Recreating Tandoori Flavors Outside of the Oven

 Many breads and dishes in traditional North Indian cuisine were created expressly for the tandoor oven. Tandoori lamb chops, chicken tikka, clay tandoor oven chicken, seekh kabab, tandoori prawns, reshmi kabab, and many other meals; paratha, naan, kulcha, roti, and other fascinating breads. However, only a select handful of us can now say that we have our very own tandoor in our homes. This article discusses several approaches to preparing foods in the tandoori technique.

The Flavor of Tandoori Cuisine Without the Effort

The distinctively smoky flavor of tandoori dishes is a direct result of the construction of the clay oven. A tandoor (which looks like a pot-belly stove) gets its heat from lit coals at the bottom of the oven. The smoke produced by the tandoor when the juices from the food inside trickle down onto the hot coals below is what gives the food its distinctive flavor.

Finding an alternative to a tandoor is challenging, but we do have some choices. Cooking barbecue on a grill that lets fluids and fat flow directly into the flames produces a more flavorful meal. The flavor is very similar to what you'd get from a tandoor, and the process is relatively easy to replicate.

Tandoori cuisine can also be prepared in a conventional oven. Both the oven and the tandoor are enclosed spaces that trap heat, but the oven does not create the distinctive smokey flavor of authentic tandoori cooking. If you're craving tandoori breads like naan, roti, kulcha, etc. but don't have access to a tandoor, this is the next best thing.

Lamb chops and chicken tikka can be grilled, despite grilling being the conceptual antithesis of tandoori cuisine. Grilling uses devices that are hung above the food to provide the necessary heat. Nonetheless, delicious meals can be prepared. When you need to get dinner on the table fast (and the barbeque isn't an option), fire up the grill.

Conclusion

When you want to prepare North Indian food, a coal-fueled grill is the best alternative to a tandoor. However, tandoors are now much simpler to purchase in the West, so if tandoori-style food is a regular feature on your menu, it may be well worth the expenditure.