Temperature of tandoor for making naan
What is the temperature used in a tandoor for making naan or kulcha? I know it's higher than 500 deg. F [260 deg. C], but don't know the exact range of temperatures resestaurants use.
Update: Having baked my naan in a Big Green Egg knockoff for more than a year now, I can say that the ideal temperature seems to be between 600 deg. F and 700 deg. F. This may not be the range of temperature in a tandoor, but for baking naan on a pizza stone in a ceramic oven, the range I mentioned seems to work.
Best Answer
There isn't much detailed information for this online. Even the various manufacturers don't generally cite desired temperatures. Wikipedia says up to 480C/900F, but does not cite a source for this temperature. The NY Times says that a traditional charcoal tandoor gets up to 750F, but does not mention a source either. Homedoor, the one manufacturer who mentions a temperature, says that their units go up to 650F.
None of these sources mention a desired optimal temperature, though. It seems likely that the temperature would be similar to the optimal temperature for Neopolitan pizza, between 600F and 700F.
Also, a tandoor is designed so that the clay walls will be hotter than the air inside the oven -- I'd assume probably 50-100F hotter, but that's basically a blind guess as I can't find any measurements anywhere.
The one thing I can tell you from personal experience is that you cannot make Indian naan with the proper texture in a home oven with a pizza stone which only gets up to 525F. Believe me, I've tried.
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What is the ideal temperature for tandoor?
The temperature inside the Tandoor is kept near to 480 degrees Celsius. The food cooked in the Tandoor oven is known as Tandoori.Why is naan bread cooked in a Tandoor oven?
Unlike other cooking methods, bread is baked in a tandoor by sticking the dough directly to the walls inside the oven. Because the walls are so thick and the flame is inside, the heat is much higher as compared to a regular oven \u2014over 700\xb0 Fahrenheit.How long does it take to heat a tandoor?
After about 20 minutes, the tandoor should begin to heat up. Place the lid over the top so that it is about \xbe covered and close the bottom vent by 2/3 and allow to heat up for about 45 minutes. By this time, your tandoor walls should be hot and radiating heat.Is naan cooked in a tandoori oven?
Naan is traditionally cooked in a tandoor or earthen oven, but can also be made in your oven at home.How to make tandoori naan by chef Ashish Bhatia
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