chai tea (indian style)

delhi street chai…yum

I drank a lot of chai in India. Due to Ryan’s aversion to caffeine, each time we were served chai I’d end up drinking mine and then his as well. Hotel chai, street chai, house chai, restaurant chai, all were served up to us on a multiple times a day basis. While always similar, and therefore good, some were better than others. Chai is best when made with freshly ground spices and ginger. It is still good on the street, made with chai masala powder, but much better the fresh way. You’ll need a mortar and pestle, or a small coffee grinder for this.

What I like about Shashi’s recipe is its simplicity. Some chai recipes have a spice list that goes on and on…but not this one. You can taste each component individually, while the combination as a whole has its own flavor spectrum. I have made it with cow’s milk and I have made it with almond milk. In India, it is cow (or buffalo) all the way, so naturally that one tastes more “authentic”, but the almond milk version is equally delicious and dovetails with my nutritional ways more seamlessly.

Enjoy!

Chai Tea
Shashi’s recipe from Udaipur
(makes one cup)

1/4 cup water
3/4 cup milk (or 1 cup almond milk, and omit the water)
2 cardamom pods
4 black peppercorns
1/2-1 inch fresh ginger, cut into small chunks
1 TBS black tea or darjeeling tea
2 TBS sugar (I have tried with both white cane juice and brown sucanat, both were nice)

Put the water and milk into a saucepan. grind the cardamom pods, black peppercorns and ginger in the mortar and pestle. Add to the milk along with the tea and sugar. Allow concoction to come to a boil and reduce the heat. Continue cooking until the liquid is brown from the tea and the aromas of the spices have been released. Pour through a strainer into your cup and enjoy!

sharing a chai with the one and only Guppi Bola