Vegetable Manchurian is an Indo-Chinese dish made with deep-fried vegetable dumplings served in a savory and spicy gravy made with soy and chili sauce. Its spiciness can be adjusted to taste.
Manchurian is popularly served with other Indo Chinese dishes like fried rice, hakka noodles and chowmein.
It is vegan and loaded with veggies. If you enjoy a non-fried version then you must try this air fryer cabbage manchurian recipe.
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Veg Manchurian ingredients
Veg manchurian can be made with cabbage or cauliflower as one of the main ingredients to make the machurian balls. This is a cabbage manchurian recipe and requires other veggies like carrots, green beans and scallions along with cabbage.
To spice up the manchurian gravy, ginger, garlic, green chilies and sauces like chili sauce and sriracha sauce are used. You can also use homemade ginger garlic paste.
Dark soy sauce gives the gravy a nice brown color. Adding a cornstarch slurry gives a desired thick consistency to the gravy.
How to make veg manchurian?
Making cabbage machurian is a two step process, first is to make manchurian balls or dumplings with mixed vegetables. The manchurian balls can be deep fried or cooked in a healthier way in air fryer. Next is to make a manchurian gravy to a desired consistency.
To make perfect veg manchurian balls, the vegetables must be finely chopped or grated. This helps the veggies to bind into balls and not break apart. A food processor comes in very handy to chop and grate vegetables.
How to chop vegetables in food processor?
To chop cabbage in a food processor, fix the chopping blade and place a few chunks of cabbage in the food processor bowl. Lock the lid and press the pulse button intermittenly until the cabbage is chopped to a desired fine consistency.
To grate carrots in the food processor, attach the shredding disc (use the finer one if there is an option). Start the food processor on low speed and feed the carrots from the top of the chute, pushing it down. Carrots will be grated in a matter of minutes.
Green beans can also be chopped using a slicing disc by feeding it from the top and using the low speed.
However, if you don't have a food processor, you can chop them fine with a kitchen knife. I like to use the Komachi knife.
How to make vegetable manchurian in air fryer?
Once all the vegetables are chopped, the main task is complete! Yes, now it just gets easier. To make manchurian balls, add all the chopped vegetables - cabbage, carrots, green beans and scallion greens in a mixing bowl. If there is a lot of moisture in the veggies, it is better to squeeze it out.
Add all the spices, soya sauce, chili sauce and mix well. Add the all purpose flour and cornstarch. You will only need the amount required to bind it. Mix well and form small balls using about two tablespoon of mixture.
To make manchurian balls, press a small amount of the mixture in your palm until a firm ball is formed, it need not be round in shape. Also, the balls must not be too big else they may not cook thoroughly from inside.
Preheat the airfryer to 390 °F for about 5 minutes. Place the cabbage manchurian balls in the air fryer and cook them for 5 minutes.
Using an oil sprayer, spray some oil on the manchurian balls and continue cooking for another 7 minutes on 375 °F before removing them from the air fryer.
How to make gluten-free manchurian balls?
To make veg manchurian gluten-free, instead of all-purpose flour, you can add some leftover cooked rice while binding the veggies. Use as much rice as needed and bind them into manchurian balls and cook in the air fryer.
How to make veg manchurian gravy?
While the manchurian balls are cooking, you can prepare the gravy on the stovetop. Heat a frying pan on medium heat and add some oil. Once oil is hot, add onions, ginger, garlic, green chilies (as per taste) and saute them until onions are translucent.
Add the dark soy sauce, red chili sauce followed by water, salt, sugar and black pepper.
While the water is boiling, prepare the cornstarch slurry by mixing cornstarch and water. Let the gravy boil for a few minutes and then add the cornstarch slurry until you get desired consistency.
Continue to cook for a few minutes and then gravy is ready, it will have a shiny glaze. Garnish it with some chopped green onions.
What do you eat with veg manchurian?
Veg manchurian is popularly served with fried rice, hakka noodles and chowmein. If you do not have much time you can also serve it with plain rice.
When serving veg manchurian, add the machurian balls in the gravy only when you are ready to serve else they may become soggy.
How to store manchurian balls?
Veg manchurian balls can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days. When you are ready to eat, just reheat them in the air fryer for about 5 minutes at 360 °F.
They can also be frozen for up to a month. When you are ready to eat, you can defrost them in the microwave and then heat them in the airfryer to make them crispy again.
It is a lot of work shredding vegetables and making these cabbage balls, so storing them is a great option.
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📖 Recipe
Veg Manchurian In Air Fryer
Equipment
Ingredients
Vegetables for manchurian balls
- 1 cup Carrot (finely chopped or grated)
- 1 ½ cup Cabbage (finely chopped)
- ½ cup Green beans (finely chopped)
- ¼ cup Green onions ((finely chopped)
Spices, sauces and other ingredients for manchurian balls
- ½ tbsp Ginger (chopped or paste)
- ½ tbsp Garlic (chopped or paste)
- ¼ tsp Black Pepper
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Organic cane sugar
- ½ tbsp Chili sauce
- 1 tsp Dark soy sauce
- 2 tbsp All purpose flour (or leftover cooked rice to make gluten-free)
- 5 tbsp Corn starch
For manchurian gravy
- 1 cup Onions (chopped)
- 1 tbsp Ginger (chopped)
- 4 tbsp Garlic (chopped)
- ½ cup Green onions (¼ cup white, ¼ cup greens)
- 2 tbsp Dark soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Chili sauce
- 1 tbsp Serrano pepper (sliced)
- ½ tsp Salt
- 3 cup Water (or vegetable stock)
- 1 tsp Organic cane sugar
- 2 tbsp Oil
Cornstarch slurry for manchurian gravy
- 1 tbsp Corn starch
- 3 tbsp Water
Instructions
Make veg machurian balls
- Preheat air fryer for 5 minutes on 390 °F
- Mix all the vegetables for manchurian balls in a bowl
- Add all spices, sauces, and other ingredients for manchurian balls and mix well.
- Make manchurian balls of about an inch in size by taking a small amount of mixture at a time and pressing it a few times in your palm.
- Place the veg manchurian balls in the air fryer and cook for 5 minutes
- Open the air fryer basket and spray some oil on the manchurian balls.
- Continue to cook for another 7 minutes on 375 °F
Make manchurian gravy
- Place a frying pan on the stove on medium flame
- Add oil, once oil is hot, add onions, scallion whites, ginger, garlic, and green chilies
- Saute for a few minutes until onions are translucent.
- Add soy sauce, chili sauce, vegetable stock (or water), salt, sugar, and mix well.
- Boil the gravy for about 5 minutes.
- Prepare a cornstarch slurry by mixing water and cornstarch and ensuring there are no lumps.
- Pour the cornstarch slurry in the gravy, a teaspoon at a time, until you get a desired consistency.
- Allow the gravy to boil for a minute, the gravy will have a shiny glaze.
- Add scallion greens and take the pan off the flame.
- Add the manchurian balls when ready to serve.
Notes
- Vegetables can be grated and chopped finely in a food processor.
- It is best to add manchurian balls to the gravy just before serving, else they can become soggy.
- To make manchurian balls guten-free, add some leftover cooked rice for binding instead of all-purpose flour.