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Mantı, also known as “Manti,” are soft Turkish dumplings filled with minced beef or lamb and topped with garlicky yogurt. Finish with heated olive oil flavored with red pepper paste, mint, sumac, and Aleppo pepper. This classic Turkish Manti recipe may be made today.
Manti is one of my favorite Turkish foods. Melt-in-the-mouth dumplings packed with onion-scented ground beef, creamy garlicky yogurt, and spicy olive oil are tempting. This delicious, cozy, and unusual Turkish dish makes a great main course for family and friends.
Like Italians’ Potato and Ricotta Gnocchi, Turks love mantı and have several regional variants. When they left Central Asia for Anatolia in the 11th century, nomadic Turkish tribes carried their culinary legacy. Many central and western Asian civilizations have manti, although they form and serve it differently. This manti recipe comes from my childhood in Turkey.
The miniature homemade dumplings take time but are worth it and are great to cook with friends and family. I cherish recollections of family gatherings to enjoy mantı-making rituals. People made the dough, prepared the filling, and filled mantı dumplings while enjoying tea, coffee, and talk. Joyful memories!
Par-baking and freezing manti makes it a perfect make-ahead dish.
Turkish Dumplings with Garlicky Yogurt and Spiced Oil Recipe
Manti requires all-purpose flour, salt, egg, water, olive oil, ground beef, onion, black pepper, yogurt, garlic, turkish pepper, aleppo pepper, mint, and sumac.
Making Manti Ingredients
Manti requires time and attention to make, but the components are basic and readily available. This manti dish requires these ingredients:
Dough Ingredients
- Plain flour is usually used in mantı dough.
- Sea salt enhances bread taste.
- Egg: Binds and enriches dough.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Olive oil is nutritious and tasty, therefore I use it to make smooth dough.
- Filler Ingredients
- Traditional ground meat is beef or lean ground lamb (10% fat). A ground beef combo of your choosing works too.
- Onion: Medium yellow or white is customary, however red onion may be used. If grated, add onion juice to the filling for taste.
- Seasoning: Salt and freshly ground black pepper provide taste.
- Unboiled sealed manti on a baking sheet.
- For Garlic Yogurt: Though skimmed yogurt is fine, thick and creamy whole milk plain yogurt is ideal. A decent Greek or Icelandic skyr yogurt would work.
- The yogurt sauce needs garlic for its flavorful, pungent taste.
- Sea salt or kosher salt should be used to season yogurt. Avoid table salts since they taste harsh and unpleasant.
To make Spiced Oil, use Turkish Red Pepper Paste (Biber Salçası) or double-concentrated tomato paste. Our juicy, spicy pepper paste is a southern Turkish condiment with plenty of taste. You may buy it online or manufacture it yourself. Use twice concentrated tomato paste for a milder taste or more readily available.
Olive oil: Mediterranean way, I use healthy, delicious olive oil. We recommend a high-quality extra virgin oil like our Mediterranean-style oils.
The cool flavor of dried mint is vital and customary in this Manti feast sauce.
Ground sumac: The sauce tastes zesty with tangy ground sumac from dried, crushed sumac berries.
Aleppo pepper (pul biber): We use it for mild, delicious heat. Aleppo pepper is available in our store, although red chili flakes are hotter.
Making Manti Turkish Dumplings
If you can get friends or family to help fold the Manti, it’s a great Sunday activity. Here are the steps:
Make and Rest Dough
Make dough. Combine 2 ½ cups (300 grams) all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon sea salt in a large basin. Create a well and add 1 beaten egg, 1/2 cup (120 grams) water, and 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Slowly mix flour and liquid with your hands to make dough. A well of flour and salt with egg, oil, and water.
Knead and relax. Flour a work area and knead the dough for 3–4 minutes until smooth and elastic. Rolling manti dough requires firmness. Wait 30 minutes in the fridge covered with plastic wrap.
Make Filling and Garlic Yogurt
Meanwhile, prepare filling. Mix 8oz ground beef or lamb and 1 grated or finely chopped onion in a large basin. Mix with a touch of salt and pepper. Set aside covered.
Make garlic yogurt. Mix 16 ounces plain yogurt and 2–3 minced or grated garlic cloves in a medium bowl. Add salt to taste. Bring to room temperature under cover.
Prepare to bake. Lubricate a big sheet tray with olive oil. Heat the oven to 350°F.
Get ready to shape. Cut dough into 3 equal pieces. Make spherical dough balls from each piece. Cover the dough with a moist tea towel to prevent drying. Close-up of 3 dough balls.
Roll dough. Lightly flour a clean work surface. Roll each piece of dough into a 12 × 10-inch sheet as thinly as possible. Cut the dough into 1-inch squares using a sharp knife.
Add filling. Place a chickpea-sized scoop of filling in the center of each square.An overhead shot showing ground beef in a bowl, dough squares with a little meat, and sealed manti on a baking pan.
Shape Manti. Pinch opposing corners to make a bag and press seams to close. When handling sticky dough, lightly dust your fingertips. Reuse the dough and filling, arranging the formed manti in a single layer on the sheet pan.
Par-bake, then boil Manti
Parbake manti. The dumplings should be faintly browned after 8–10 minutes in the hot oven. Let cool before boiling or freeze if preparing ahead. Unboiled sealed manti on a baking sheet from above.
Boil manti. Boil water in a big saucepan over high heat. Sprinkle salt over boiling water and carefully add par-baked dumplings. Keep the heat low and boil until the dumplings float, 8–10 minutes. Drain and return cooked manti to pan off heat. Try a small olive oil drizzle to avoid sticking. Manti simmering in a saucepan.
Finish and Serve
Make spiced oil while manti cooks. In a broad pan, heat 1/4 cup extra virgin oil until shimmering, then add 1 tablespoon pepper or tomato paste. Add 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper, 2 tablespoons dried mint, and 1 teaspoon sumac. Simmer, stirring, until aromatic, 1 minute.
Serve. Spoon garlic yogurt over manti on a heated serving platter. Drizzle spicy oil. Add mint and sumac if desired. Afiyet Olsun! It means “May you be happy and healthy with this delicious food you eat” in Turkish.Spiced olive oil on manti in a bowl.
Freezing and Storing Turkish Manti Dumplings
I love how well manti freeze and store, so a manti feast on a hectic weekday is achievable with a little forethought.
Freeze them:
Let the dumplings cool after par-baking for 8-10 minutes at 350°F.
Seal and freeze for 3 weeks after cooling.
As instructed, boil the frozen manti for 10-12 minutes and serve with garlic yogurt and spicy sauce.
Mix it Up We offer both meat-filled and vegetarian manti options. A boat-shaped variant from northeastern Anatolia, Turkey, with a tasty spicy chickpea (garbanzo bean) filling. More ways to customize this manti recipe:
Try ground turkey or chicken for the filling. Though non-traditional, the manti will be wonderful.
Vegetarianize: Like us, use cooked crushed garbanzo beans with sautéed onions, cumin, and spices for a vegetarian alternative.
- Make dairy-free: You may use unflavored plant-based yogurt.
Crush chili flakes or use other spices: Use seasonings you like in the sauce, although chili flakes are spicy.
Overhead shot of two spooned manti portions. Next to this is a glass of red wine, bowls of sumac and dried mint, and the remaining manti on a spoon-served plate.
Serve Turkish Manti Dumplings with What?
We offer manti as a main entrée with garlicky yogurt and spicy oil sauce. Serving a crisp green salad with Lemon Vinaigrette may be appropriate.
