Mantu are steamed dumplings and one of Afghanistan’s favourite dishes for special occasions. A thin dough, rolled until it is almost translucent and cut into squares, is wrapped around minced beef or lamb cooked with onions and spices. The corners are pinched together into neat little parcels, which are steamed until soft.
Mantu are served in layers: garlicky yoghurt spread on the platter, the dumplings on top, then a sauce of tomato with lentils or split peas, more yoghurt, and a scattering of dried mint, chilli or fresh coriander. Some families serve them with a carrot qorma instead. Because making them takes hours, mantu are often a shared family effort, and in the diaspora wonton wrappers sometimes stand in for homemade dough.
The dish belongs to a large family of dumplings found across Central Asia and beyond, and its name is related to the Chinese mantou. Its close cousin in Afghanistan is aushak, which is boiled rather than steamed.