Gobi Manchurian, a delicious indo chinese starter made from cauliflower. Gobi manchurian is one of the most popular starter items that you can find in any Indian restaurant menu. It tastes so good as a starter and as sides for fried rice. If you have been following me on IG, you might already know how often i make fried rice at home. But when it comes to sides for fried rice, mostly i tried to avoid manchurain mainly because of deep frying. I don't want to deep fry something everytime that I make fried rice at home. 

So I have been experimenting a lot lately on making manchurian without deep frying. In order to avoid deep frying, i tried baking, shallow frying and pan frying the cauliflower and this pan fried method is my favorite among all my attempts and it tastes so close to deep fried ones and if you serve this without mentioning anything, no one gonna find that it's not deep fried.

Pan frying cauliflower really takes a lot of time compared to deep frying but if you're conscious about deep frying and avoiding the manchurian for the very same reason, definitely this method is worth giving a try!!.  But if you're in a hurry definitely i won't recommend this method. Here are few FAQs about manchurian

Is it necessary to soak the cauliflower in hot water?

Yes, the first reason is that it helps to kill any worms in the cauliflower. Second, since we are using the pan fry method here, soaking the cauliflower in hot water helps to cook them evenly. 

Can pan frying cauliflower stay as  crispy as deep fried ?

Almost Yes !! I have used the corn flour in the batter to keep it crispy. 

Why did my manchurian become soggy and lost its crispiness after some time?

It happens whether you deep fried or pan fried the cauliflower. This is one of the foods that taste good when it's served straight out of the stove. 

Any tips for delicious manchurian?

1. Make sure that the batter is so thin and coats the cauliflower evenly.
2. If the batter is thick, it forms a thick outer coating and it doesn't taste good.
3. Also if the outer coating is so thick then there is no homogeneous in the manchurian!! When you take a bite, the outer layer falls apart and leaves the cauliflower inside without any taste.

Ok, now let's check out on how to make this famous indo chinese starter, Gobi Manchurian!!

 

Cauliflower Manchurian | Gobi Manchurian

Preparation Time : 15 mins | Cooking Time : 25 mins | Serves : 2 to 3  
Recipe Category: Curry | Recipe Cuisine: Indian
Cauliflower manchurian, Gobi Manchurian, Indo chinese starter, Starter,Indian starter recipe Gobi Manchurian, a delicious indo chinese starter made from cauliflower. Gobi manchurian is one of the most popular starter items that you can find in any Indian restaurant menu. It tastes so good as a starter and as sides for fried rice.

Sandhiya https://www.facebook.com/SandhiyasCookbook https://www.instagram.com/sandhiyascookbook/

Ingredients

Cauliflower - 1 lb

Soy sauce - 1 tbsp

Tomato sauce - 2 tbsp

Chili sauce - 1 tsp

Pepper powder - 1 tsp

Spring onion - 2 

Garlic - 2 tsp(minced)

Oil - 1 tbsp

For slurry 

Cornflour - 2 tsp

Water - 1/4 cup

For the batter

All purpose flour - 1/4 cup

Corn flour - 1 tbsp

Pepper powder - 1/4 tsp

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Water - as needed

Procedure

Cut the cauliflower into medium sized florets and put it in a large bowl. Add 1/4 tsp of salt , mix it well.Pour some hot water into the cauliflower and cover it with lid. Keep it aside for 20-30 mins.Drain the water from the cauliflower and spread it on the tissue paper to remove the excess water. In the mean time, add all the ingredients listed under "For the batter" in a bowl.Add water little by little and make a thin batter. Add few cauliflower florets in a batter and coat it with batter on all sides evenly.Heat a non stick pan with 1/2 tbsp of oil and then add the batter coated cauliflower and cook it on all sides until it has some brown spots and crispy on outside. Remove it on the plate.In the same pan, add the remaining oil, saute the minced garlic and the white part of the spring onions until they are fragrant, then add the soy sauce, chili sauce, tomato sauce and then mix cornflour along with water(listed under for the slurry) and make thin slurry and add into it. Mix it all well. Once the sauce became thick and coats the back of the spoon, add the pan fried cauliflower and mix it well.Finally add the pepper powder and finely chopped green part of spring onion.Tasty Gobi Manchurian is ready to serve. Serve it with your favorite fried rice or as a starter. We had it with paneer fried rice !!

Notes:

• Add more or less of sauce as per your liking.
• Since all the sauces already have enough salt, there is no need for extra salt in the sauce.
• Recommend to use non stick pan for pan frying the cauliflower.
• Serve immediately for best taste. 

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Cauliflower Peas Curry | Cauliflower Peas Poriyal

Cauliflower peas poriyal, an easy to make delicious accompaniment !!! Cauliflower and peas (Gobi Mutter )are such a awesome combination and it tastes good in any curries or dry masala. You can see this combination or potato & peas combo often in my kitchen when fresh peas are in season.

Here in today's recipe, i have used freshly grounded spice mix made from fennel seeds and pepper corns for great flavor. Fennel flavor goes really well with cauliflower. If you haven't use it before, trust me and give it a try. You can use few fennel seeds in tempering or little bit of fennel powder while making cauliflower next time!!!  

Ok, now let's see today's recipe, it tastes sooo good with just steamed rice and rasam.   

Cauliflower Peas Poriyal

Preparation Time : 5 mins | Cooking Time : 15 mins | Serves : 2 
Recipe Category: Curry | Recipe Cuisine: Indian
Cauliflower,Peas,Poriyal,Accompaniment,Dry Curry, Dry Masala Cauliflower peas poriyal, an easy to make delicious accompaniment !!! Cauliflower and peas (Gobi Mutter )are such a awesome combination and it tastes good in any curries or dry masala.

Sandhiya https://www.facebook.com/SandhiyasCookbook https://www.instagram.com/sandhiyascookbook/

Ingredients
Cauliflower florets - 2 cups
Peas - 1/3 cup
Onions - 1/2(small)
Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
Garlic - 2 cloves
Tomato - 1 (small)
Fennel - 1/2 tsp
Pepper corns - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Red chili powder -1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Coriander leaves - few

Procedure

First try roast fennel seed and pepper corns until aromatic. Let it cool a bit and then transfer into hand motor & pestle and make it as fine powder.

Heat the pan with oil, add the finely chopped onions and sauce till it's translucent, then crush the ginger & garlic into coarse mixture and add into the pan & saute for 30 secs.

Next add the chopped tomatoes & spices (turmeric, red chili & coriander powder )  and mix it all well together.

Add the cauliflower and peas, give a good mix with the masala.

Next add the salt, give a quick stir. Cover it with lid and cook till the cauliflower and peas are soft. If needed add couple of tbsp of water and cook.

Once the veggies are well cooked add the fennel & pepper powder and mix it well. Switch off the flame and add few coriander leaves on top.

Tasty Cauliflower Peas Poriyal is ready. For more curries and veggies recipe, check out here

Related : How to make cauliflower masala dosa 

Notes:

• If your cauliflower has any worms, put it in the boiling water along with pinch of turmeric of couple of mins and then use it.
• Fresh peas tastes good for this curry.
• Fennel seeds gives great flavor to this curry.
• I have used hand motor & pestle since it's very small quantity.  For large quantity, use mixie/blender for easy grinding and it stores well for few months in air tight container.
  

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Roundup for One Vegetable Different Ways

This is the first time that i'm doing roundup for the BM theme. As usual, this month BM also has some interesting themes and one among them is "One Vegetable Different Ways". The concept is you have to choose one vegetable as main ingredient and cook it in three ways. Really i liked the concept and had chosen "Broccoli" as main ingredients and cooked three dishes. Like me, my fellow bloggers also had chosen the different veggies and came up with some interesting recipes. Here is the compilation of all the dishes that we have shared for this theme.

Here are mine - Broccoli in three ways

Broccoli Soup	Broccoli Paratha	Broccoli Stir fry

Harini - Cauliflower in three ways

Cauliflower Mac n Cheese	Microwave Cauliflower Rice	Air fryer roasted Cauliflower

Srivalli - Potatoes in three ways

Dum Aloo	Rajasthani Jodhpuri Aloo	Stuffed Potato Masala

Vaishali - Spinach in three ways

Palakchi Patal Bhaji(Maharastra)	Palak Ka Saag(Bihar)	Palak Paneer Bhurji

Priya - Onion in three ways

Onion Roti	Onion Rasam	Onion Capsicum Chutney

Varadha - Red Bell Pepper in three ways

Red Pepper Hummus	Skewered Pepper & Paneer	Pepper and paneer in tomatoes

Sowmya - Carrot in three ways

Carrot Sandwich	Oven Roasted Carrot Soup	Honey Glazed Carrots

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Cauliflower 65 | Gobi 65 | Evening Snacks

Cauliflower 65, a Indian deep fried snack made from the cauliflower and mix of spices.

It's one of the popular vegetarian starter recipes in the restaurants across the country. 

I have been making this cauliflower 65 for years now as a side dish for biryani or as a snack for an evening tea. It's one of our family favorites ! 

Actually, it's one of the recipes that I had tried many times before I actually got the knack of it. No, it's not a difficult recipe but to get that crispy cauliflower without too much drunken oil, there are few steps to be taken care of which I will explain below. 

Why is it called cauliflower 65 ?

Cauliflower 65 is a vegetarian version of Chicken 65, a famous Indian chicken fry. The spices used in both the recipes are so similar and hence it's named as cauliflower 65. To know the reason behind the "65", check out my chicken 65 post :-)

Tips for crispy cauliflower 65 

• Make sure to pat dry(spread it on a paper towel to absorb extra water) the cauliflower well before adding it into the marination.
• Corn flour is the key to get that crispy texture.
• Add corn flour just before frying the cauliflower.
• Here in the ingredient list, i have mentioned 3 to 4 tbsp of corn flour, start with 3 tbsp of corn flour and test fry a single piece of cauliflower, if it's still soggy, then add the extra 1 tbsp, give a good mix and try again, but don't add more than the mentioned quantity, it won't taste good and also it has thick flour coating on the cauliflower which we don't want for tasty cauliflower 

 

Related: How to make Cauliflower Masala Dosa

Serving Suggestion 

I would highly recommend serving the cauliflower 65 immediately. The cauliflower loses its crispiness after a while however it still tastes good. For best taste and crispy texture, fry the cauliflower right before serving. 

You can marinate the cauliflower ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator for a day or two. Bring into room temperature before frying and follow the rest of the instructions in the recipe.

Food Color 

Food color is totally optional. In order to recreate the restaurant style cauliflower 65, I have added it in the recipe. But most of the time, I don't prefer to add it when I'm making it for  our daily meal. 

If you're making this for a party or try to impress your guest, add a pinch of food color :-)

Now, let's check on how to make the restaurant style cauliflower 65.

Cauliflower 65

Preparation Time : 20 mins | Cooking Time : 15 mins | Serves : 2 
Recipe Category: Snack | Recipe Cuisine: Indian
cauliflower 65,gobi 65,snacks,deep fried, evening snacks Cauliflower 65/Gobi 65, a deep fried snack/side dish made from cauliflower.

Sandhiya https://www.facebook.com/SandhiyasCookbook https://www.instagram.com/sandhiyascookbook/

Ingredients
Cauliflower florets - 1&1/2 cups
Curd - 1/4 cup
Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger garlic powder - 1 tsp
Red food color - 1 pinch
Salt - to taste
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Corn flour - 3 to 4 tbsp
Curry leaves - few
Oil - for deep frying

Procedure

Cut the cauliflower into florets, wash,pat dry and keep it ready. In a vessel, add curd,spices(turmeric ,chili,garam masala powder), food color, ginger garlic paste & salt . Squeeze the lemon juice.Mix it well and then add the cauliflower and mix well in the marination.Keep covered and set aside for 15 mins, then add the corn flour and mix well with the cauliflower.Heat the oil in sauce pan for deep frying, add few pieces at a time and fry till it becomes crispy and golden brown. Remove from the oil and place it on tissue paper. Do the same for the remaining cauliflower.Finally add few curry leaves on oil and fry till it crispy and take it out and add into the fried cauliflower.Tada, Delicious Cauliflower 65 is ready. For more tasty snacks, check out my collections.

Related : Low Calories Cauliflower manchurian / Pan fried Gobi Manchurian 

Related: How to make Cauliflower Peas Curry 

Notes:

• I have used fresh curd here, if your curd has more sourness, then reduce the amount of lemon juice.
•  Here i have used 3 tbsp of corn flour, depends on curd consistency, you may need more or less of corn flour.
• If you're worried about worms in cauliflower, then put it in hot water for few mins, then drain and place it on tissue paper to absorb the moisture and then use it.
• Cook in medium flame will make sure that cauliflower is well cooked.
• Fried curry leaves gives great taste to cauliflower.
• Use thick curd for better taste.
• Taste best when it's hot. 

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