Cooking With Tandoor Ovens
Tandoor ovens are most often associated with tandoori chicken, a delicious and traditional Indian food. Often marinated, the chicken and meats cooked in a tandoor oven are known for being crispy on the outside and juicy and succulent on the inside.
Fired by charcoal, the sides of a tandoor can reach 900 degrees, creating a sealed heat that allows breads, seafood, and meats cooked in it to retain their natural juices and flavors. Meats cooked in the tall, rather cylindrical tandoor are usually skewered and thrust into the oven’s heat, which is so intense that it cooks a chicken half in less than 5 minutes.
The Tandoor is a charcoal or gas fired clay oven used for cooking breads or meats, the temperatures reached inside the Tandoor are extremely high, which helps cook very quickly without burning. Preparation is as important as the cooking itself, if not more. The oven contains a flamed bottom, fueled by wood, coal, dung or gas, which produces a very high heat.
Traditionally, a charcoal fire is built in the bottom of the oven and when it becomes a bed of hot embers it is ready to cook meats, breads and seafoods. It is used for cooking certain types of Indian and Pakistani food , such as tandoori chicken and bread varieties like tandoori roti and naan.
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.
Meats are usually cooked on long skewers that are either inserted directly into the oven or cooked over the mouth of the oven. The intense heat sears the meat and seals in juices, making it succulent and tender. The aroma of charcoal smoke, clay and marinade permeates the food, giving it the characteristic tandoori flavour.
Cooking food at a high temperature in a clay pot can be traced back over 2000 years to when the Egyptians were building the pyramids and baking bread for the workers. It is the most simple and fundamental way of cooking, using a clay pot buried in the ground, fired up with wood.
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.
The most popular dish that is cooked in tandoori ovens is definately tandoori chicken. It is eaten often, both as a main course for dinner and also as a snack. It is a delicious and unique food that everyone should try at least once.
You will definately enjoy how fast you can prepare tandoori cooked meals. You will get dinner done in about one third of the time compared with other common meals. In addition, tandoori food is healthy and low in calories! A healthy diet can certainly consist of food prepared in a tandoor.
When preparing food in an authenticTandoori oven, it is good to know you are using top notch cookware. Check out Ron Levy’s website, where you can find top notch Tandoor ovens that can help you with all your Indian cooking needs.