Thanks for the replies!  Some interesting points.  The reply with the link to a radio discussion about pizza bases was pretty relevant too, I thought, as this is something I've tried (and failed) to get right too.

The conclusion I came too about pizza bases was that they are cooked in a blazingly hot oven, very fast.  On TV, I think I saw an Italian cook move a pile of burning wood cinders (in an oven) aside a foot or so, and then immediately put the pizza onto the vacated 'hot spot'.  The high temperature crisps the outside whilst leaving the inner moist, provided it is pulled out just minutes later.

My gas oven goes up to Mark 9  which is 240 degrees C.  My guess is that this is nowhere near hot enough.  The 'glowing red hot' ovens of a pizzeria are likely to be at least double this (I work with furnaces but not the sort you can put food in!) and perhaps far hotter.  To the poster who mentioned putting a pizza stone in the oven for a long time, I do doubt that even stabilised at 240C, this would ever suffice.  My hunch is that successful naans are 90% about the cooking and 10% about the dough recipe.

Anyway, the comments on the radio interview link kind of support this idea, as he tampers (dangerously) to override his oven's clean cycle temperature limit.

Another problem with pizza stones, incidentally, is the ease of breaking them.  I didn't dare copy the moist dough as used in a restaurant, which they want to 'stick' to a tandoor's wall, after reading countless stories on Amazon.com of reviewers cracking their Sassafras stones by thermal shock etc.  Cold liquid onto brittle stone at 240C isn't good.

The other factor with a Tandoor is the 'clay effect' which at least a stone should emulate.

Does anyone have an idea of temperatures inside a Tandoor?  I did get a look inside one once, it didn't look all that hot but then it might not have been in proper use at the time.  I know the cooks lose the hair on the arm they use to place naans against the wall.  Can anyone shed any light on how hot tandoors get?  Do the electric ones have a temperature dial to adjust which would give this away?

Bit of a backward step for last couple of days...

Yesterday, tried burning garlic in oil, and after removal of burnt bits, used oil to fry fresh garlic in.? But this this didn't work at all.

Today, tried burning up some cumin seeds as well as garlic, then after 'cleaning', used the oil to fry fresh garlic, cumin powder and asafoteda.? Result....nothing like the near-miss of a few days ago.

Bit perplexed at momentary success earlier this week, must have touched upon something a bit more transient than just adding the right ingredient.? But fear not, more experiments on the way, plus we've been pointed at another tarka recipe to try claiming to have that elusive smokey taste!? Will crack this one way or another.....

Roy.

CurryQueen,

We've just tried your sesame oil recipe.? It certainly is a lovely dhal.? The browning of the garlic did impart some smokiness, but also there was a little of the acrid/bitter taste that browned garlic has.? Is was very enjoyable, but not exactly what we are seeking.

The browned garlic/cumin seeds were very visible in the yellow dhal.? I mention this, as having stared longingly into many a BIR dhal, it's rare to see anything brown in them.? Perhaps the odd bit of browned onion may be put in some, but most show nothing like the amount amount of browned material that the sesame recipe creates (to the degree that it darkened the yellow dhal to a brownish colour).

When you make it, do you separate out the browned cumin seeds & garlic, and then just use the oil?? Just a thought, as I was starting to wonder if perhaps restaurants flavour the oil by some such dark frying, but remove the bits to avoid passing on any unpleasant taste?

This certainly is one hell of a difficult problem to crack.? Does anyone have an Indian Granny they can cross-examine?!

Curryqueen,

Thanks, I will try this idea too.? But I must admit, I've never heard of Sesame Oil being used in conventional Indian Cooking (perhaps it's more an Asian/Thai ingredient?), and I haven't noticed that distinctive "nutty" sesame oil taste in a dhal before.?

Where did you get this recipe from?

Roy.

CC,

Just thought I'd quickly add that we've just tried the recipe.? It's certainly one of the nicest dhals we've ever had, not sure if it's the ghee or the initial frying, but it does has a very lovely taste.

I can't say (yet) that it's smokey (though I haven't yet tried adding onions/garlic) but I was wondering exactly what you meant by "tossed" in the tempered oil?? After adding the dhal to the hot ghee, there is an initial vigorous frying/boiling, which quickly subsides as the ghee mixes with the dhal.? Is this what you mean, or did you have in mind a far more vigorous, prolonged high temperature blast in the oiled pan?

Thanks again,

Roy.