Introduction: Tandoori Pizza (chicken or Paneer)

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Tandoor is a typical clay oven-grill used in many eastern countries.It provides(mainly restaurants/takeaways) a beautiful flavor and texture to the breads and savories and the grilled/baked food is hence tandoori.

I do not have such a tandoor at home and yet crave to have tandoori food at my very home. So I came up with this recipe which will satisfy my pizza crazy kids and my spice starved taste buds in one go, in a very normal BBQ grill.

The beautiful smoky flavor, when combined with lip smacking indian tandoori spices and all of them just in a pizza....would it not be wonderful?

Tools/Equipment:

BBQ grill and accessories

an old heavy pan with a lid

baking paper, rolling pin

Pizza Dough:

500gm All purpose flour

1Sachet Instant yeast

1/2tsp salt

1/4tsp sugar

1 1/2cup(approx) water

1tsp butter melted.

Tandoori topping:

1 large onion

1inch piece of ginger

4cloves garlic

1 green chili(optional if you like it spicy)

1/4 cup cream

Tandoori/garam masala(available at the asian grocer)

Grated melting cheese (I prefer mozzarella, and gruyere)

Paneer cheese or chicken shreds

onion slices or green peppers

Step 1: Dough Making

mix all the dough ingredients in a mixing bowl. and knead for a good 8 minutes till a semi soft dough is formed.

Take a baking sheet and sprinkle some flour on it and then roll out the made dough into a 1/2 inch circular sheet -slightly larger than the pizza pan intended to be used.

With a kitchen scissors cut around the baking paper leaving around 1-2inches around the rolled out dough.

Now lift this baking sheet along with the dough and place it in the pan.The edges will stand vertically on the sides- Don't panic.

sprinkle some grated cheese along the border. flap in the edges of the dough sealing in the cheese. This will give our pie a wonderful cheesy crust.

Now cover the pan with a lid and let it rise for around 1-3 hrs depending on the surrounding temperature.

Step 2: Making the Sauce and Topping

Finely grate or even better grind the onion, ginger, greenchilli and the garlic coves into a fine paste.

Add to this a 1spn of Tandoori masala powder and salt

Add in the cream, give it a good whip to form a homogenous mass.

drop in this mixture the chicken pieces paneer(cottage cheese) pieces to marinate.

leave the mixture to marinate for around 1-3 hours till the dough rises.

Step 3: Topping the Pizza

Once the dough looks nice and fluffy spread the mixture with a ladle on the dough's surface evenly. The chicken juices will leave the sauce semi liquid which makes it easier to spread on the dough. Incase you have used paneer and the mixture seems to be dry then add some cream to the sauce

Add vertically sliced onions, or green peppers if you like.

sprinkle on top a few shreds of cheese so as to set the onion in the pizza properly.

Step 4:

heat up the coals in your kettle grill. Once the coals are red hot and glowing place the pan on the grill, remove the pan lid and shut the grill lid.

depending on the size and temperature of your grill it will take around 20-30 minutes. Keep checking

Once you feel it is almost done add a few blobs of cream or butter on the surface- this absorbs the beautiful smoky flavor.

The Tandoori pizza is now irresistible and inviting. Handle the pan with gloves to prevent heat injuries.

Your neighbors are already uneasy and drooling...Do NOT hold me responsible if they gate crash your backyard!!!!

Bon appetite!