Chicken Manchurian: The Takeaway Favourite You Can Make at Home

If you’ve ever ordered Chinese takeaway and spotted Chicken Manchurian on the menu, you’ll know it’s one of those dishes that delivers every time – crispy chicken, a rich savoury sauce, and just the right balance of sweet, tangy and spicy.

The good news is it’s surprisingly easy to recreate at home. This version gives you that classic restaurant-style flavour, with tender chicken coated in a glossy, punchy sauce that’s perfect served with rice or noodles.

Chicken Manchurian Recipe

Ingredients

For the chicken:

500g chicken thigh or breast (cut into bite-sized pieces)
1 egg
3 tbsp cornflour
2 tbsp plain flour
1 tsp garlic (minced)
Salt & pepper
Oil for frying

For the sauce:

2 tbsp oil
3 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
1 tbsp ginger (finely chopped)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce (for colour)
1 tbsp tomato sauce (ketchup)
1 tbsp chilli sauce (adjust to taste)
1 tsp sugar
1 cup water or chicken stock
1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp water (slurry)
Spring onions (for garnish)

Method

Prepare the chicken
In a bowl, mix chicken with egg, cornflour, plain flour, garlic, salt and pepper until well coated.
Fry the chicken
Heat oil in a pan and fry the chicken pieces until golden and crispy. Remove and drain on paper towel.
Make the sauce
In another pan, heat oil and sauté garlic and ginger until fragrant.
Add flavour
Stir in soy sauces, tomato sauce, chilli sauce and sugar.
Create the gravy
Add water or stock and bring to a simmer.
Thicken
Stir in the cornflour slurry and cook until the sauce thickens.
Combine
Add the fried chicken and toss well to coat in the sauce.
Finish
Garnish with spring onions and serve hot.

Tip
For a drier “restaurant-style” version, use less liquid and cook the sauce down until it clings to the chicken.