Manti is also popular among Chinese Muslims,[1] and it is consumed throughout post-Soviet countries, where the dish spread from the Central Asian republics.

[2] The dumplings typically consist of a spiced meat mixture, usually lamb or ground beef, wrapped in a thin dough sheet which is then boiled or steamed.

[5][12] One such mention of manta is found in the 1330 manuscript Yinshan Zhengyao by Hu Sihui, a Chinese court therapist in service of the Yuan Dynasty Emperor, Buyantu Khan.

[2][5] In general, there is agreement that the recipe was carried across Central Asia along the Silk Road to Anatolia by Turkic and Mongol peoples.

[14][15] According to Holly Chase, "Turkic and Mongol horsemen on the move are supposed to have carried frozen or dried manti, which could be quickly boiled over a camp-fire".

[18] However, some researchers do not discount the possibility that manti may have originated in the Middle East and spread eastward to China and Korea through the Silk Road.

The version in Shirvani's book is a steamed dumpling with a minced lamb and crushed chickpeas filling spiced with cinnamon and flavored with vinegar.

When sold as street food in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, manti are typically presented sprinkled with hot red pepper powder.

Manti is usually topped with butter and maybe served with sour cream, different types of ketchup, or freshly sliced onions (sprinkled with vinegar and black pepper).

[22] The same style of cooking manti is traditional for Tatar, Bashkir and other cuisines of the Turkic peoples living in the vast area from Idel-Ural to the Far East.

In Afghan cuisine, the thinly rolled out dough of the mantu is filled with beef or lamb mixed with minced onions and spices, steamed and then topped with a yoghurt-based sauce.

The mantu can also be topped with a tomato-based sauce which can include split peas or red kidney beans and/or sautéed ground meat.

In contrast to the Central Asian varieties, manti in Anatolia and Transcaucasia are usually boiled or baked rather than steamed and tend to be small in size.

Similarly, the Armenian manti, also sometimes referred to as monta, are usually served with yoghurt (matzoon) or sour cream (ttvaser) and garlic, accompanied by clear soup (mantapour).

[25] Manti may be made from shredded meat of quail, chicken or goose in some regions of Turkey, while boş mantı ("empty dumpling") lack filling entirely.