Gobi Manchurian Recipe - Restaurant style

Gobi Manchurian is one of the most popular starters from the Indo-Chinese cuisine. It was made popular by all the small Chinese restaurants and street side food carts all across India and more specifically in the Kolkata region where the recipe was created by the small Chinese community.

This scrumptious recipe is made with cauliflower florets dipped in flour batter, deep fried and mixed in a slightly sweet, spicy tangy sauce. The sauce itself is made with garlic, green chilly, ginger and onion cooked in soya sauce, chilly sauce and tomato ketchup to give the restaurant-style taste.

Gobi Manchurian Ingredients

• Cauliflower - 1 (medium sized cut into florets)
• Oil for deep fry

For making the batter:

• Corn flour - 2 tbsp
• All purpose flour / maida - 2tbsp
• Egg - 1 no
  NOTE: If you are a vegetarian (vegan) instead of egg use 1/4 cup of water and 1 1/2 tbsp rice flour.
  
• Chilly powder - 3/4 tsp
• Baking powder - 2 pinch
• Orange food color - 2 pinch
• Salt - 1/2 tsp

For making the sauce:

• Onion - 1/2 (medium size chopped)
• Green chilly - 8 no (finely chopped)
• Garlic - 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
• Chopped ginger - 2 tsp (finely chopped)
• Tomato ketchup - 3 tbsp
• Red chilly sauce - 1 1/2 tbsp
• Soya sauce - 1 tbsp
• Spring onion - 2 tbsp (finely chopped)
• Corn flour - 2 tsp
• Water - 1/4 cup
• Sugar - 1/4 tsp (optional)
• Ajinomoto - 1 pinch (optional)
• Oil - 1 1/2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes

Gobi Manchurian Cooking Method:

1. First bring water to a boil in a vessel on medium heat. When the water starts boiling add 1/4 tsp salt and cauliflower florets. Cook for 4 min.Then drain the water and set aside.
2. To make the batter take a bowl and mix all-purpose flour, corn flour, chilly powder, salt, baking powder and food color.
3. Add egg into mixture and mix well into a thick paste.
   NOTE: If you are a vegetarian (vegan) instead of egg you can use 1/4 cup of water and 1 1/2 tbsp rice flour to make the thick paste.
4. Add the cauliflower florets and mix slowly. Make sure all the florets are well coated with the batter.
5. Heat oil for deep frying in pan on medium heat. When oil is hot put coated cauliflower florets.
6. Deep fry till the florets turn golden brown. Fry for around 15 to 20 min to ensure there is no rawness in the cauliflower.Take out the cauliflower and put them on paper towel to drain excess oil and set aside.
7. Take another pan or a wok on medium to high heat. Add 1 1/2 tbsp oil. When the pan is hot add onion, green chilly, ginger, garlic and stir fry till the onion turns translucent.
8. Then add tomato ketchup, red chilly sauce and cook till oil starts to separate from the mixture.
9. Add soya sauce, ajinomoto (optional) and cook for 2 more minutes.
10. Meanwhile mix corn flour in a few tablespoons of water. This will be used as the thickening agent.
11. At this stage you can taste the sauce and adjust the salt and/or chilly sauce as per your taste requirement. If you want to make it a little bit sweet then add sugar.
12. Now increase the heat a little. Add cornflour water mixture to it and mix well. As soon the sauce starts to thicken throw in the fried gobi florets.
13. Slowly mix the contents such that all the cauliflower florets are fully coated with the sauce.
14. Now add finely chopped spring onion and toss or just mix the contents. Gobi Manchurian is now done and ready to be served.