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chicken manchurian in a cast iron skillet with red and green bell peppers, red onion, and manchurian gravy
Kyrie | Healthfully Rooted Home

Chicken Manchurian

5 from 1 vote
Crispy chicken, sweet and spicy Manchurian gravy, with sauteed vegetables - chicken Manchurian is packed full of indo-chinese flavors.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Appetizer, dinner, lunch, Main Course
Cuisine: Chinese, Indian
Calories: 300
Ingredients Method Video Notes

Ingredients
  

Chicken Marinade
  • 2 large chicken breasts boneless, skinless - diced into 1 inch cubes
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 1/2 tsp White Pepper
  • 1 Egg
  • 2 tsp Ginger paste
  • 2 tsp Garlic paste
  • 4 tbs Arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • 1 cup Coconut oil for frying
Manchurian Gravy
  • 2 tbs Avocado oil
  • 1 tbs Coconut aminos
  • 2 tbs Harissa paste or chili paste
  • 2 tsp Coconut sugar
  • 1/4 cup Ketchup no sugar added
  • 1 tbs Minced garlic
  • 1 tbs Grated ginger
  • 1/2 tsp Sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp Black pepper
  • 1/4 cup Green onion greens
For the Dish
  • Oil leftover from cooking chicken or 1 tbs avocado oil if you don't have enough
  • 1/2 Red bell pepper thickly sliced
  • 1/2 Green bell pepper thickly sliced
  • 1/2 Red onion thickly sliced
  • 4 tbs Green onion whites sliced
  • 1 tbs Arrowroot powder or cornstarch
  • 2 tbs Filtered water

Method
 

Chicken
  1. Dice chicken into 1 inch cubes and pat dry with a papper towel and place in a large bowl.
  2. Add all the chicken marinade ingredients to the bowl of diced chicken. I like to use gloves for this so I can use my hands then just throw the gloves away.
  3. Let the chicken sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour. In the meantime, make the sauce and prep the veggies.
Manhurian Gravy
  1. Head to this post for more detailed instructions. Basically, just whisk the ingredients listed above together.  
Dish
  1. Heat the skillet used to fry the chicken over medium high heat (there should be enough oil leftover, if not, add 1 tbs more).
  2. Add the vegetables to the skillet and saute until just softened.
  3. Add the manchurian gravy and heat until bubbly.
  4. Make the powder slurry by dissolving the arrowroot (or cornstarch) in filtered water and adding to the skillet. Stir and heat untli thickened.
  5. Toss the fried chicken in with the veggies and sauce and stir until all the chicken is coated.

Video

Notes

How to Store Chicken Manchurian

You can absolutely make chicken Manchurian ahead of time and store it for later. Of course, it's better day-of, but it's delicious reheated as well.

Refrigerator

Place chicken Manchurian in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Freezer

Either place Manchurian chicken in a plastic bag, or an airtight container and freeze for up to 2 months.
To reheat, let defrost at room temperature then reheat following the instructions below.

To Reheat

Place chicken Manchurian in an air-tight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. To reheat, place in a cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat, cover with a lid, or baking sheet and heat until warmed through.
Alternatively, you can reheat your Manchurian chicken in the microwave until heated through.

In a Pinch Tips

Using my method for Manchurian chicken, you're shaving so much time off of the authentic recipe technique anyway, but here are a few additional tips below.
Don't marinate the chicken - you'll sacrifice crispiness and flavor, but it'll save you some time.
Marinate while chopping all the veggies - if you marinate the chicken before doing anything else, you can save so much time marinating while chopping.
Use prechopped veggies - You could also shell out a bit more cash and buy prechopped veggies which will save you some time.

Chicken Manchurian Tips

Don't overcrowd the skillet - If you want your chicken truly fried, don't overcrowd your skillet with chicken. Either fry the chicken in batches (with an inch space in between each piece in the skillet) or use 2 cast iron skillets.
Marinate the chicken - Resist the urge to skip out on the marinating! To save time, marinate before doing anything else. This will tenderize your chicken, increase flavor, and make your chicken crispier. Highly recommend.