Chicken Manchurian Indo-Chinese Recipe

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Chicken Manchurian is about perfectly tender chicken cubes coated in a spicy, savory sauce. It’s an incredibly popular Indo-Chinese recipe, and for a good reason!

Feature image for chicken manchurian 2022.

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🥘 INGREDIENTS YOU'LL NEED
🔪 HOW TO MAKE
💭 COOKING TIPS
📖 DELICIOUS VARIATIONS
💬 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
🍲 MORE ASIAN RECIPES YOU'LL LOVE
🌡️ STORING AND REHEATING
📖 Recipe
💬 Comments

For all the Indo-Chinese lovers who don't want to step out of their door, here's one of the easiest Indo-Chinese Chicken Manchurian recipes you can make at home.

This dish’s flavors are complex and absolutely scrumptious, but it will be one of the easiest stir-fries you’ll ever make! Serve with fried rice or noodles. If you like Chinese chicken takeouts, please try my General Tso's Chicken Recipe.

🥘 INGREDIENTS YOU'LL NEED

You need simple ingredients to make this delicious Indo-Chinese dish at home. You’ll probably have most (if not all) of the ingredients in your pantry already.

Chicken: I’ve used skinless chicken thighs that I’ve cut into cubes. Alternatively, you can use cubed skinless chicken breasts instead.

Cornstarch: Cornstarch (or corn flour), combined with all-purpose flour, helps add a crispier texture to the chicken pieces.

Soy sauce is the key ingredient that makes Chicken Manchurian what it is! It adds this savory flavor that this dish is known for.

Ginger and garlic: Use finely chopped garlic and ginger. Alternatively, you can use ginger and garlic paste if that’s what you have handy at home.

Chicken stock: This is the perfect base for the sauce.

Cornstarch slurry: We’ll make a cornstarch slurry by combining two tablespoons of cornstarch with three tablespoons of water.

Overhead shot of chicken manchurian 2022.

🔪 HOW TO MAKE

Step 1

Mix the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. It’ll turn into a batter. Add the chicken cubes and mix well.

Step 2

Deep fry the chicken until it's crispy and golden brown.

Step 3

Heat oil in a pan or wok. Add the onions and sauté them until translucent. Add the chopped garlic, ginger, and dried red chilies. Now, add the rest of the ingredients to the pan, except for the cornstarch slurry. Let these ingredients come to a boil.

Step 4

Once the sauce is boiling, add the cornstarch slurry to it. Keep stirring while adding it until it the sauce thickens. Add the fried chicken cubes to it. Toss the chicken pieces in the sauce to coat the chicken well.

Fried chicken cubes mixed with manchurian sauce.

💭 COOKING TIPS

You can use skinless chicken breasts or thighs in this recipe.
Do not overcook the chicken to prevent it from going dry.
You can use light or dark soy sauce for this recipe.
Low-sodium stock and soy sauce are best to control the dish's seasoning.
To make this dish gluten-free, you can omit the all-purpose flour, use rice flour instead, or use cornstarch only.

Close up image of chicken manchurian 2022.

📖 DELICIOUS VARIATIONS

Add more heat: Some like the Manchurian spicy, so add chili sauce or chopped green chilies.

Oyster sauce: Adding oyster sauce will enhance the flavor of the Manchurian sauce.

A little sweetness: Although it is not known for chicken Manchurian to have a hint of sweetness, some seem to enjoy it. Add a tablespoon of brown sugar or ketchup for that sweetness.

💬 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is Chicken Manchurian?

Chicken Manchurian is a classic Indo-Chinese recipe made by marinating and frying chicken cubes till they’re crispy and golden brown. They are then tossed in a spicy, savory homemade red chili sauce.

What Does Chicken Manchurian Taste Like?

Chicken Manchurian has a savory flavor, owing to the soy sauce in the recipe that adds to the umami flavor. It’s slightly spicy but not overwhelming, and this dish is versatile.

How is Chicken Manchurian Different Than Chilli Chicken?

Chicken Manchurian and Chilli Chicken are both Indo-Chinese recipes, but the two differ in flavor.
Chilli Chicken tends to be sweeter stir-fry in comparison, and you’ll generally see tomato ketchup as one of the recipe's ingredients.
On the other hand, Chicken Manchurian is savorier and has more soy sauce in the recipe.

🍲 MORE ASIAN RECIPES YOU'LL LOVE

🌡️ STORING AND REHEATING

Fridge: Store the leftover in an airtight container and place it in the fridge for three days.

Reheat: Add warm water to the refrigerated chicken Manchurian before reheating over the stovetop.

📖 Recipe