MANTI: THE OLDEST LEGEND OF TURKISH CUISINE, A REWARDING RECIPE THAT CALLS FOR MANY HANDS

Skin, wash, and finely dice the onions.

Place the diced onions into a large bowl.

Add 1 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of ground black pepper. Crush the mixture for 1 minute using your hands to soften the onions.

Add the ground beef and knead the ingredients together until achieving a homogenous and paste-like mixture.

Cover the bowl with a lid and place it in the fridge while preparing the dough.

In a large bowl, lightly whisk the eggs.

Add 4 cups of flour, 2 tsp of salt, and half of the water. Mix the ingredients.

Slowly add the rest of the water and flour while checking the consistency.

Once the dough becomes uniform and does not stick to the hands, knead it on the counter for 3-5 more minutes to achieve a smooth and elastic texture.

Return the dough into the flour-dusted bowl, cover with a lid and rest for 25-30 minutes.

After resting, place the dough on the counter, form a cylinder and divide it into 9-10 small pieces.

Shape the pieces into small balls and place them on a floured surface, covering with a kitchen towel to keep them moist.

Make ~1-1.5 mm thick, round filo from each ball of dough, sprinkling additional flour as needed.

Once you complete one filo, place it on a flat surface that is sprinkled with some flour.

Divide the filo into 2X2 cm squares using a knife or a rolling cutter.

Place 1/4 tsp of filling on each square of dough. Fold in the opposite diagonal corners of each square and join them together over the filling. Then, do the same for the other corners.

Place the filled and folded MANTI pieces on a lightly floured oven tray or on parchment paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.

Use a large and deep pot for cooking the MANTI. Submerge the MANTI in at least 6-7 cm of boiling water.

Fill 3/4 of the pot with water (~3 L), add 2 tbsp of salt and bring it to a boil.

Add the MANTI into boiling water and make sure that the pieces do not stick to each other. Wait until the water re-boils.

When the MANTI pieces are cooked, they will rise to the surface of the water. Do not let them boil for longer than 2-3 minutes, nor let them sit in the hot water.

Scoop the cooked MANTI pieces with a perforated ladle and place them on serving plates.

Equipment Needed

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