The barbeque is probably the most ubiquitous method of cooking, with regional variations found all over the world. The tandoor is its form of success. The tandoor has been the standard method of grilling in these regions. Tandoor can refer to either the round clay oven used for cooking and baking, or the method of cooking and baking itself.
There is a legend that the tandoor made its way to Central Asia and the Middle East on the backs of Romanian immigrants. Chicken tikka masala, a dish popularised by the tandoor in India, is served at the majority of restaurants around the world. Its popularity persisted even during the years of Muslim control in South Asia.
The design of the clay oven used to cook Tandoori cuisine imparts a distinctive smoky flavour to the food. Tandoors get their heat from a bed of glowing coals at their bottom. Tandoors are known for their distinctively flavoured smoke, which is created when fluids from the meal being cooked drip down onto hot cinders below. In most cases, the heat required by the tandoor comes from a charcoal or timber fire burning inside the tandoor. It is common practise to keep a tandoor lighted for long periods of time in order to maintain temperatures up to 900 degrees Fahrenheit.
Certain types of Iranian, Pakistani, Indian, and Afghan cuisines, such as tandoori chicken, chicken tikka, and breads like tandoori naan and roti, are commonly prepared in the tandoor. Barbecuing small pieces of chicken that have been marinated in a mixture of spices and yoghurt yields the South Asian dish known as chicken tikka. Most frequently, it is boneless and skewered for cooking in a tandoor. It can be eaten as a kebab with some green chutney, or it can be used to make the curry chicken tikka masala.
Roasted tandoori chicken is another popular option; it was first created in the western region of India. The chicken is seasoned with garam masala, ginger, garlic, cumin, peppers, and turmeric extract for colour, and then marinated in yoghurt. It’s often cooked on a clay stove, although a grill works just as well.
The tandoori craze continues unabatedly, with many restaurants in India and Pakistan serving tandoori dishes to hungry diners all over the world. The tandoori menu has expanded to include a wide variety of meats, seafood, poultry, vegetables, fruits, and cheeses, and its popularity grows daily.
It’s not easy to find a substitute for a tandoor, but we do have some possibilities. Barbecues have the potential to be delicious, especially if the meal is prepared over a grill that allows the fluids to drip down into the coals or burners. The final flavour isn’t quite like the tandoor, but it’s not far off, either.
If you want to make tandoori food on a regular stove, that’s an option. Both the oven and the tandoor feature a closed chamber where heat is retained, but the oven cannot replicate the distinctive smoky flavour of authentic tandoori cooking. In the absence of a tandoor, this method is ideal for baking tandoori breads since heat is used to create a certain environment within the oven.
Despite the fact that grilling is the polar opposite of tandoori cooking, it may be utilised to prepare dishes like lamb chops and chicken tikka. To cook food, a grill uses components suspended above the cooking surface rather than an enclosed chamber. Even still, tasty food was still possible to prepare. Cooking times are cut down with the use of the grill.
