Armenian Manti

These little boats, or manti, have much in common with Chinese dumplings, wonton, and Italian ravioli.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients:

Filling:

  • 8 oz (225g) lamb, minced
  • 1 onion, minced
  • 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • pepper to taste
  • salt to taste

Dough:

  • 8 oz (225g) flour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 egg
  • water
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 tsp salt
  • pimento to garnish (optional)
  • 1 1/4 cups (285 ml) yogurt
  • 1 tbsp sumac

Preparation:

  1. Mix meat with onion, parsley, pepper and salt and fry in the butter until brown all over. Set aside to cool.
  2. Sift flour and salt together in a basin. Break the egg into the center and mix to a firm dough adding water as necessary. Knead well, and leave to rest in a cool place for 30 minutes.
  3. Roll out dough on a floured surface to 1/16” (1.5 mm) thickness and cut into 2” (5 cm) squares. A ruler makes this easier.
  4. Place 1/2 teaspoon of the filling in the center of each square and fold the corners inwards about 3/8” (1 cm), lift up the corners and squeeze together to form a square ‘boat’.
  5. Melt butter in a large frying pan, pack the 'boats', tightly together and cook gently until the bases are golden.
  6. Now slowly add enough boiling water to just cover the 'boats', add salt and cook for about 20 minutes, adding more boiling water if necessary.
  7. Serve immediately accompanied by the yogurt mixed with sumac and some of the remaining cooking liquid if desired.