Azerbaijani tiny lamb dumpling soup (Düşbərə)

1. Knead the flour with the egg, salt and about 120 ml cold water into a firm, smooth dough, wrap in cling film and rest for 30 minutes.

2. Very finely chop or grate the onion, mix with the minced lamb and season with salt and pepper; crush the garlic, stir it into the wine vinegar and set aside.

3. Roll the dough out thinly (1-2 mm) on a floured surface and cut into 3 cm squares; put a pea-sized bit of filling in the centre of each.

4. Fold each square into a triangle, press the edges together, then pinch the two bottom corners of the triangle together – this gives you tiny hat-shaped dumplings; line them up on a floured tray.

5. Bring 2 litres of salted water (or lamb or beef stock) to the boil in a large pot, add the dumplings and cook for 5-6 minutes after they float to the surface.

6. Ladle the soup into bowls, sprinkle with dried mint and put the garlic vinegar on the side so everyone can splash some into their soup to taste.

Tip: Traditionally an Azerbaijani cook's skill is measured by how many düşbərə fit on one spoon – the smaller, the better. Feel free to make a double batch and freeze the raw dumplings.