tan·door·i [tahn-door-ee]. Indian Cooking. a cylindrical clay oven, fired to a high heat by wood or charcoal, in which foods, especially meats, are cooked and bread is baked.a cylindrical clay oven in which food is cooked over charcoal.Essentially, they are a cylindrical, vertical clay pot designed to withstand extremely high temperatures. Unlike the horizontal ovens one can find in virtually any Western kitchen, tandoors do not have a vertical door to open and insert food for cooking.
