Take chapati atta and salt in a bowl. Mix it well.
Add a teaspoon of oil and mix by rubbing between your thumb and fingers.
Then add little water at a time and start kneading the dough. The dough should be smooth yet semi-soft (Not too soft like roti and not too stiff like mathri). Cover it with a clean napkin or plate and let it rest for 15-20 minutes.
Rolling:
After the resting time, again knead the dough 2-3 times to make it smooth. Divide it into 12 equal portions and make smooth balls.
Take one ball and flatten it into a disc by pressing between your two palms. Repeat the same for rest and keep them covered, so they do not dry out.
Heat the oil in a pan/kadai on medium heat for frying. While it is getting hot, take a rolling pin and rolling board. Roll each disc into a 3-inches diameter circle. If it is sticking then grease the rolling board and pin with oil. But never dust with dry flour for rolling.
Roll few pooris and keep them on a plate. NOTE: poori should be rolled at even thickness. If it is thin from one side and at some part it is thick then it will not puff up while frying.
Frying:
Now the oil is hot, slide one rolled puri into the hot oil. Fry it with very gentle pressing using the back of the slotted spatula. And it will puff up right away.
As it is puffed up (bottom side is light brown & no more bubbles forming), flip it.
Fry another side until lightly golden. Don’t fry for a long time otherwise, it gets crispy (not soft).
Remove it and place on the paper towel lined plate and repeat the same for rest.
Notes
The dough must be medium-soft (slightly stiff) and not soft, loose or sticky like roti dough. So always start with little water, keep kneading and adding the water as needed.
What happens if dough is soft? It will soak up too much oil and may not puff up.
If making a bigger batch, then you can make the dough in your kitchen aid stand mixture. I am making a small batch for just two of us (me and hubby), so I have made it by hand.
Never use dry flour while rolling puri. That dry flour will get burn during the frying process and those burnt particles will stick to the next batch of poori.
Roll the pooris of medium thickness. If it is too thin like roti then it will not puff up while frying.
After frying a couple of batches of poori, if oil temperature becomes too hot then reduce the flame or turn off the flame for a few minutes. Or if it becomes cold then increase the flame to high for a few minutes. So the point is, maintain the oil temperature (medium hot) by increasing or decreasing the heat.