As discussed in a previous post, about the Mongolian national dumpling buuz, every Turkic culture seem to have its own take on the process of stuffing a pocket of dough with minced meat (and the occasional other ingredient). In Turkey, of course, that national dumpling in manti. But even in Turkey manti comes in different shapes, sizes and cooking styles, depending on if the dumpling maker comes from Central Anatolia, Dagestan or other parts of the Caucasus.
For those interested in trying out manti in all its different guises, the English-language Today's Zaman has a good rundown of the best manti places in Istanbul. The article can be found here.
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