Manchurian is a type of Indian Chinese dish invented by Nelson Wang, an Indian restaurateur of Chinese origin. Though the dish bears very little resemblance to the Manchu cuisine, he just made something toothsome and called it Manchurian. The first dish was made with Chicken and as time passed by this became one of the most popular Indo-Chinese dishes in India. A lot of variations are seen today made with mutton, fish, eggs and even vegetarian versions exist. Gobi Manchurian, Vegetable Manchurian, Paneer Manchurian and Mushroom Manchurian are most often seen on the restaurant menus.

About Mushroom Manchurian

To make Mushroom Manchurian, sliced mushrooms are dipped in a thick batter & deep fried until crisp and golden. In another pan, aromatics like garlic ginger and spring onions are fried in a wok briefly, to which later bell peppers are added. Once they are softened soya sauce, tomato ketchup and vinegar are added. A corn flour slurry is stirred into this to make a thick aromatic sauce. When the sauce thickens, the fried mushrooms are added. As is the Manchurian sauce is pure umami and adding mushrooms to this makes this dish super umami. Now you know what I am speaking about!   When I first posted this recipe, I shared the deep fried version. I moved over to the air fryer so I am updating this with air fried version too. You can find the instructions in the recipe card below. In any case you don’t like the frying step at all, feel free to make Mushroom Manchurian with pan fried mushrooms, just like the way I made these Chilli Mushrooms. The only change is that your mushrooms won’t be crispy but the taste will still be good. More Mushroom RecipesKadai mushroomsMushroom masala Mushroom biryaniGarlic mushroom

How to Make Mushroom Manchurian (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

  1. Ensure the mushrooms are at room temperature before using them in the recipe. Using cold mushrooms (from fridge) to fry will result in splashes of hot oil. So rinse them and pat dry with a kitchen tissue. Slice them when you are about to fry.
  2. Pour ¼ to ½ cup oil to a deep pan or kadai and heat it on a medium flame.
  3. Add 3 tablespoons white cornflour (corn starch), ¼ cup all-purpose flour (or wheat flour), ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper and ½ teaspoon red chili powder to a mixing bowl.
  4. Pour ¼ cup water & begin to make a batter that is of thick pouring consistency. Add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time and make the batter. Check my video for batter consistency.
  5. This is the consistency of the batter. It must not be too thick nor too thin.
  6. Add the sliced mushrooms to the batter.
  7. Mix well and coat them with batter.

Fry Mushrooms

  1. Check if the oil is hot enough by dropping a small amount of batter to the hot oil. The batter must rise and not sink.
  2. When the oil is hot enough drop the mushrooms one after the other.
  3. Fry them on a medium high heat until crisp and golden.
  4. Remove them to a kitchen tissue. Set this aside.
  5. Make a slurry of the cornflour and water. Mix 1 teaspoon cornstarch with ½ cup water in a small bowl. The slurry should be lump-free. Set this aside.

Make Mushroom Manchurian

  1. Add 1 tbsp oil to a pan and heat it on a high flame. Add ½ to ¾ teaspoon chopped ginger and ½ to ¾ teaspoon chopped garlic. Fry for a minute without burning.
  2. Add ¼ cup spring onion whites and fry for a minute.
  3. Add ¼ to ½ cup chopped capsicums and fry for 2 mins.
  4. Pour 1 ½  tablespoons soya sauce. Do use naturally brewed or organic soya sauce.
  5. Add 2 tablespoons tomato sauce/ ketchup. You can use more or less than mentioned to suit your taste.
  6. Pour the cornflour mixture we made earlier. Mix well and boil on a medium heat.
  7. Add ¾ to 1 teaspoon sugar, very little salt salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper. Check the taste if needed add vinegar to make it slight tangy. If needed you can also add 2 to 3 tbsps more water to bring it to a pouring yet thick consistency.
  8. When the sauce turns thick, turn off the heat. Allow it to cool down a bit for a minute or 2, then add the fried mushrooms. Garnish mushroom manchurian with spring onions and serve hot. Related Recipes

Recipe Card