Add water and mix well with semolina.Initially you will not get smooth texture but don't worry.
Now, add all purpose flour/mainda and mix well.
Knead your dough .Semolina will start absorbing water.
keep kneading your dough at-least for 10 min. you will see the transformation of sooji into very soft dough.
The pani puri dough should be elastic. The correct texture of the dough, also help in puffing pooris and helps in them staying crisp. knead very well. elasticity helps in rolling the dough without an cracks and thinly. when rolling, the dough should roll easily without any cracks. you should be easily be able to lift the rolled dough without it tearing or breaking and falling apart.
Now, add oil and again knead your dough until it absorbs oil completely.
cover the dough with a cling-film or wet napkin and allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes. you can also keep the dough for an hour.
after 30 minutes, knead the dough again.
Divide the dough in equal portions. take one part on your work surface and begin to roll. avoid adding any dry flour while kneading. keep the remaining dough covered with the cling film or wet napkin.
roll to a large round. there should be no cracks in the rolled dough. you can flip the entire rolled dough without it breaking or tearing apart.
keep on rolling to a thin and even round. the pooris have to be thinly rolled. if not thin, the base becomes thick and remains soft even after frying. if the dough is not rolled evenly, then the pooris won't puff up.
with a cookie cutter or a small bowl, cut small to medium discs from the rolled dough. using a cookie cutter gives even shape and size to the pooris. you can also make small balls and roll them. but then the pooris won't have an even and uniform shape.
remove the dough edges and place the small pooris in a plate without them touching each other. keep these pooris covered with a moist kitchen towel. collect the egdes and knead them lightly. roll the edges too and make pooris the same way.
heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or pan. the oil should be medium hot. add a tiny piece of the dough ball in the hot oil. check if oil is hot enough or not.
put a few pooris in the oil. they will puff up quickly as soon as you add them to the hot oil. you can fry up to 4 to 8 pieces at a time, depending on the size of your pan.
flip them with frying spatula, once they puff up, continue to fry till light golden.
fry them till they are a light golden or golden.
drain them on kitchen paper towels. there will be a few flat puris too. these you can use to make sev puri or papdi chaat. continue to fry all the pooris this way.
drain them on paper towels.
once they get cooled at room temperature, immediately add them to a jar or box and close the lid tightly.
make pani puri, dahi puri or ragda puri from these homemade pooris or golgappas. they stay crisp and good for a month if stored in an airtight box.
Video
Notes
Always cover the dough with a Cling film Or wet cloth even while rolling the puris. if the dough becomes dry, you will not be able to roll the dough easily.
Ensure that all the rolled puris are covered with a wet cloth. if the puris become dry, then the puris will not puff up.
The above tips comes from experience. just before frying remove the damp cloth.
You could fry 4 to 7 puris at a time.
The dough has to semi soft with gluten strands formed in them. there has to be elasticity in the dough. these factors give a crisp pani puri. the crispness stays even after the pooris are cooled and even later.
Maida or refined/all purpose flour is used for binding the dough. avoid adding more maida to the dough. if the dough is not binding well, then you could add a few teaspoons more of maida. but don’t add too much.
The puris have to be thin. if you do not roll them thinly, then the puris won’t puff up well and will remain soft from within.
Fry the puris in a moderately hot oil. if the oil is not hot enough, the puris will absorb oil and become soaked in oil. too hot oil, will burn the puris.
I am adding oil at last while dough is fully prepared because it will give light texture to the puris.if you add Oil just before adding water,then your puris will not be crisp because you will get pastry like dough. so please add oil only when your dough id elastic in texture.