At first glance, the process of mantle preparation seems complicated, but in fact requires skill, patience, and skill. We have gathered for you the basic secrets and recipes for making manti, which will help you to prepare this fragrant and tasty dish.
To make mantas we need a cascan, it's such a special pan to cook mantas for a couple. The best cascades are considered to be Chinese cascades, their bars are made of bamboo rods. In Russia, such a cascade is not easy to get. Most often there are cascades with metal bars in countries such as Uzbekistan or Kazakhstan. Cascades can be bought in markets where they sell products and oriental spices. Naturally, to make mantas, you can use an electric steamer, which we have widespread.
Traditionally, for manti take unleavined, unleavened dough, which is cooked, as on dumplings, but more finely rolled out. That this dough does not break, when it rolls out, you need to use flour in equal proportions, two types of coarser flour 2 grades and wheat flour of the highest grade. For one kilogram of flour we take from 400 to 500 ml of water, two small eggs and salt.
Of these ingredients kneading elastic, dough, cover it with a wet napkin and let stand for one hour. We divide the dough into several identical pieces, roll them into bundles, and then from the resulting bundles separate the small pieces and roll them out well. It will be better if this dough is rolled using a special machine, if it is not, then the dough is rolled out as thinly as your forces can.
Ideal will be a dough, the thickness of which is not more than one millimeter. At the center of such a thinly rolled flat cake we put the stuffing so that the mantles resemble round round pouches with a flat bottom and a knotted neck. Before the mantles are placed in a steamer or in a cascan, we dip the flat bottom of the manti in melted or vegetable oil so that the mantles can not adhere to the cascade lattice.
Usually mantas are prepared with a filling of meat. You can take any meat, any variety and in any proportions, depending on your preference or depending on the chosen recipe. The most important for the preparation of mantles, it is believed that manti should be prepared from the freshest meat. Than it will be fresh, the more aromatic, juicy and delicious will be manti.
If the meat we chose is not very fat, then we need to add to it a piece of butter or a little fatty fat. To make minced meat, it does not need to be passed through a meat grinder. You need to take a sharp knife and cut it in such a way that small pieces, in size resembling a corn grain, are produced. To minced meat, you must add onion, chopped finely and thinly. If you can thinly chop the onion, so your mantles will be juicier. Do not regret adding onions. Half a kilo of meat should be taken from about 200 to 250 grams of onions. In addition to meat and onions, we can add juicy vegetables to your taste. Here, the Bulgarian pepper, tomatoes, turnips or pumpkin are good. Spices are chosen according to your taste, complement the flavor and decorate our mantas with any oriental spices for meat dishes.
The most popular and very subtle spirit of Central Asian cuisine is the recipe for making mantle from lamb. Finely chop 500 grams of fat lamb with a knife, add 200 grams of finely chopped onion, black pepper, chopped parsley or cilantro, salt. All well mixed. Prepare the dough for mantas, tear off a small ball and roll it into a thin circle. On this circle we will put forcemeat and we will gently tuck the edges. The underside of the mantles will be dipped in vegetable oil and we put the mantles on the grilles of the steamer or cascan. Cook for a couple of manta rays for thirty minutes. Ready manti served hot, sprinkling with sour cream or spicy sauce.
Traditionally in the filling of meat added any juicy vegetables. Most often it was a pumpkin, which gave the already prepared dish a flavor, and extra juiciness. Finely chop 250 grams of mutton, 50 grams of fattened fat, 250 grams of fresh pumpkin. Take 100 grams of onions and cut into small cubes and fry a little. All the ingredients are mixed, let's brew the meat for thirty minutes, and then prepare the mantles, as usual. When served on the table with creamy melted butter, top with sprinkled chopped green cilantro or parsley.
Of course, as a meat component for the filling, you can take any other meat, not just lamb. Manty will be delicious if we take such combinations of meat, pork and beef peculiar to Russian cuisine. Let's pass them through a meat grinder with a large grate, take 250 grams of beef and pork, or just finely chop. Add 200 grams of turnips to the minced meat, which we cut into small cubes, 100 or 150 grams of chopped onions. Add to taste red and black pepper and salt. Well we'll mow the stuffing. We blind the manties, in each circle to the meat we add a piece of butter. We cook in a cascade for a couple of thirty minutes.
It will perfectly emphasize the taste of manti simple tomato sauce. To do this, grind 2 or 3 large tomatoes in a blender, before that we will peel them from the peel. We shall clean and finely chop four cloves of garlic, the average Bulgarian pepper will cut into small cubes. In a saucepan or in a frying pan, warm up 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil, fry the garlic in oil, add the Bulgarian pepper, pepper and salt to taste. All together fry about five minutes. To the fried vegetables, add the crushed tomatoes in the blender, let them boil and take them off the fire. Add your favorite spices, cover it and let it brew for about thirty minutes.
Manty with liver is very fragrant and tender. These mantas are prepared from yeast dough. Take 4 cups of wheat flour, a glass of water or kefir, a tablespoon of vegetable oil, 10 to 15 grams of yeast and a small pinch of salt. We knead a steep dough, place the dough in enameled dishes, put it for lifting in a warm place for 30 or 40 minutes. For the filling, chop finely 500 grams of pork liver, 500 grams of lard or fat, mixed with 300 grams of finely chopped onions. Add a pinch of grated nutmeg, black pepper, salt. All well mixed. We lightly lighten the finished dough and, as usual, make manti. We cook their steamer for 25 to 30 minutes. We serve to the table, pouring creamy melted butter.
In modern cooking, manti are not only a meat dish. Lovers of seafood and fish can cook extraordinarily tender and juicy manties with cod stuffing. We will clear the cod well, chop 250 grams of cod fillets, cut 250 grams of onions into small cubes and mix with fish, add black pepper, finely chopped clove of garlic, salt. If the fish is not too fat, then add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water to the mince to make a juicy stuffing. Mix well and blend manties. Cook in a cascade for 20 or 25 minutes, served to the table, watering creamy melted butter and sprinkled with fresh herbs. To this dish, a salad of juicy, fresh vegetables that can be filled with lemon juice and vegetable oil is perfect.
Vegetarians can make delicious manti with stuffed mushrooms or vegetables. Here you will find your favorite vegetables, spices, cheeses, mushrooms, herbs. You can make manti with a filling of vegetables and cheese. We will cut into small cubes of 150 grams of onions, turnips, pumpkins, and young potatoes. Finely chop two large bell peppers and put it in vegetable oil a little. On a large grater, we rub 200 grams of hard cheese. All the ingredients are mixed, add your favorite spices, black pepper, salt. We blind the manti and cook in the cascade for 25 to 30 minutes. We serve to the table, watering with tomato sauce, we will decorate with fresh herbs on top.
Manties with a sweet filling of fruits and cottage cheese are sure to please your children and you. We will pass through a meat grinder 200 grams of cottage cheese. We will cut small cubes of 150 grams of solid any fruits - cherries, pears, apples. Mix the fruit and cottage cheese, add the egg, 4 or 5 tablespoons of sugar, salt and vanillin on the tip of the knife. Well we mix stuffing. We blind the mantles, add a small piece of butter to each dough bowl. Cooking, as usual in the cascade. We serve with any sweet sauce or sour cream. We will replace the fresh fruits with pre-soaked raisins.
Manty in Uzbek style
Ingredients: for the dough - 400 grams of flour, half a cup of water.
for minced meat 500 grams of mutton, 50 grams of mutton fat, 6 pieces of peeled onions.
Minced meat is prepared this way: cut into small pieces of lamb, or let it through the meat grinder. Onion chop and add to the stuffing, salt, pepper. We knead the dough from the water, flour and salt. We will roll out slices of dough with thin slices, it is necessary that the edges are thinner than the middle, this in order to easily cut the edges. In the middle of the flat cake we put mincemeat, we put a piece of mutton fat on top, protect the edges and give the product a rounded shape. We boil the mantles on the lattices-cascades for a couple. A dish is prepared for a couple of 35-45 minutes. Serve manti in the deep bowls, pour the meat broth and sprinkle with chopped herbs. Separately serve sour milk or sour cream.
Now we know the mantle recipe cooking is delicious. We were able to share the main secrets of this varied dish. But we are sure that your experience, imagination and our advice will make it possible to please your friends and relatives by preparing recipes for fragrant and tasty manti.