The tandoor is a wood or charcoal-fired barbecue oven common across all of South Asia. I have memories of visiting my mother and father’s hometown, Lucknow, with a cousin to a part of the city called Aminabad that is famous for all kinds of kabobs, straight from the tandoor. I have even more memories of smoky tandoori chicken straight out of the restaurant tandoors of Boston, New York, and San Francisco :-)…So there are many versions of tandoori that you can get and, to be honest, whether you get it at an American restaurant or from a roadside truckstop between Delhi and Varanasi, it’s actually quite similar. The modern stainless steel tandoors available outside of South Asia are pretty good at replicating the clay oven tandoors of the subcontinent. Smoky, charred, barbecued meats off a skewer, and crispy flatbreads like naan and roti are satisfying no matter the provenance.
But how do you replicate that at home?
It’s hard to get that smokey barbecue taste unless you fire up the backyard grill, so that’s one answer. A charcoal, or even a gas grill used with marinated chicken, fish, beef, etc. can approximate, but will never quite match the real thing. It’s close though. I experimented with my own marinades this past summer and explored the recipes of some the Internet’s greatest food bloggers, eventually coming up with a Tandoori Salmon that you pan fry. So it’s not smoky but it’s crispy and flavorful and you can make it any time of the year.
But to make it an EasyIndianFood, it not only has to be tasty, it also has to be fast and practical. With a little advanced planning and the help of some shnazzy kitchen gadgets (I’m looking at you Food Saver Vacuum Sealer), you can pack your freezer full of Tandoori Salmon filets. Once defrosted, you can get dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes.
Check out my new Tandoori Salmon video cooking lesson, and let me know what you think in the comments. If you end up making it at home, let us know how it landed for you. Special thanks to Kyle Maple, the Dusted Deacon, who reached out to me asking for a versatile dish that is not only good for busy families, but that also portions for just 1-2 people. This Tandoori Salmon can feed one person and scales to as many filets as you can fit in the pan, so even a large family of 6-8 people can enjoy!
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