Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup Milk
- 2 tsp Tea Powder
- 2 tsp Sugar (adjust to taste)
- ½ inch ginger, crushed
- 2 piece cardamom (Ilaichi)
NOTE
For most Indian home-style chai, 1:1 water-to-milk is the easiest ratio to remember and scales cleanly.
1 cup water + 1 cup milk + 2 tsp tea + 2 tsp sugar = 2 cups chai.
You can adjust the ratio of water and milk for different style of chai.
Style Water Milk Light tea 70% 30% Everyday chai 50% 50% Rich Gujarati chai 40% 60% Very creamy chai 30% 70%
Directions
Preparation
- Take out milk from Refrigerator and Keep it out in one bowl or cup. It is better if milk is not too cold.
- Lightly crush the ginger using a mortar and pestle or the flat side of a knife. Avoid making a fine paste, otherwise it will become bitter.
- Lightly crush the cardamom pods to release their aroma.
Process
Boiling Water
- Turn on the Gas on High Flame.
- Add water in the tea pane. Sooner the water boiled it is better.
The boiling water acts as the base for extracting flavors from the spices.
Extract the Spice Flavors
- Turn the Gas into Medium Low Flame.
- Add Ginger, and Cardamom into the Boiling Water.
- Let the infusion process take 3 minutes.
Simmering the spices first allows their flavors to infuse into the water before the tea is added.
Adding Tea Powder and Sugar
- Add the tea powder to the infused water.
- Add the sugar.
- Simmer on medium-low heat for 2–3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Adding sugar at this stage helps it dissolve completely and blend evenly with the tea.
Adding Milk
- Pour in the milk.
- Increase the heat to medium.
- Stir gently and bring the tea to a boil.
- Once it rises, reduce the heat and simmer for 1–2 minutes.
Longer simmering creates a stronger and richer chai.
If we add cold milk, tea will have temperature shock. Temperature of tea will suddenly rise, and flavor of the tea will change. Also, cream of the milk will formed in case of cold milk.
Finish and Serve
- Turn off the heat.
- Strain the tea into cups.
- Serve immediately.
For extra fragrance, add a small pinch of Cardamom powder and/or Cinnamon powder, just before serving.