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!
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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.
🔪 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.
💭 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.
📖 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
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.
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.
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
Chicken Manchurian
Ingredients
CHICKEN MARINADE
- 360 grams chicken breast or thighs cut into cubes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
FRYING THE CHICKEN
- Enough oil to deep fry the chicken
FOR THE SAUCE
- 4 garlic minced
- 2 dry red chilies
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 medium onion cut in small cubes
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon soy sauce low sodium
- ¼ cup green bell pepper cut into cubes
- 2 spring onion chopped
- 2 ½ cup chicken stock low sodium
- ½ teaspoon vinegar
- 2 tablespoons oil
CORNSTARCH SLURRY
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with three tablespoon of water
Instructions
FRYING THE CHICKEN
- Mix the marinade ingredients in a bowl, and then add the chicken. Keep aside for five minutes.
- In a deep-frying pan add oil, when hot add the chicken and fry until golden in color. Keep aside.
MAKING THE SAUCE
- In a pan, add oil when hot, add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add garlic, dry chili, ginger, and sauté for one minute. Add the rest of sauce ingredients and let it come to a boil.
- Add the cornstarch slurry to the previous sauce. Keep stirring until it thickens then add the fried chicken and mix well.
- Serve immediately with rice or noodles.
Video
Notes
- If you use chicken bouillon to make stock, then mix one chicken bouillon with 2 ½ cups water.
- You can use light soy sauce or dark soy sauce in this recipe.
Melanie @ Melanie Cooks
That sticky sauce looks mouthwatering! This chicken looks better than in Chinese restaurant! Delicious!
munatycooking
Thanks Melanie! Homemade is always the best 🙂
Alison
This looks lovely, I had not heard of it before. Will definitely have to try it
munatycooking
Hey Alison, thanks for stopping by! It is new for many, but it's worth the try 🙂
Rahul @ samosastreet
Super inviting and irresistible chicken munchurian. Loved the presentation
munatycooking
Thank you Rahul 🙂
Nagi@RecipeTinEats
It's so savory! The sticky sauce is absolutely perfect for the chicken. This is a wonderful recipe!
munatycooking
Thanks for kind words Nagi, hope you like it 🙂
Angie@Angie's Recipes
Those chicken bites look so succulent and delicious. Bet the sauce would be fantastic with some fish too.
munatycooking
You read my mind, I was thinking of trying a fish version 🙂
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary
I've never had Chicken Manchurian.. shoot I've never even heard of it and looking at your pictures I am clearly missing out!! This looks delicious! That sauce is totally calling my name! Can't wait to give this a try! Cheers and thanks for sharing the YUM!
munatycooking
I know, many didn't hear about it, but it is popular in India, how strange :)... Thanks for stopping by dear!
David | Spiced
Oh my gosh! This sounds (and looks) amazing, Muna! I could totally go for this for dinner tonight! 🙂
munatycooking
Thanks David 🙂
Tricia
I love this dish! Not only does it look beautiful, the flavors are perfect 🙂
munatycooking
Hope you give it a try Tricia, you will like the combination of flavors 🙂
AiPing | Curious Nut
That looks absolutely delicious. It truly is a cross between Indian and Chinese since this recipe starts off with garlic, ginger and dried chilies but then soy sauce is added later instead of spices. So cool.
munatycooking
I love this dish but the problem is I can't really say it's Chinese or Indian 🙂
Thanks for your kind words dear.
Mamta
I love chicken Manchurian a lot and never thought of making it. Will definitely give it a try.
Thanks for sharing the recipe.
munatycooking
Hi Mamta, thanks for stopping by, glad that you liked my recipe and I hope you enjoy it 🙂
ryan
thanks for sharing this recipe, i just cooked it by following your tips.. really amazing 🙂
munatycooking
Thank you so much for trying my recipe 🙂