Manti
In manti the onion is not a seasoning but the source of the juice: there is nearly as much of it as meat, and it is chopped with a knife rather than grated. They are only ever steamed — in water the thin dough goes soft and tears and the juice ends up in the pot. Forty minutes over steam and the broth stays inside.
- Prep
- 1 h
- Cook
- 45 min
- Rest
- 30 min
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Servings
- 6
- Level
- Medium
- Per serving
- 480 kcal
Ingredients
Dough
Filling
To serve
Makes: about 24 dumplings, 6 portions
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The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Knead the dough
Work the flour with water, egg and salt for 10 minutes until smooth, then wrap and rest 30 minutes. Manti dough is firm, like dumpling dough.
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Step 2: Chop meat and fat
Dice the meat at 5 mm and the fat smaller. The fat is not optional: lean manti come out dry however much onion goes in.
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Step 3: Dice the onion by knife
Chop it small; do not grate or blend it. Grated onion releases its juice into the bowl instead of into the dumplings.
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Step 4: Mix the filling
Combine meat, fat, onion, cumin, salt and pepper, work in the ice water and let it stand 15 minutes for the onion to give up its juice.
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Step 5: Roll and cut squares
Roll the dough 2 mm thick and cut 10×10 cm squares. Thin dough is what separates manti from ordinary dumplings — the filling should show through.
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Step 6: Fold them
Spoon on a full tablespoon, join the opposite corners across the diagonals, then pinch the neighbouring corners together. The top stays open so steam reaches the filling.
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Step 7: Steam 40 minutes
Oil the steamer tray and set the manti apart from each other. Steam 40–45 minutes over boiling water, until the dough turns glossy and translucent.
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Step 8: Serve at once
Brush with melted butter, add pepper and dill, and serve with sour cream — in Central Asia a sharp tomato sauce comes alongside as well.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Always oil the steamer tray or the manti stick and tear when lifted. Lining it with cabbage leaves is the old solution, and it perfumes them too.
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Tip
Never boil manti: the dough is thin, it softens and all the juice ends up in the water. Without a steamer, any basket or colander over a covered pot works.
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Variation
With pumpkin is the Uzbek classic: half the meat swapped for diced pumpkin, sweeter and juicier. Meat-free manti use pumpkin and onion alone.
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Storage
Freeze them raw on a board, then bag them — two months, steamed from frozen with 10 minutes extra. Cooked ones are reheated over steam again.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 6 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 480 kcal | 2,880 kcal |
| Protein | 25 g | 150 g |
| Fat | 24 g | 144 g |
| Carbohydrates | 42 g | 252 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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