Manti, also manty, mantu, mantou, or manties (Turkish: mantı; Kazakh: мәнті, IPA: [mæntɘ́]; Kyrgyz: манты, IPA: [mɑntɯ́]; Uzbek: manti, IPA: [mantɨ́]; Persian: منتو), are a type of dumpling in Turkish and various Central Asian and Caucasian cuisines, closely related to the east Asian baozi and mandu. Manti dumplings consist of a spiced meat mixture, usually lamb or ground beef, in a dough wrapper. It is either boiled or steamed. The word is used only in plural, referring to the collection of dumplings on a plate or in a pot.
Manti were carried across Central Asia to Anatolia by migrating Turks in the Chingizid-Timurid periods. According to Holly Chase, “Turkic and Mongol horsemen on the move are supposed to have carried frozen or dried manti, which could be quickly boiled over a camp-fire”. In Turkey it is also called Tatar böregi (Tatar bureks), which indicates its relation to nomadic peoples. A mid-15th century Ottoman recipe survives, with the manti filled with pounded lamb and crushed chickpeas, steamed, and served topped with yogurt mixed with crushed garlic and sprinkled with sumac. Manti are popular throughout the former Soviet Union, where the dish spread from the Central Asian republics.
