, popular in Mumbai. I have never been to Mumbai, so never got a chance to taste it from the street vendors. But that shouldn't stop me from trying out the recipe, so here is my best try for one of the most popular Mumbai street food :)

For the chaat plate presentation we need:
Ragda,
Potato patties,
Yogurt sauce, 
Green chutney,
Tamarind chutney,
Sev
Chat masala,
Black salt,
Chopped Onion, Tomato, Green chillies, Cilantro 

We need all of that ready by the side when assembling the plate. If you're making it for  a group, you'd assemble for one person at a time, asking for their preferences of the toppings. some people  might want to avoid certain toppings or want something more in their plate. That way everyone can have their custom order :) 

For making Potato Patties we'll need 

Potatoes- 8 to 10 medium size
Plain breadcrumbs- 1/4 cup (or rice flour)
Cilantro chopped -1/4 cup
Green chillies chopped, as per taste
Ginger chopped- 1tbsp, optional
Chat masala 1tbsp
Roasted cumin seeds 1tsp
Black salt- 1tsp (or salt)
Oil for shallow frying 

boil the potatoes till fork tender, let it sit till it's room temperature. Peel and grate the potatoes. I always prefer to grate them instead of  mashing them. That makes the texture very even and easy to work with. Take the grated potatoes in a bowl and mix rest of the ingredients in. Divide it in equal parts and roll between your palms to make them into roundels. Flatten it on both sides to shape the Patties. Shallow fry the patties with very little oil. Fry them again just before serving to make sure it's hot while eating.

For making the Ragda curry we'll need
White Peas- 1cup
Green peas- 1cup
Matar Daal( for thickening the curry)- 1/4 cup (optional)(or, boiled Potatoes)
Onion chopped- 1/2cup
Garlic crushed- 1tbsp
Ginger chopped- 1tbsp
Tomato - 2 large
green chillies. as per taste
Cilantro chopped- /2cup
Mint Chopped- 1/2cup
Key limes - 2or 3(or 2tbsp tamarind pulp)
Roasted  and roughly pounded Fennel seeds, Cumin seeds, Coriander seeds 1tbsp
Chat masala- 1tsp
Garam Masala-1tsp
Oil- 2 tbsp (I use Canola Oil)
Turmeric, as per taste
Hing- as per taste
Salt 

Ragda

We'll need to soak all the daal and peas throughout the night or at least for a few hours before cooking. I usually boil them together with a little bit of oil and turmeric. When they're almost done I add in salt and Hing.

I usually cook my curry in a wide bottom pan with good depth, to prevent the liquid from spattering allover. In the cooking pan take 2tbsp oil. When it's hot add chopped chillies, coriander and mint leaves. let it cook for a minute. Take half of the herbs out to use it as a garnish at the end of the preparation. Adding the herbs in hot oil helps in keeping their colors fresh.  Add chopped onion and crushed garlic to the pan. Let the onions brown a little bit, which might take 10 minutes in medium to high heat. Then add the Roasted and crushed cumin, coriander and fennel seeds. Add a little water to make sure the dry power doesn't get burnt. Fry it for another few minutes till the raw flavor of the masala is gone. Puree the Tomatoes and ginger and add it to the onion mix. Cook the masala mix till it looks like oozing out oil from sides. Then add the garam masala and the cooked peas. cover it and cook for another 5 minutes till done. Lastly, stir in Chat masala and the cooked herbs. Warm it up before serving.