Vegetable Manchurian

Introduction to Veg Manchurian

If you’ve followed this page for a long time you’re already well acquainted with my Indian street food obsession. And this obsession pretty much starts and ends with manchurian. In particular, what I love about this version is how fun it is to make. It can be a little tedious to shred all the vegetables, but it’s super fun to form them into these little vegetarian “meatballs.” And the end result is well worth the effort.

Plus, this sauce can be used for various dishes and multiple varieties of manchurian. When I was living in Washington back in college, I’d drive all the way across town just to grab a plate of my favorite manchurian. It’s best served with a plate of fresh or fried rice. And the sauce is really reminiscent of something you’d cook meat in. So if you’re looking for a plant-based option when you’re craving meat, this might be the recipe for you!

Breakdown of the Ingredients:

Veg Manchurian “Meatballs”

You can use whatever veggies you like for these faux “meatballs” but just make sure they can hold their shape. For that reason, I highly recommend using cabbage and carrots. But, I predict something like zucchini or potatoes could work well here too.

For the flour, I haven’t tried making this recipe with anything besides all purpose flour. So I recommend sticking with that for this recipe. It acts as the perfect binding agent. The veggies, once their rubbed with salt, will release plenty of water. So when you add the flour it will just start forming somewhat of a dough. Also, make sure not to skip the corn starch. It also acts as a binding agent. Plus, it helps the manchurian “meatballs” turn out extra crispy.

• Shredded cabbage
• Shredded carrots
• Salt
• Cornstarch
• All purpose flour
• Oil

Sauce

For my other manchurian recipes I typically just add plain water to the sauce. That can work perfectly fine here too. However, since the veggies from the “meatballs” release so much water, it creates sort of an instant veggie broth that will add extra flavor to the sauce. So, there’s no need for that to go to waste.

The rest of the ingredients are pretty standard. All you’ll need is some oil, onions, and garlic for your aromatics and then a combination of simple spices and sauces. The list of ingredients may seem a little long but this sauce is actually pretty quick to whip up.

Also, corn starch is not only great for adding extra crispiness to a batter; but is also great for for thickening up sauces. I almost always add it whenever I make a sauce because it not only helps it thicken quicker, but also gives the sauce is silky texture. You’ll get the perfect restaurant quality texture and taste.

• Oil
• Yellow onions
• Green onions
• Garlic
• Soy
• Sriracha
• Ketchup
• Rice vinegar
• Kashmiri mirch
• Smoked paprika
• Black pepper powder
• Salt
• Water
• Leftover veggie broth
• Cornstarch
• Serrano chili

Process + Keys to Success:

Veg Manchurian “Meatballs”

• Place your shredded cabbage and carrots in a bowl and rub very well with salt.
• Set this mixture aside for 5 minutes and then scoop it into either a nut milk bag (I got mine on amazon) or in a muslin cloth, and squeeze out all of the excess liquid
• Do not discard the excess liquid; we will use this later as a veggie broth substitute.
• Now add cornstarch and all purpose flour to your veggies and mix well with your hands. Form balls with theses veggies, and coat them with oil before popping them into your air fryer at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Sauce

• Sauté your yellow onions in oil until translucent and then add in your green onions and garlic
• Continue cooking for about another minute, and then add in all of your sauces and spices and simmer for ~3 minutes on low heat.
• Add in your cornstarch and mix well with the sauce, and then add your water and leftover veggie broth.
• Add in your serrano chili (finely chopped). Note: feel free to sauté the chilies earlier in the recipe after you added the garlic! I tried this method this time for a change and I enjoyed the result, but both methods work well).
• Simmer the mixture on low-medium heat for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens well.
• Add in your veg manchurian balls and cook for a couple of minutes in the sauce before serving.

More Recipes You’ll Love

• Gobi Manchurian Recipe
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