Chicken manchurian recipe

Name: Chicken manchurian recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Indo Chinese
Ingredients: 200 gm chicken breast or leg ( boneless); 3 - 4 tablespoon corn flour; 1 beaten egg; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper powder; 1 tablespoon salt or as per taste; 2 teaspoon chopped garlic; 1 teaspoon chopped ginger; 2 green chili finely chopped; 1 medium size onion finely chopped; 1 tablespoon red chilly sauce; 1 tablespoon soya sauce; 1 teaspoon vinegar ( optional); 1 teaspoon white pepper powder; 1/2 of capsicum cut into cube or dice; 1/2 of a onion cut into dice shape; Small handful of chopped green spring onion; Some white spring onions roughly chopped; 1 tablespoon oil for stir frying and some for deep frying

Mobasir hassan

23 May

Chicken manchurian

Learn to make chicken manchurian recipe with step by step instructions and video.

Chicken manchurian is a popular snacks recipe which is everyone's favourite. Crisp fried chicken pieces are stir fried with a yummy manchurian sauce.

Serving chicken manchurian with a fork, chilly and soya sauce in background

Chicken manchurian is versatile, yummy and extremely easy to make. And the best part is that you can easily make this manchurian like a restaurant style. If you have been looking for such a chicken manchurian recipe, you have come to the right place. Here I bring you the step by step guide on how to make chicken manchurian recipe at home.

What is chicken manchurian ?

Chicken manchurian is a popular chicken snacks recipe of desi Chinese cuisine where batter coated chicken are deep fried and then stir fried with soya chilly sauce, herbs and seasonings in high flame heat.

You can make this recipe using either boneless chicken or chicken mince (keema).

Manchurian is a popular sauce and used to make some dishes like veg manchurian, gobi manchurian and paneer manchurian.

In restaurants Chicken manchurian are usually made by using bite size chicken pieces. However in certain restaurant mince chicken is also used to make small round shape balls called manchurian balls to make it. Today we will also learn to make manchurian sauce along with this recipe. This will help you to make other manchurian recipes easily at home.

Chicken manchurian is believed to have been invented in 1975 by Nelson Wang in Mumbai.

Ingredients required

Chicken : Boneless chicken breasts or legs are suitable for this recipe. Cut them into small bite size pieces. Or use mince chicken.

Sauce : Soya sauce and red chilly sauce

Herbs : Garlic, ginger, green chili and spring onion

Vegetable : Capsicum and onion

Spice powder : Pepper powder and salt

Vinegar : Prefer rice vinegar

Other ingredients : Corn flour and cooking oil

Variations

The popular variation for this recipe is chicken manchurian dry which is used as an appetizer or snacks.

Another variation for this is Chicken manchurian gravy which is used as a side dish.

In some restaurants, Chicken manchurian is made with ground chicken. Spiced ground chicken are made into small round shape balls like dumping and deep fried. Then these are stir fried with the sauce and herbs.

Serving

Chicken manchurian is generally served as a snacks and it goes well like as it is. You can serve some red chilly sauce and soya sauce along with it while serving.

You can serve it as a side dish along with chicken fried rice , Veg hakka noodles and Chicken hakka noodles..

Time taken

Total time taken to make chicken manchurian take about just 15 minutes. This includes 10 minutes of preparation time and 5 minutes of cooking time. You may want to marinate the chicken for about 10 minutes, but that is optional.

Make ahead option

You can refrigerated the fried chicken pieces for upto 2 days in a air tight container. Similarly you can make the manchurian sauce in advance and keep refrigerated after cooling completely.

Before your dinner or any events, fry the chicken for one minute and then stir fry in the manchurian sauce as required.

Steps to make the recipe

1. Coating the chicken

Trim and cut the chicken pieces into small bite sizes. In a mixing bowl mix the chicken with salt, pepper powder and a beaten egg.

Add two tablespoon corn flour and mix nicely so that the chicken pieces get nicely coated from all sides. Cover and keep aside for 10 minutes to marinate and absorb all the flavour.

Batter coated chicken for chicken manchurian recipe

For mince chicken, mix them with chopped ginger, garlic, pepper powder, 2 tablespoon corn flour, 1 tablespoon maida, one beaten egg whites, salt and some chopped coriander leaves.

Coating and marinating mince chicken with soya sauce, ginger garlic corn flour,egg whites pepper powder

Keep them aside for 5 to 10 minutes to absorb the flavours.

2. Cutting the vegetables

Finely chopped garlic, ginger and green chili. Cut capsicum and onion into dice or cube size. Chopped green spring onions and roughly slice the white part of the spring onions.

Chopped vegetables and herbs for chicken manchurian recipe

3. Frying the chicken

Heat oil in a deep vessel pan or kadai over medium high heat flame. When the oil become hot lower the flame to low and add the batter coated chicken one by one carefully.

Deep frying batter coated chicken in oil for chicken manchurian recipe

Fry them for 4 to 6 minutes or till they become crisp golden. Remove them on a kitchen towel or napkin to absorb any excess oil.

Crisp golden fried chicken for chicken manchurian recipe

You can shallow fry the chicken pieces as well but deep frying is recommended for best result.

Similarly make small round shape balls with the marinated chicken mince and fry them till crisp golden.

Frying chicken balls in a pan for chicken manchurian

Remove them in a absorbent paper to absorb any excess oil.

Crisp golden chicken balls for chicken manchurian

Apply little water on the palm of hands while making balls with the mince chicken. This will help to prevent the chicken mince to stick on the palm.

4. Making manchurian sauce

Now heat oil in a pan or Chinese wok over high heat flame and add chopped garlic, ginger and green chili. Fry them for a while then add chopped onions. Fry till the onion become soft and translucent.

Stir frying chopped garlic ginger and green chili in a wok for chicken manchurian recipe

Then add white part of the spring onion, capsicum and onion cubes. Stir them in high heat flame for a while..

Then pour half cup of water and simmer for a while.

Vegetables and herbs simmering in a wok for chicken manchurian recipe

Next add soya sauce, red chilly sauce, pepper powder and salt.

Pouring soya sauce in vegetables and herbs for making manchurian sauce

Simmer the sauce for one more minute further. Make a slurry by mixing one tablespoon corn flour with 1/3 cup of water and pour half the slurry into the sauce and cook. When the sauce start to thicken sprinkle some chopped green spring onions

Prepared manchurian sauce in a wok for chicken manchurian recipe

This is how you can make a manchurian sauce. And this sauce is used to make popular recipes like gobi manchurian and veg manchurian.

5. Stir frying the chicken

Now add the fried chicken into the above prepared manchurian sauce.

Adding fried chicken in manchurian sauce for chicken manchurian recipe

And start to stir fry everything over high heat flame for one minute or till the sauce become thick and well coated with the chicken.

Taste the seasoning and color of the dish. If required then add some more soya sauce to adjust the color and spice powder.

Switch off the gas flame and sprinkle some chopped spring onion over the chicken. Remove the chicken to serve hot. This is how you can make chicken manchurian.

Chicken manchurian balls

Similarly add the fried chicken balls into the manchurian sauce and stir fry till the sauce nicely coated. Taste and remove to serve.

Stir fried chicken balls in manchurian sauce

Chicken manchurian gravy

To make chicken manchurian gravy use one cup water in place of half cup and increase little bit more soya sauce, red chilli sauce and corn flour slurry.

Then add the fried chicken balls and cook for another one minute or till the gravy become thick.

Cooking chicken balls in manchurian gravy in a pan

Taste the seasoning and if required add some more salt and pepper powder.

You can even add Schezwan sauce to this manchurian sauce to make Schezwan manchurian. To make it spicy use green chili paste.

Serving chicken manchurian gravy in a bowl

If you love chicken manchurian then you might like the following recipes as well

Watch the video for chicken manchurian dry and gravy with minced chicken balls

Difference between chicken manchurian and chilli chicken

Though these two popular recipe belong to the same Info Chinese cuisine and their preparation technique and ingredients are almost same, there are few differences like

Chicken manchurian has a intense flavor of soya sauce compare to chilli chicken.
Chicken manchurian is more dark in color and spicy in taste compare to chilli chicken.
Red chilly paste is used to make chilli chicken more glossy in color but not in manchurian.
Chopped green chili is used in manchurian whereas slits green chili is used in chilli chicken.