The Tandoor Site

Hi Piers,

I spent the weekend building my Tandoor/barbecue and hopefully next Sunday will see the first trial, weather permitting. I bought the liner from the Clay Oven Co, Mr Gulian was out when I collected it, but I have subsequently sent him an E mail in which I mentioned your website. I got the domestic size liner which I think will be big enough for my purposes, I think it may be a bit smaller than yours judging from the photographs on your site. It is 56cm high with an opening 26 cm diameter. I used old, secondhand bricks as I wanted to match the patio wall and only needed 8 courses, I found it easier to cement the liner onto the fire bricks before building the walls rather than trying to install it after the walls had been built. I obtained the correct height by means of a bed of mortar on the top bricks, this serves to give an even bed for the cover as well.

Once again, many thanks for the website, it certainly made building the Tandoor easier and I am sure I avoided making some expensive mistakes because of it. Let's hope Sunday will be good outdoor cooking weather.

Best wishes,

Bob

Hi Piers,

The forecast is looking good for Sunday.

Of course I have no objection to you including anything you want from me on your website.

One thing I did not not mention that may be useful, is that before installing the liner I turned it upside down on some blocks of wood and put a layer of fire cement onto the base and then set it down onto the fire bricks. I then applied more fire cement around the base, inside and outside, this gave a really good seal.

Here's to a good day on Sunday, I will let you know how I get on.

Best wishes,

Bob

Hi Piers,

Just a note to let you know how I got on yesterday. I did chicken tikka and naan bread in the Tandoor, nothing too adventurous to start off.

I only got one burn, strangely not from the naan but from the first time I took one of the rods out, I held it a bit too low down and now have a two inch burn blister on my index finger, this is how we learn.

On the first tikka, I put some too near the base, ie too low down on the rod, and left it in a shade too long, thus the lower pieces were carbonised. After that I put the chicken pieces higher up on the rod and they cooked perfectly, towards the end of the cooking I found they need to be watched carefully and taken out the oven as soon as they are done. I now know that the cook cannot attempt to do anything else whilst there is something in the Tandoor, because of the heat any lapse of attention can lead to the food being burnt.

The naan turned out very well, I made the mistake of putting the first on a floured tray and consequently it would not stick to the oven wall, but I dampened it and it stuck perfectly then. I only dropped one into the oven on removal and that burned to nothing before I could recover it.

We had the barbecue lit at same time but it was too cold when the time came to cook the bananas for the dessert. I had the idea of cooking them in the Tandoor which was still hot, six bananas were put on one of the medium rods ( not longways!) and held in position on the rod by putting the hard bit from the end of the bunch onto the rod to act as a stop.

They were cooked in the middle of the Tandoor until the skins turned black and then served with dark rum and brown sugar, delicious. Not an Indian dish I know but a good finish to the meal and all the better for being cooked in the Tandoor.

Next time I shall try some lamb in the Tandoor as well as the chicken.

Incidentally, I have made a cover for the mouth of the oven by using a metal dustbin lid in which I have poured some concrete to give it some weight and stop the wind blowing it off. I will slit some rubber hosepipe and put it round the edge to stop it scratching the varnish on the cover as well.

I can't wait for the next fine weekend to have another go, practice makes perfect!

All the best

Bob