TandooriPlace

Tandoori food is cooked in the Tandoor… a cylindrical clay oven used throughout Southern, Central & Western Asia.

Heat generated from charcoal or wood-fire, exposes the food cooked in The Tandoor to the unique combination of live-fire, radiant heat, hot-air and smoking as the fat and food juices drip onto the charcoal bringing the food that delicious fat-free, exotic flavour. Temperatures in a tandoor can approach 480°C (900°F)
The evolution of Tandoori Spices started in 1398 after Temur Ling (a direct descendant of Genghis Khan) encamped on the banks of the Indus just below the Shalimar Mughal Gardens in the valley of Kashmir.

It was here amongst the soaring mountains, sparkling lakes and be-flowered meadows of the Western Himalayas that Sikander the sultan of Kashmir paid homage to the great Temur Ling who introduced many varieties of Pilav (also called pilau… originally a Persian dish of grain cooked in a seasoned and spicy broth).

The next stage in the creation of this culinary art happened shortly after this with the introduction of kebabs and other spices brought to the region by saints, serfs and scholars from Persia.

For the next few hundred years the development of Tandoori cuisine remained at a stand-still until the 16th century when the Moghul Emperor, Akbar annexed Kashmir to India throwing open the Southern passages allowing the free flow of trade into the region. This brought with it a greater variety of spices and new ideas which eventually became a perfect blend of Samarkhand, Persian and Indian tastes which we proudly today call ‘Tandoori cuisine.’