This dish’s legacy extends beyond the normal Indo-Chinese food that we enjoy. Because of the great taste and intriguing tale behind this fiery Desi Chinese Street food, this dish has earned a place in history and is now on our plates.
Manchurian is a type of Indian Chinese meal produced by roughly cutting and deep-frying items, including chicken, cauliflower (gobi), prawn, fish, mutton, and paneer, sautéing them in soy sauce. It is the product of Chinese cooking and culinary skills adapted to suit Indian preferences. It has now emerged as a popular dish in Indian Chinese cuisine.
Genesis:
Despite its name, Gobi Manchurian did not originate in China. It is a cuisine adapted and created in India by Chinese travellers who arrived after World War II. The spicy meal, which suited Indian tastebuds, was the product of the Chinese minority in Kolkata attempting to make its traditional foods more acceptable to the Indian palate. Preparing gobi Manchurian isn’t a difficult process. The dish is divided into two parts: first, the gobi (cauliflower) florets are soaked in a batter and deep fried to turn them crispy. The second step is to make a spicy sauce using garlic, onion, capsicum, and soy, which will be blended with the deep-fried gobi and served.
When we think about gobi Manchurian, Bengaluru is the first location that comes to mind. Although the meal was invented and offered in Kolkata, it has recently become popular in Karnataka’s capital city. This little Chinese food outlet managed by a gentleman named Ravi Gobi is one of the main reasons for the dish’s popularity in the city. He founded the store 23 years ago, in 1999. Even today, people come from all across the city to try his famed gobi Manchurian at the modest business.
Types of Manchurians:
Manchurian comes in two varieties: dry with gravy. Both varieties are made using common elements such as flour, spring onion, peppers, soy sauce, chilli sauce, chopped garlic, and so on, and they have a traditional spring onion garnish. Other recipes ask for the use of monosodium glutamate to enhance the flavour. However, some people avoid it owing to health concerns. Depending on the recipe and individual taste, it can range from slightly spicy to scorching and flaming.
- Crispy dry Manchurian: The fritters are often served as a snack or appetiser with ketchup as a dipping sauce. It is popular as a bar snack among drinkers.
- Gravy Manchurian: The fritters are covered in a thick sauce made of flour that resembles a spicy gravy curry. The main course is typically served with rice dishes such as Chinese fried rice, jeera rice and Szechuan fried rice.
Conclusion
Ah! You’re a Manchurian enthusiast like us, and you miss that street-style gobi Manchurian since you moved to the US? Well, Come to Banjara Restaurant for authentic desi Indo-Chinese cuisine. We have a wide range of Indian cuisine that will leave you drooling. Bringing the flavour of India to the heart of Virginia.
FAQs
Manchurian is a class of Indian Chinese dish made by roughly chopping and deep-frying ingredients such as chicken, cauliflower (gobi), prawns, fish, mutton, and paneer, and then sautéeing them in a sauce flavored with soy sauce.
How did Manchurian come to India? ›
A classic is born
Gobi manchurian is the vegetarian version of chicken manchurian, a dish that is said to be invented by Nelson Wang, a Mumbai-based Indian restaurateur of Chinese descent in the 1970s.
What is the meaning of chicken Manchurian? ›
Chicken Manchurian is an Indo-Chinese dish with fried chicken in a hot and sweet dark-red sauce. It's an entirely restaurant born and propagated dish, and it has all sorts of variations such as Gobi Manchurian, Paneer Manchurian, a dry version, a saucy version, and so on.
What are the characteristics of Indian cuisine? ›
The Indian meal is a complex and little-understood phenomenon. “Typical” meals often include a main starch such as rice, sorghum, or wheat; vegetable or meat curries that are dry roasted or shallow wok fried; cured and dried vegetable dishes in sauces; and thick lentil soups, with different ingredients.
What does Manchurian really mean? ›
It is a term used to describe a puppet acting on behalf of a foreign enemy and is commonly used to indicate disloyalty or corruption. The phrase comes from a book published in 1959 by author Richard Condon titled The Manchurian Candidate.
Why is Manchurian healthy? ›
Here are a few healthy Manchurian benefits that can be enjoyed with this recipe- It has a lot of carbs that give an instant boost of energy. It has a lot of vegetables that meet the body's various nutritional needs. It has fibre that helps keep the digestive system smoother.
What is Manchurian ethnicity? ›
The Manchus (Manchu: ᠮᠠᠨᠵᡠ, Möllendorff: manju; Chinese: 滿族; pinyin: Mǎnzú; Wade–Giles: Man3-tsu2) are a Tungusic East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized ethnic minority in China and the people from whom Manchuria derives its name.
Why did the Manchurian happen? ›
Seeking raw materials to fuel its growing industries, Japan invaded the Chinese province of Manchuria in 1931. By 1937 Japan controlled large sections of China, and war crimes against the Chinese became commonplace.
Why is Chinese food so popular in India? ›
Chinese food was first introduced to the area and was greeted with interest before quickly assimilating into the local way of life. As Chinese immigrants integrated into Indian society, a beautiful culinary fusion took place. Chinese recipes transformed with adaptations that embraced Indian spices and flavours.
What do we call Manchurian in English? ›
Definitions of Manchurian. adjective. of or relating to or characteristic of Manchuria or its people or their culture. “the Manchurian invasion”
The earliest known use of the word Manchurian is in the early 1700s. OED's earliest evidence for Manchurian is from 1706, in E. Y. Ides' Three Years Travels Moscow to China. From a proper name, combined with an English element. Etymons: proper name Manchuria, ‑an suffix.
Is Manchurian same as chilli chicken? ›
But is a fusion food from the Indian Chinese cuisine which is developed with the adaptation of Chinese seasoning & cooking methods to suit Indian taste buds. Chilli chicken and chicken manchurian are 2 dishes that are made similarly but they taste very different.
What is the most eaten meat in India? ›
Many types of meat are used for Indian cooking, but chicken and mutton tend to be the most commonly consumed meats. Fish and beef consumption are prevalent in some parts of India, but they are not widely consumed except for coastal areas, as well as the north east.
Which is the best cuisine in India? ›
The most popular and best dishes you should try in India
- Biriyani - Famous specialty of Bangalore. Biriyani is a specialty and traditional mixed rice dish that you cannot ignore on the way to discover Indian cuisine. ...
- Thali traditional Indian dish. ...
- Samosa cake. ...
- Josh Rogan Lamb Curry. ...
- Gulab Jamun fried milk cake.
Veg Manchurian Ingredients
I usually add cabbage, capsicum, carrots, beans and cauliflower. You can use mushrooms as well. These balls taste great when you add variety of vegetables in them. Plain Flour - for binding the vegetable mixture, you can use plain flour, wheat flour.
Why is it called Manchurian? ›
It's unclear why Wang's spicy, gravy-like brown sauce was named after that particular region of northeast Asia, but from the dish came a soup called Manchow, the name of which would appear to be an approximate transliteration of the Cantonese or Putonghua pronunciation of Manchuria (moon zau and man zhou, respectively) ...
What is Manchurian sauce made of? ›
What ingredients are typically used in Manchurian Gravy? The main ingredients for Veg Manchurian Gravy include mixed vegetables (such as cabbage, carrots, bell peppers), all-purpose flour, cornstarch, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, green chilies, tomato ketchup, chili sauce, vinegar, and spring onions.
