Cooking With A Tandoori Oven

By Shahid Patel

Tandoori chicken is a very popular food in Indian culture. This traditional and delicious food is cooked using a tandoor oven, which is a clay oven which is used to cook meats and flatbreads at extremely high temperatures. The word tandoori is an adjective which means "pertaining to the tandoor".

The heat of a tandoor is intense, and can reach up to 900 degrees faranheit. This creates a sealed heat that is good at retaining the natural juices and flavors of meats, seafood and Indian naan bread. The tandoor ovens are fired by charcoal, and can get so hot that a chicken is usually cooked in 5 minutes or less.

Clay tandoors cook very fast with the use of charcoal or gas, and sometimes even wood. When used in combination they create a very hot fire that produces temperatures hot enough to be perfect for baking breads and cooking meats. With these scorching heats, food can be cooked very quickly without burning.

Start a fire with charcoal in the bottom of the oven, and when the coals are white hot you are ready to cook seafood, meats, and bread. Some popular items cooked in a tandoori oven are tandoori chicken and the popular naan bread which is customary in India and Pakistan.

To make naan bread stick to the sides of the tandoor, sprinkle a brine solution on the inner walls. A good way to know if the tandoor is hot enough is to try sticking a naan to the sides. If it sticks, you know your tandoor is hot enough and you can begin cooking.

The food is permeated with an aroma of marinade, clay and charcoal smoke, and the scent is intoxicating. The meat is often cooked on long skewers that can be inserted directly into the oven. Cooking in a tandoori oven will produce very succulent and tender meat, as the cooking process is optimum for sealing in all the flavors and juices.

It comes as no surprise that the tandoor oven cooking method goes back 2000 years. In ancient Egypt bread was cooked at extremely high temperatures in a clay pot. When things work and they are an ideal measure, chances are they wont just go away. The evolution of cooking with tandoor ovens spans 2000 years and it won't be going away anytime soon.

Tandoori food is often considered the culinary pride of the people of India. It is prepared with the greatest of care and the passion for this cooking often translates to irresistable food. You will commonly find delicious dips and sauces, such as yogurt raita sauce and kachoomar salsa.

People prefer tandoori chicken either as a snack, or as a side dish with other traditional Indian cuisine. Tandoori chicken can also be served as an appetizer. Naan is a traditional flat bread that is cooked on the outside of the tandoor. The cooking time is even more critical for the bread as it will burn if left too long.

Tandoori food is generally low in calories and simple to prepare, although it looks amazing on the table. Good for family meals as well as entertaining. The secret behind this succulent tandoori chicken dish lies in the long marinade in yogurt with spices. The coloring used to achieve the distinctive tandoori color is created using alkanet root. - 30289

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