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Chicken Manchurian curry served in a bowl
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Air fryer Chicken Manchurian

This is a delicious Indo-Chinese recipe where chicken balls are tossed in Chinese curry and served as a main. It is delicious.
Course Main
Cuisine Chinese
Keyword Air fryer Chicken Manchurian, Chicken Manchurian
recipe air fryer chicken
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 22 minutes
Servings 4
Author Rachna Parmar

Equipment

Ingredients

For chicken balls

  • 1 lb. chicken mince
  • 2 tsp. cornstarch
  • 2 tsp. soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp. ginger garlic minced
  • 1 tsp. pepper
  • ½ tsp. red chilli powder optional
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. vegetable oil

For Manchurian sauce

  • 1 tbsp. Soy Sauce
  • 1 tbsp. Chilli Garlic sauce
  • 1 tsp. Vinegar
  • ½ tsp. Ketchup
  • 2 Green chillies
  • 1 tsp. Ginger minced
  • 1 tsp. Garlic minced
  • 1 Green Pepper
  • 1 Onion
  • 2 tsp. Sesame oil

Instructions

To make Chicken Balls

  • In a bowl, mix together chicken mince with cornstarch, soy sauce, minced ginger and garlic, salt and pepper. If the mix feels too watery, you can add some more cornstarch so that you can form balls.
  • Lightly grease your palms with oil and then take some chicken mince mixture in your palms to form balls. Make balls and keep aside.
  • You can deep fry these chicken balls in medium hot oil till done.

Air frying instructions

  • Preheat air fryer to 360F or 180C for 3 minutes. Lightly grease the basket with oil. Place the chicken balls in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
  • Air fry for 8–10 minutes at 360F or 180C. Take them out once done. You can check with the meat thermometer to ensure that the internal temperature is above 165F.

For the Sauce

  • Heat oil in a pan. Toss in the minced ginger and garlic. Saute for a minute. Add green pepper and onion cubes and pan fry for a couple of minutes till translucent.
  • Also add sliced green chillies if using. Add in the prepared Manchurian sauce. Cook it for about 2-3 minutes till bubbling.
  • Add in the cornstarch slurry slowly to the bubbling sauce. It will thicken instantly. Depending upon how thick you want your sauce to be, add the slurry and cook.
  • Finally add crispy chicken balls and toss. Garnish with scallion greens and serve hot.
  • Your delightful chicken manchurian is ready to serve. Enjoy. Serve it hot with noodles or fried rice.

Video

Notes

1. I have used minced chicken to make the balls. You can also make chicken manchurian with boneless chicken bites that are marinated in the same spices and sauces and then deep fried or air fried.
2. This is a moderately spicy curry. You can adjust the spice as per your like.
3. If using chicken mince, refrigerate the mince before combining the ingredients to make the balls. They are easy to form into balls.
4. You can use chickpea flour in place of cornstarch for a gluten-free option. If your ball mixture seems too wet, you can add more cornstarch to help bring it together.
5. Storage: You can store leftover chicken manchurian curry for upto 3 days in an airtight container. Reheat and serve. The chicken balls will become soggy though but will still be delicious.