“It's wrong what they say about the past, I've learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out.”
― Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner
Some classics you don’t get around to reading until later in life. The Kite Runner is one of those books for me. It was published in 2003, right after I graduated high school, so I never read it for any classes. Then I got busy with college, and then my work, so I never picked it up for pleasure reading either. I bought a used copy that sat on my bookshelf for years.
But when I was googling books to read to accompany an Afghan dish — this week’s theme — The Kite Runner was top of the list. After reading it, I can see why. The novel was amazing, as was the dish I made to accompany it: Mantu dumplings with yogurt and tomato sauce.
The book
I loved The Kite Runner and probably would have finished it sooner, but I had to pause and give myself time to process some of the more emotional, darker scenes. Hosseini is such a great storyteller. The characters are nuanced and real, and he writes with such emotion. I particularly loved how he showed the changing landscape of Afghanistan, from Amir’s fond memories of his childhood to the war that changed everything. The country itself becomes a character in the novel. What happens to Hassan, and then to his son is heartbreaking — those are the parts I had to slow down and process. Overall, The Kite Runner is one of those rare books that is both important and a genuinely good story. This is how you write a classic.
The food
There are a lot of intense, emotional scenes in this novel, particularly when Amir goes to Afghanistan as an adult to rescue Hassan’s son. Most of the happier scenes occur at the very beginning of the novel, when Amir and Hassan are children, playing, tell stories and practicing for the kite competition. Everyone in town comes out to watch the kite competitions; there’s music, and good food, such as pakoras and mantu.
Mantu are steamed dumplings filled with beef, onion, and chili and topped with a garlic herb yogurt and a tomato sauce. I used a recipe from Afghan Cooks, with wonton wrappers instead of the homemade dough to save time.
The filling and sauces come together easily. Most of my cooking time was spent filling and folding dumplings, a task I’ve come to enjoy. It’s meditative; I get into a rhythm of filling and folding, and can listen to an audiobook or work through a plot point in my own creative writing at the same time.
Once the dumplings are folded, you can freeze them for later, or steam them immediately. Once finished, top with tomato sauce and garlic herb yogurt.
The verdict? I loved the flavors of this dish, and with the wonton wrappers, it was a moderately easy weekend meal. The steamed dumplings were delicious, but I’d also recommend trying to fry them, even though it’s not traditional — we had them fried for lunch the next day and they were perfection.
Next week: Reduction