Tandoori Taqueria Brings Cowboy Country an Unexpected Indian Spice: NPR

Southern Utah, in rural areas, is a cowboy country and has a reputation for being a well-known place for meat and potatoes. Thus, after a recent three-day hike in Bryce Canyon National Park, when Kim Johnson saw a sign announcing a Tandoori Taqueria, she immediately stopped.

Johnson and his family, who live in Salt Lake City, are vegetarians.

"We ate a lot of Subway sandwiches [this trip], "she said with a laugh. And a lot of great salads, because that's a pretty meaty environment here. "

Inside, the family smiles while digging into plates of cauliflower tacos, with garbanzo beans, smoked Mexican spices and tomatillo chutney.

"These are not flavors we have had in recent days in southern rural Utah," said Johnson.

And that is exactly the idea. Five years ago, Ripple Desai opened Tandoori Taqueria in her home town of Panguitch, which has about 1,500 inhabitants. The Taqueria Tandoori stands out from the main street of the city among several cafes and dinners for mothers and teens, a Family Dollar store and NAPA Auto Parts.

"I'm Indian, my parents are both from India," Desai says, quickly adding, "And I love tacos."

His menu is a fusion of traditional Indian dishes with this beloved Mexican staple – the tacos. She uses naan bread as a tortilla. Recently, at lunchtime, guests were stocking up on slowly roasted beef chorizo ​​tacos, garnished with tomatillo chutney, spicy pozole with marinated pork in a turmeric bath, and freshly baked pork. a dish called curry with verazcruzana, chicken and chickpeas in a grilled red pepper sauce. Each dish is cooked to order in a small kitchen in the dining room.

"I wanted to do something completely different," says Desai. "I wanted to make sure you were eating something different from everything you had."

Taqueria is primarily for tourists visiting Bryce Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, and nearby Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. Desai says that she had some first glances from the locals. But she was used to it. They were the only Indian family in a predominantly Mormon, white city for most of their childhood. His parents still own the motel they bought in the 1980s, in the restaurant street, located in a building that Ripple's father also owned.

Desai remembers begging her to make tacos to her father – her mother was mainly preparing traditional Gujarati dishes from her native state, Gujarat, India, with lots of spices, lentils, vegetables and rice. She grew up learning to cook.

"And that's what my mother [still] done every day, even to this day, "says Desai. That 's what I have when I leave here at 10 pm. and go home. "

Her mother, Tarla Desai, always cooks, except when she stops in her daughter's Taqueria for a snack.

"She tasted everything," says Ripple, adding that she always kept her informed if her rice was too crisp or if a dish needed additional seasoning.

It is clear, however, that Tarla is proud of her daughter.

"She's fine, everyone loves it," said Tarla. "She has a business spirit and has the style of Indian cuisine."

And mom plays another key role. Every winter, when tourists leave, her father and she close their hotel and go to their home country, usually in India. They come back in the spring with spices in two 50-pound suitcases.

This is what gives an extra kick to these delicious chicken tikkas.