Veg Schezwan Manchurian

Ingredients:

• Cabbage 1 cup (chopped)
• Carrot ½ cup (chopped)
• French beans ½ cup (chopped)
• Spring onion greens 1/4th cup (chopped)
• Fresh coriander 2 tbsp (chopped)
• Ginger 1 inch (chopped)
• Garlic 2 tbsp (chopped)
• Green chilli paste
• Light soy sauce 1 tsp
• Red chilli sauce 1 tbsp
• Butter 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste
• White pepper 1 pinch
• Sugar a pinch
• Corn flour 6 tbsp
• Refined flour 3 tbsp

Method:

1. In a large bowl add chopped vegetables, along with all the seasoning & sauces, mix everything well using your clean hands, mix it lightly or else the vegetables will start releasing their moisture.
2. Further add the corn flour & refined flour in batches & keep mixing everything well with your hands, to check the consistency, pick a small portion of the mixture in your hand & form a ball out of it, if the mixture comes together well then you have achieved the right consistency. In total I’ve used 6 tbsp of corn flour and 3 tbsp of refined flour, you can adjust the quantity depending on the consistency of the mixture.
3. Set oil for frying in a wok on high heat, dip your fingers in water and take a small amount of mixture & shape it to make like balls, shape all of them.
4. Once shaped, drop in hot oil, on high heat and do not stir initially, allow the manchurian balls to form a layer, further lower the flame to medium low and cook the manchurian balls, so it gets cooked from inside, fry them until the colour changes to light golden brown, make sure to stir in intervals while frying. This frying process may take around 3-4 minutes.
5. As soon as the colour changes to light golden brown, remove it and keep in strainer and rest for 5-7 minutes. At this stage you can keep half cooked manchurian balls aside and later refry them when you’re about to make the manchurian.
6. To refry them, heat the oil until it becomes really hot, once the oil is really hot flash fry the half cooked manchurian balls on high heat for few seconds or until it turns super crispy and the colour changes to golden brown.
7. Manchurian balls are ready, keep them aside to be used for tossing it later in the sauce.

Schezwan sauce

Ingredients:

• Oil 2 tbsp
• Garlic 4-5 tbsp (chopped)
• Coriander stems 1 tsp (chopped)
• Ginger 1 tsp (chopped)
• Kashmiri red chilli paste 2-3 tbsp
• Onion 2 tbsp (chopped)
• Capsicum 2 tbsp (chopped)
• Spring onion bulbs 2 tbsp (roughly chopped)
• Green chilli 1 no. (slit)
• Ketchup 4 tbsp
• Red chilli sauce 1 tbsp
• Light soy sauce 1 tsp
• Vinegar 1 tsp
• Sugar a pinch
• White pepper powder a pinch
• Salt to taste
• Vegetable stock / hot water 100-150 ml
• Green chilli paste 1 tsp
• Corn flour 1 tbsp
• Water 50 ml
• Fresh coriander a small handful (chopped)
• Spring onion greens a small handful (chopped)

Methods:

1. Set a wok on high heat, add oil and let it heat nicely, further add garlic, coriander stems, ginger & kashmiri red chilli paste, stir & cook on high flame until the colour of the paste darkens and the texture changes to little crumbly.
2. Further, add chopped veggies, sauces, sugar, salt & white pepper powder, stir & cook for 1-2 minutes.
3. Now, add stock/hot water & green chilli paste, stir and cook for 1-2 minutes.
4. In a separate bowl, add corn starch & water, mix well and make a smooth lump free slurry, add this slurry to the sauce, stir and cook until the sauce thickens.
5. Once the sauce thickens, add the crispy fried manchurian balls along with that add, fresh coriander and spring onion greens, stir well to coat the manchurian ball with the sauce.
6. Your schezwan manchurian dry is ready, garnish with some spring onion greens and serve hot.