Mantı recipe: Turkish dumplings with garlic yoghurt and chilli butter
Mantı are Turkey’s tiny dumplings: little parcels of thin dough wrapped around a pinch of spiced minced meat, boiled, then smothered in cool garlic yoghurt and finished with butter sizzled with chilli and mint. The contrast of hot and cold, rich and sharp, is what makes them so addictive. Making them is a labour of love, and in Turkey it is often a family job, with several pairs of hands folding at the kitchen table.
The dish travelled to Anatolia with Turkic peoples from Central Asia along the Silk Road, and it is related to the manti, mantu and momo of the wider region. Türkiye’s official tourism site notes the old saying that a good mantı is so small that forty should fit on one spoon. This recipe makes slightly larger, more forgiving dumplings that still have the right delicate texture.
What is mantı?
Mantı (pronounced mahn-tuh) is a dish of small meat-filled dumplings, boiled and served with yoghurt and a spiced butter sauce. The dough is a simple mix of flour, egg, water and salt, rolled very thin. The filling is usually minced beef or lamb with grated onion and pepper. The Wikipedia entry on manti covers the many related dumplings found from Turkey to Afghanistan and beyond.
Kayseri mantısı
The most famous Turkish style comes from Kayseri in Central Anatolia, where the dumplings are tiny and tightly folded. Kayseri mantısı has an official geographical indication, and it is traditionally a dish for special occasions.
Other regional styles
Sinop on the Black Sea has its own protected mantı, served with garlic yoghurt on one side of the plate and crushed walnuts on the other. In Erzurum and Sivas, larger dumplings called hingel are common, and the Sivas version is often filled with spiced potato. Oven-baked versions, toasted until crisp before being softened with stock, are popular in home kitchens too.
Ingredients
Serves 4 as a main course.
For the dough
- 300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1 large egg
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 100–110ml cold water
For the filling
- 200g beef or lamb mince (not too lean)
- 1 small onion (about 80g), finely grated and squeezed dry
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp pul biber (Turkish chilli flakes)
- 1 tbsp very finely chopped parsley (optional)
For the garlic yoghurt
- 400g thick plain yoghurt (full-fat Greek-style or strained), at room temperature
- 1–2 garlic cloves, crushed with a pinch of salt
For the chilli butter
- 50g butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp tomato purée (optional)
- 1 tsp pul biber or Aleppo pepper
- 1 tsp dried mint
- Sumac, to serve (optional)
How to make mantı
1. Make the dough
Mix the flour and salt in a bowl, make a well, add the egg and most of the water and bring together, adding the rest of the water if needed. Knead for 8–10 minutes until smooth and firm, like pasta dough. Wrap and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Make the filling
Mix the mince, grated onion, salt, pepper, pul biber and parsley in a bowl and knead with your hand for a minute until slightly sticky. Keep in the fridge until needed.
3. Roll and cut
Divide the dough in two. On a lightly floured surface, roll one half out as thinly as you can, about 1mm, into a large sheet roughly 40cm square. Trim the edges and cut into 3cm squares. Smaller is more traditional if you have the patience.
4. Fill and shape
Put a small piece of filling, about the size of a chickpea, in the centre of each square. Bring two opposite corners up and pinch together, then bring up the other two and pinch all four edges together to make a little four-pointed parcel. Set on a floured tray and repeat with the second half of the dough.
5. Cook the mantı
Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil. Add the mantı, stir once so they do not stick, and simmer for 8–10 minutes, until the dough is tender and the filling cooked. Taste one to check.
6. Make the sauces and serve
While the mantı cook, melt the butter with the olive oil in a small pan, stir in the tomato purée and cook for 30 seconds, then take off the heat and add the pul biber and mint. Mix the yoghurt and garlic. Drain the mantı with a slotted spoon, divide between warm plates, spoon over the garlic yoghurt, drizzle with the hot butter and finish with a pinch of sumac.
Watch: how to make mantı
Folding mantı is far easier to learn by watching, so this video is worth a look before you start.
Tips for the best mantı
- Keep the dough you are not using covered with a tea towel so it does not dry out and crack when folded.
- Use less filling than you think. Too much and the parcels burst; a chickpea-sized piece is plenty.
- Grate and squeeze the onion. Chopped onion pokes holes in the thin dough and releases water into the filling.
- Bring the yoghurt to room temperature. Fridge-cold yoghurt cools the dumplings too quickly.
- Freeze uncooked mantı on a floured tray, then bag them up. Cook from frozen, adding 2–3 minutes.
What to serve with mantı
Mantı is a meal in itself, so keep the rest simple. A bowl of mercimek çorbası makes a good starter, and a fresh, lemony kısır or a plain tomato and cucumber salad cuts through the richness. If you have the mantı habit, try gözleme (stuffed flatbreads) next; the two are often made by the same cooks. Ayran is the usual drink.
Where to eat mantı in London
Several London cafés make mantı by hand, often alongside gözleme, and it is well worth seeking out. Find them in our gözleme and mantı listings, or explore the cafés covered in our Green Lanes food guide.
- The Mantl – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Kensington & Chelsea
- Gözleme House – Turkish bakery & börek in Harringay & Green Lanes
- Sultan Gözleme Euston – Turkish gözleme & mantı in King's Cross
- Gözleme Club – Turkish gözleme & mantı in King's Cross
- Istanbul Gözleme – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Walthamstow
- Karadeniz Pide & Lahmacun – Turkish gözleme & mantı in Enfield
See all 15 Gözleme & Mantı places in London
Mantı FAQs
Can I use wonton wrappers for mantı?
Yes, for a quick version. Cut square wonton wrappers into quarters, fill and pinch as above and boil for 4–5 minutes. The texture is a little different but the yoghurt and butter make up for a lot.
Can I make mantı ahead?
Shape them up to a few hours ahead and keep them on a floured tray in the fridge, uncovered, or freeze them. Make the sauces just before serving.
Is there a vegetarian mantı?
Yes. Try a filling of mashed potato with a little onion and chilli, in the style of Sivas, or crumbled white cheese with parsley.
Why is mantı served with yoghurt?
Garlicky yoghurt and hot spiced butter are the classic Turkish finish for dumplings and many other dishes. The cool, sharp yoghurt balances the rich meat and butter.
Photo: E4024, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
