A tandoor ( or ) is a large urn-shaped oven, usually made of clay, originating from the

Indian Subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

. Since antiquity, tandoors have been used to bake unleavened

flatbreads A flatbread is a bread made with flour; water, milk, yogurt, or other liquid; and salt, and then thoroughly rolled into flattened dough. Many flatbreads are unleavened, although some are leavened, such as pizza and pita bread. Flatbreads ...

, such as

roti Roti (also known as chapati) is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent. It is popular in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Trini ...

and

naan Naan ( fa, نان, nān, ur, , ps, نان, ug, نان, hi, नान, bn, নান) is a leavened, oven-baked or tawa-fried flatbread which is found in the cuisines mainly of Western Asia, Central Asia, Indian subcontinent, Indonesia, ...

, as well as to roast meat. The tandoor is predominantly used in Western Asian,

Central Asian Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former S ...

, South Asian and Horn of African cuisines. The roots of the tandoor can be traced back over 5000 years, to the ancient Indus Valley Civilization, one of the oldest known civilizations. The standard heating element of a tandoor is an internal charcoal or wood fire, which cooks food with direct heat and smoke. Tandoors can be fully above ground, or partially buried below ground, often reaching over a meter in height/depth. Temperatures in a tandoor can reach , and they are routinely kept lit for extended periods. Therefore, traditional tandoors are usually found in restaurant kitchens. Modern tandoors are often made of metal. Variations, such as tandoors with gas or electric heating elements, are more common for at-home use.

Etymology

The English word comes from

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Akkadian word ''tinūru'' (𒋾𒂟), which consists of the parts ''tin'' "mud" and ''nuro/nura'' "fire" and is mentioned as early as in the Akkadian

Epic of Gilgamesh The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with ...

, c.f. also Avestan ''tanûra'' and

Middle Persian Middle Persian or Pahlavi, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg () in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle ...

''tanûr''. In

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

, the tandoor was referred to as ''kandu''. Words related and similar to ''tandoor'' are used in various languages, for example the

Dari Persian Dari (, , ), also known as Dari Persian (, ), is the variety of the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan. Dari is the term officially recognised and promoted since 1964 by the Afghan government for the Persian language,Lazard, G.Darī ...

words ''tandūr'' and ''tanūr'',

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

''tannūr'' (تنّور),

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

''t’onir'' (Թոնիր), Assyrian ''tanūra'' (ܬܢܘܪܐ), Azerbaijani ''təndir'',

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

''tone'' (თონე),

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

''tanúr'' (תנור), Kyrgyz ''tandyr'' (тандыр), Kazakh ''tandyr'' (тандыр),

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...

''tenûr'', Tat ''tənur'', Tajik ''tanur'' (танур), Turkish ''tandır'', Turkmen ''tamdyr'', Uzbek ''tandir,'' Luganda ''ttanuulu, and Somali Tinaar.''

Operation

The first time a tandoor is used, the temperature must be gradually increased to condition the interior of the oven. This step is crucial in ensuring the longevity of the tandoor. Conditioning can be done by starting a very small fire and slowly adding fuel to gradually increase the amount of heat inside the tandoor. Hairline cracks might form during conditioning; this is normal and will not interfere with the performance of the tandoor oven. When the oven cools off, the hairline cracks will barely be noticeable. They are essential in allowing the clay body of the tandoor to breathe ( thermal expansion and contraction). The slower the temperature inside the tandoor is increased during its first use, the fewer hairline cracks will develop.

Types

Arab world: tannour / tannur

Persianate world and Southern Asia

Afghan tandoor

The Afghan tandoor sits above the ground and is made of bricks.

Punjabi tandoor

A Tandoor also known as tannour is a cylindrical clay or metal oven used in cooking and baking in Pakistan and other Asian countries

The Punjabi tandoor from

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...

is traditionally made of clay and is a bell-shaped oven, which can either be set into the earth or rest above the ground and is fired with wood or charcoal reaching temperatures of about . Tandoor cooking is a traditional aspect of

Punjabi cuisine Punjabi cuisine is a culinary style originating in the Punjab, a region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, which is now divided in an Indian part to the east and a Pakistani part to the west. This cuisine has a rich tradition o ...

in undivided

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

. In

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, tandoori cooking was traditionally associated with the

, as Punjabis embraced the tandoor on a regional level, and became popular in the mainstream after the 1947 partition when Punjabi Sikhs and Hindus resettled in places such as Delhi. In rural Punjab, it was common to have communal tandoors. Some villages still have a communal tandoor, which was a common sight prior to 1947.

Armenian tonir

In ancient times, the ''tonir'' was worshiped by the Armenians as a symbol of the sun in the ground. Armenians made tonirs in resemblance with the setting sun "going into the ground" (the Sun being the main deity). The underground tonir, made of clay, is one of the first tools in Armenian cuisine, as an oven and as a thermal treatment tool. Armenians are said to have originated underground tonirs.

Azerbaijani tandir

ancient times Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cov ...

people used it to cook bread and various dishes. Tandir bread (''təndir çörəyi'', tandoori bread) is widespread bread type in

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...

. Tandir bread is baked from the heat of the tandir's walls, which ensures very fast baking. One of the world's biggest tandoors was built in Azerbaijan's southern city of Astara in 2015. The height of the tandoor is and the diameter is . The tandoor consists of 3 parts.

Turkmen tamdyr

Baking a traditional, white bread called in Turkmen, is an ancient and honored culinary

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

. It is made in the traditional clay oven, known as in Turkmenistan. Tamdyr6

Most Turkmen families living in the rural area have tamdyrs in their household. Occasionally, housewives get together and bake for several families. One of most famous kinds of baked in the Turkmen tamdyr is (bread with meat), made during traditional holidays. Turkmens bake not only bread in the tamdyr, but also several dishes, the most famous of which is ''somsa'' (an independent dish, similar to a pie, of any shape with a filling, usually beef). Various

spices A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices are ...

can be added to the Turkmen bread: cumin, cinnamon,

olives The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' 'M ...

mustard Mustard may refer to: Food and plants * Mustard (condiment), a paste or sauce made from mustard seeds used as a condiment * Mustard plant, one of several plants, having seeds that are used for the condiment ** Mustard seed, seeds of the mustard p ...

sunflower seeds The sunflower seed is the seed of the sunflower (''Helianthus annuus''). There are three types of commonly used sunflower seeds: linoleic (most common), high oleic, and sunflower oil seeds. Each variety has its own unique levels of monounsatu ...

and other flavoring ingredients. To prepare tamdyr for baking, first, fire is made directly inside the tamdyr, usually using dried cotton stalks. The bread-maker then watches the color of the tamdyr's inner walls. When they turn white, the ashes are shoveled into the center of the tamdyr and the lower ash-pit is closed. The bread must be thrown into the oven very carefully, but deftly, so that it does not lose its shape and neatly sticks to the wall.

Dishes

A tandoor may be used to bake many different types of flatbread. Some of the most common are tandoori roti, tandoori naan, tandoori laccha

paratha Paratha () is a flatbread native to South Asia, prevalent throughout the modern-day nations of India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana, Suriname, and Trinidad a ...

, missi roti,

laffa Laffa, also known as lafa or Iraqi pita, is a large, thin flatbread in Israeli cuisine with an Iraqi origin. Laffa is a simple bread that is traditionally dairy-free and vegan and cooked in a '' tannur'' (tandoor) or ''taboon'' oven. It is mos ...

, and tandoori

kulcha Kulcha is a type of mildly leavened flatbread that originated in the Indian subcontinent. Recipe Kulcha is made from maida flour, water, a pinch of salt and a leavening agent (yeast or old kulcha dough), mixed together by hand to make a very ti ...

. ''Peshawari Khar'' is roasted cashews, and cottage cheese paste marinated in spiced thick cream grilled in a tandoor. ''Balochs and aloos'' are potatoes stuffed with cottage cheese, vegetables and cashew nuts, roasted in a tandoor.

Tandoori chicken Tandoori chicken is a South Asian dish of chicken marinated in yogurt and spices and roasted in a '' tandoor'', a cylindrical clay oven. The dish is now popular world-wide. The modern form of the dish was popularized by the Moti Mahal restau ...

is a roasted chicken

delicacy A delicacy is usually a rare and expensive food item that is considered highly desirable, sophisticated, or peculiarly distinctive within a given culture. Irrespective of local preferences, such a label is typically pervasive throughout a r ...

that originated in

region of South Asia. The chicken is marinated in yogurt seasoned with

garam masala Garam masala Hindustani_language.html"_;"title="rom_Hindustani_language">Hindustani_/_(''garm_masala'',_"hot_spices")is_a_Spice_mix.html" ;"title="Hindustani language">Hindustani / (''garm masala'', "hot spices")">Hindustani_language.html" ;"tit ...

, garlic, ginger, cumin,

cayenne pepper The cayenne pepper is a type of '' Capsicum annuum''. It is usually a moderately hot chili pepper used to flavor dishes. Cayenne peppers are a group of tapering, 10 to 25 cm long, generally skinny, mostly red-colored peppers, often with ...

, and other spices depending on the recipe. In hot versions of the dish, cayenne, red chili powder, or other spices give the typical red color; in milder versions,

food coloring Food coloring, or color additive, is any dye, pigment, or substance that imparts color when it is added to food or drink. They come in many forms consisting of liquids, powders, gels, and pastes. Food coloring is used in both commercial food ...

is used.

Turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...

produces a yellow-orange color. It is traditionally cooked at high temperatures in a tandoor, but can also be prepared on a traditional grill. Chicken tikka is a dish from

Mughlai cuisine Mughlai cuisine consists of dishes developed in the medieval Indo-Persian cultural centres of the Mughal Empire. It represents a combination of cuisine of the Indian subcontinent with the cooking styles and recipes of Central Asian and Islami ...

that originated in

region. It is made by grilling small pieces of boneless chicken which have been

marinate Marinating is the process of soaking foods in a seasoned, often acidic, liquid before cooking. The origin of the word alludes to the use of brine (''aqua marina'' or sea water) in the pickling process, which led to the technique of adding flav ...

d in

and

yogurt Yogurt (; , from tr, yoğurt, also spelled yoghurt, yogourt or yoghourt) is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. The bacteria used to make yogurt are known as ''yogurt cultures''. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bac ...

. It is traditionally cooked on skewers in a tandoor and is usually boneless. It is normally served and eaten with a green coriander

chutney A chutney is a spread in the cuisines of the Indian subcontinent. Chutneys are made in a wide variety of forms, such as a tomato relish, a ground peanut garnish, yogurt or curd, cucumber, spicy coconut, spicy onion or mint dipping sa ...

, or used in preparing the curry chicken ''tikka masala''. Tangdi kabab, a popular snack in

cuisine from the Indian subcontinent Cuisine of the Indian subcontinent includes the cuisines from the Indian subcontinent comprising the traditional cuisines from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Staples and common ingredients Chapati, ...

, is made by marinating chicken drumsticks and placing them in a tandoor. Various freshly ground spices are added to the yogurt to form a marinade for the chicken. Traditionally, the marinaded chicken is given 12 hours at the least. When prepared, the drumsticks are usually garnished with mint leaves and served with laccha (finely sliced half moons, with a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt) onions.

Samosa A samosa () or singara is a fried Indian pastry with a savory filling, including ingredients such as spiced potatoes, onions, and peas. It may take different forms, including triangular, cone, or half-moon shapes, depending on the region. Sam ...

is a stuffed snack consisting of a fried or baked triangular, semilunar or tetrahedral pastry shell with a savory filling, which may include spiced potatoes, onions, peas, coriander, and lentils, or ground lamb or chicken. The size and shape of a samosa, as well as the consistency of the pastry used, can vary considerably. In some regions of

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...

(i.e.,

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

and

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...

), samosas are typically baked in a tandoor, while they are usually fried elsewhere.

References

Bibliography

* ''Curry Club Tandoori and Tikka Dishes'', Piatkus, London — (1993) * ''Curry Club 100 Favourite Tandoori Recipes'', Piatkus, London — & (1995) * ''India: Food & Cooking'', New Holland, London — (2007) {{Use dmy dates, date=December 2021 Fireplaces Cooking appliances Barbecue Earth oven Arab cuisine Armenian cuisine Azerbaijani cuisine Bengali cuisine Cuisine of Georgia (country) Indian cuisine Israeli cuisine Iraqi cuisine Kazakhstani cuisine Kyrgyz cuisine Pakistani cuisine Palestinian cuisine Punjabi cuisine Syrian cuisine Tajik cuisine Turkish cuisine Turkmenistan cuisine Uzbekistani cuisine Firing techniques