Paneer manchurian

Paneer manchurian is a Indo chinese appetizer made with fried paneer & manchurian sauce. Manchurian dishes from Indo chinese cuisine are a favorite among many. Gobi manchurian, mushroom manchurian, veg manchurian and chicken manchurian are some of the most known varieties.

Paneer manchurian is similar to chilli paneer but the sauce made here is different. In this recipe, no chilli or chilli sauce is used and the proportions of other ingredients are different which tastes entirely different from chilli paneer.

To make paneer manchurian, Indian cottage cheese is batter fried first and then added to manchurian sauce. The recipe shared here is a semi gravy version and can be served as a starter or as a side with some noodles or fried rice. Paneer manchurian is best served hot and immediately out of the pan.

You can also pan fry or grill the paneer and avoid deep frying. If you wish to avoid the corn flour & all purpose flour, just skip them and pan fry the paneer in 1 tbsp oil until golden. Just prepare the manchurian sauce & add them.

We love the semi dry version of paneer manchurian so I have shared the same here. To make a gravy version just double the ingredients mentioned for sauce in the recipe.

For more Paneer recipes you can check
Chilli paneer
Malai kofta
Paneer tikka
Paneer lababdar
Achari paneer
Paneer do pyaza

Paneer manchurian recipe

Paneer manchurian

Paneer manchurian is a delicious Indo chinese appetizer made with Indian cottage cheese tossed in manchurian sauce. 

Prep Time10 minutes

Cook Time20 minutes

Total Time30 minutes

Servings3

AuthorSwasthi

Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )

Ingredients for paneer manchurian

• 200 grams paneer or Indian cottage cheese
• ¼ cup plain flour or maida (prefer organic flour)
• 3 tbsps corn flour or corn starch
• Salt as needed
• ½ tsp red chilli powder (optional) replace with pepper powder
• Water as needed to make batter
• Oil for frying

Making manchurian sauce

• 1 tbsp oil olive or sesame oil
• ½ to ¾ tbsp garlic minced
• ½ to ¾ tbsp ginger minced
• ¼ cup spring onion whites chopped
• ¼ to ½ cup capsicum chopped or bell pepper
• 1 tsp corn flour or corn starch or arrowroot powder
• ½ cup water (you may need little more, use as needed)
• 1 ½ tbsps soya sauce (use naturally brewed or organic, I used kikkoman)
• 2 tbsps tomato sauce (I used homemade sauce)
• ¾ to 1 tsp sugar
• ½ to ¾ tsp vinegar (use only if needed to give a mild tang)
• Salt as needed (use only if needed, I used about ¼ tsp)
• 2 tbsps Spring onion greens

How to make the recipe

Preparation

• Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying paneer.
• While the oil heats, add corn flour, maida, salt and chilli powder to a bowl. Add water just enough to make a free flowing batter. The consistency must be moderately thick, not too thick or too runny.
• Dip the paneer cubes in the batter and deep fry in hot oil.
• Stir often and fry on a medium heat until golden and crisp. Drain them on a kichen tissue.
• Add 1 tsp corn flour to a bowl and add water. Mix and make a lump free slurry. Keep this aside.

How to make paneer manchurian

• Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wide pan. Regulate the flame to high.
• Add ginger garlic and saute for a min for the nice aroma to comes out.
• Next add spring onion whites and fry for a min or two.
• Add capsicum and saute for another minute.
• Pour soya sauce, tomato sauce and corn slurry. Make sure you stir the corn slurry once before pouring to the pan.
• Add more water if needed. Reduce the flame to medium and add sugar.
• Stir and check the taste of the sauce.
• Add pepper, salt and vinegar if needed.
• Allow the sauce to turn thick. Turn off the flame.
• Add the fried paneer and spring onion greens.
• Toss the paneer in the sauce well to coat evenly.
• Serve paneer manchurian hot.

Video

Video of paneer manchurian recipe

NUTRITION

Calories: 317kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 44mg | Sodium: 584mg | Potassium: 75mg | Vitamin A: 6% | Vitamin C: 3.7% | Calcium: 32.6% | Iron: 5.6%

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying.

2. Add maida corn flour, salt and red chilli powder to a bowl. You can skip red chilli, I just used it for color.

3. Mix well. Pour water little by little and make a batter that is neither too thick nor too thin.

4. Add paneer cubes.

5. Coat them well with the batter.

6. When the oil is hot enough, drop the paneer cubes one after the other. You can drop them using a spoon or fingers.

7. Stir them after few minutes and fry until golden and crisp. Remove them to a kitchen tissue once done.

8. Add 1 tsp corn flour to a small bowl and mix it with 1/2 to 3/4 cup water. You can replace corn flour with arrowroot powder. Make sure there are no lumps in the mixture. Set this aside.

How to make paneer manchurian

9. Heat a pan or wok on high heat with 1 tbsp oil in it. Saute ginger and garlic for a minute.

10. Add spring onions. Saute for a minute.

11. Add capsicum and saute for another 1 to 2 mins. Pour soya sauce. I have used organic soya sauce. If using dark or light soya sauce you will have to adjust accordingly as per your preference.

12. Next add tomato sauce and sugar. You will have to skip or add more sugar depending on your sauce. Mine was slightly sweet and sour, so 1 tsp works out well.

13. Lower the heat. Stir the corn flour mixture and pour it to the pan. Mix it well. Add more water if needed to bring it to a consistency.

14. Check the taste at this stage. Add little salt, pepper and vinegar. You can skip vinegar if the mixture already has an hint of sourness. I used apple cider vinegar.

15. Cook the sauce stirring continuously until it thickens a bit. This will just take a minute or two. The sauce thickens further after cooling, so when it is slightly thick but still of pouring consistency, turn off the stove.

16. Let the sauce cool down a bit, then add fried paneer. Mix it well to coat the paneer with manchurian sauce.

Serve paneer manchurian hot and immediately after preparing.