Manchurian 

Making Veg Manchurian involves two main steps: preparing the crispy fried vegetable balls and tossing them in a tangy, savory Indo-Chinese sauce. You can choose between a Dry Manchurian (ideal as an appetizer) or Manchurian Gravy (best paired with fried rice).

Ingredients for Vegetable Balls

Veggies: 1 cup finely shredded cabbage, ½ cup grated carrots, and ¼ cup chopped capsicum.

Binding: 2-3 tbsp cornflour (corn starch) and 2-3 tbsp all-purpose flour (maida).

Aromatics & Spice: 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste, ½ tsp black pepper, and salt to taste.

Cooking: Oil for deep frying. 

2. Ingredients for the Sauce

Aromatics: 1 tbsp each of finely chopped garlic and ginger, and 2 chopped green chillies.

Sauces: 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp tomato ketchup, 1 tbsp red chilli sauce, and 1 tsp vinegar.

Thickener: 1 tbsp cornflour mixed with ¼ cup water to make a slurry.

Garnish: Finely chopped spring onion greens. 

3. Cooking Steps

Prepare the Balls: Mix the shredded vegetables with salt and let them sit for 10 minutes. Squeeze out excess water. Add the flours, spices, and ginger-garlic paste. Knead into a dough-like mixture (do not add extra water) and form small balls.

Fry: Deep fry the balls in medium-hot oil until they are golden brown and crispy.

Make the Sauce: Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan. Sauté ginger, garlic, and green chillies. Add onions or spring onion whites and sauté for a minute.

Assemble: Stir in the sauces and vinegar.

For Dry: Add ¼ cup water.

For Gravy: Add 1–1.5 cups water and bring to a boil.

Thicken & Serve: Pour in the cornflour slurry while stirring constantly until the sauce thickens and glazes. Add the fried

 balls, toss gently for 1-2 minutes, and garnish with spring onion greens.

Pro Tip: For a healthier version, you can cook the vegetable balls in an Appam/Paniyaram pan using very little oil.