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Paneer Manchurian

Paneer Manchurian is a traditional British Indian Restaurant (BIR) recipe for a classic vegetarian Indo-Chinese dish of paneer cubes deep fried in a flour batter finished by stir-frying in a soy and chilli sauce base. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: Paneer Manchurian.

prep time

10 minutes

cook time

35 minutes

Total Time:

45 minutes

Additional Time:

(+over-night marinading)

Serves:

4

Rating:

Tags : BIR CurriesVegetarian RecipesSpice RecipesCheese RecipesBritish Recipes

This is an Indo-Chinese recipe for a dry curry of paneer cheese that's becoming more common as a starter and a main dish in Indian restaurants. This recipe allows you to re-create the dish at home. In India Gobi Manchurian (cauliflower manchurian) is the commonest form, but in the UK you tend to encounter paneer manchurian more commonly. Interestingly I was served this dish in an Indian restaurant in Lagos, Nigeria about a decade ago. As with most Indian restaurant recipes on this site this can also be made with tandoori cauliflower (gobi), cooked chicken, cooked lamb or prawns.

Ingredients:

250g (1/2 lbs) Paneer (Indian cottage cheese), cubed
2 tbsp Maida (plain [all purpose] flour)
4 tbsp Cornflour (cornstarch)
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
60ml (1/4 cup) Water
Cooking Oil
Salt, to taste

For the Stir-fry
1 tsp Ginger-Garlic Paste
60ml (1/4 cup) bell pepper, finely diced
1 small Onion, finely diced
1 Green Chilli, finely chopped
2 tbsp spring onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp Cooking Oil
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
1/2 tbsp Chilli Sauce
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
Salt, to taste

Method:

Combine the maida flour, cornflour, salt, ginger-garlic paste and 60ml (1/4 cup) water in a bowl to form a thick batter. Add the paneer cubes, toss to coat then set aside for 20 minutes to marinate.

Place a kadai or wok over medium heat. Add a sufficient depth of oil to deep fry the cheese. Once the oil is hot add the battered paneer cubes and deep fry until golden brown (you will probably need to cook in batches so the oil does not get too cold) then remove with a spider or slotted spoon and set aside on a plate covered with kitchen paper to drain.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok or kadai and when hot add the ginger-garlic paste. Stir-fry for 30 seconds then add the chopped chilli, diced bell pepper and diced onion. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Now add the soy sauce, tomato ketchup, chilli sauce and season to taste with salt. Increase the heat then add the fried paneer pieces and spring onions. Mix well then stir fry the ingredients for about 2 minutes.

Turn into a warmed dish, garnish with spring onions and serve.