Curry Recipes Online
Beginners Guide => Hints, Tips, Methods and so on.. => Cooking Equipment => Topic started by: Tomdip on June 08, 2015, 12:59 PM
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Tried my hand at making my own Terracotta Tandoor after seeing it done on Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfXXamj8lV4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfXXamj8lV4)
Seemed cheap and easy enough, even for a cack-handed numpty like me ;)
I won't repeat the instructions but it only took 10 minutes or so and I got all the pots at Homebase/Dobbies.
Here are some pics:
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/2299d22ac259ccf3f559f5b0560f9155.jpg) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#2299d22ac259ccf3f559f5b0560f9155.jpg)
The First Collage:
1. The finished tandoor with a borrowed lid from an unused chimenea
2. My addition to the instructions, a stainless steel sink drainer for 99p to act as a 2nd grill
3. Checking the temperature with my whizz-bang new thermometer (notice I still have hair on my forearm!) This was after 30 minutes.
4. Tweaking the bricks underneath to maximise air-flow (this is key to getting it really hot)
The Second Collage:
(http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/pics/552efcacb08e1b205f3f97daba0a4261.jpg) (http://www.curry-recipes.co.uk/imagehost/#552efcacb08e1b205f3f97daba0a4261.jpg)
1. Balancing a Tikka on a slightly too-short skewer
2. Balancing the skewer on a tent peg
3. Not brave enough to stick a roti on the side in this pic - cooking on a tawa pretty well
4. Say good-bye to forearm hair! Attempted Tandoori Roti
5 & 6 My breakfast.
Overall this worked a treat. I used lumpwood charcoal, and this was my second attempt at firing it up. I would recommend extra long skewers.
The chicken cooked in 5-7 minutes and I used Blade's tried and trusted marinade.
Will give this some more testing over the BBQ season :)
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great post mate... will be making one myself now ;D
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Really good contribution there Tom, well documented and useful to others. I guess a lid which would cover the full width of the outer pot would be an advantage for when it's not in use to stop water getting into the gravel around the outside? Water will reduce the thermal insulation properties a lot, which I guess is the primary purpose of the gravel layer?
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Hi Sverige, I plan to keep it under shelter as the insulation is 90% Vermiculite & Perlite and just the top 2 Inches are gravel to keep it weighed down as the previous 2 are really light and also they soak up water like sponges.
The Lid is to stop customers in my pub garden using it as an ashtray :) Underneath is the real lid, which is just the sawn off top of the terracotta pot.
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Great stuff, Tom.
Maybe you should give a shout out for your pub, in case any of us happen to be in the area and happen to have some naan dough and marinated chicken in our possession :)
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Being a pub I'm surprised you didn't go with a Beer Keg Tandoor. This would have been a lot more work than 10 minutes though. The terracotta pots look like a nice simple solution and I've considered it myself.
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Checking the temperature with my whizz-bang new thermometer (notice I still have hair on my forearm!) This was after 30 minutes.
So what temperature did it reach? There's a figure of 518 displayed on the thermometer but no indication of whether its C or F. Also, I suspect it was pointed too close to the red hot charcoal embers, far away from the areas where bread or tikka would need the heat.
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It could be 518 'C (964.4 'F) George. That is getting up there in terms of metallurgy, not naan baking. They do get up there though and I think I can read that it does say 'C. Apparently 480'C or 900'F can be expected, so the hot coals could give that high reading.
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Hi
The red dot shows the point of the reading, so in the "Tikka" zone.
Regards
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Hi George,
That was Celsius of course - I don't do foreign money :)
The temp near the top was still nearly 400 Degrees Celsius. The picture is misleading, that dot is just above halfway up the inside of the Tandoor. Near the coals, the thermometer just read "Hi" and I don't think it was saying hello!
The thermometer was a cheap one off ebay and claimed to only go to 350 Celsius, but I was getting it a lot higher.
The soot around the inside rim had disappeared and I believe that it needs to be above 400 to do that?
I would have put my bread lower down but didn't have the right equipment.
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Tomdip - many thanks for the extra information. 400C near the top is still very impressive and probably typical for tandoori cooking. If the thermometer reads 'hi' it means it's out of range, i.e. too hot. I looked at those thermometers on eBay about a month ago and I'm aware there are various models, only a few of which go up to 500C (officially). I'm impressed you got more than you paid for, in effect, if your 350 model will actually give readings up to well over 500C.
Your tandoor looks very good and I should think it will generate a lot of interest for your pub.
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this is the thermometer I bought from ebay - advertised as up to 380!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/310646217329 (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/310646217329)
Not sure the Tandoor is up to commercial use, but I'll certainly do a "Burn what ya Brung" night where people can bring food and I'll whack it in the Tandoor :)