How To Make Chai Tea… the authentic kind.
Chai is the lifeblood of India. Served in scant shot glasses from dawn until way past dusk, this beverage is EVERYWHERE you look. It’s in little make-shift cafes, sold from chai-wallahs at every bus station, train station and street corner, brewing in every home.
It’s been fifteen years sense I last visited India. Yet I’ll never forget sitting in open-air chai shops drinking creamy, ultra-sweet chai with friends.
True Indian chai is a far cry from the watered-down American coffeehouse version. Authentic chai is made with thick buffalo milk, considerably too much sugar, black tea, and cardamom pods–-if you’re lucky.
The last summer I spent in India, a friend who spoke English well, nicknamed the cardamom pod the VIP nut. She explained that cardamom pods went in the chai cups of those they considered special. If they didn’t care for the person, and were just serving them chai to be polite, no cardamom! We sipped chai multiple times a day, every day. Everywhere we went, new friends would offer it with bright smiles.
I miss those chai over-dosed summers.
How To Make Chai Tea… the authentic kind.
Press the cardamom pods until they crack. Bring the water, tea, star anise, cinnamon, and cardamom to a boil.
Boil for 3-5 minutes until the tea is very dark and has reduced to about 2 cups. Strain and add the sugar. Add the milk and stir until hot.
Place the (used) cardamom pods in the bottom of the cups for good friends!
Makes 4 American-sized servings or 12+ Indian-sized servings.
Recipe: How To Make Chai Tea
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups water
- 1 whole star anise
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 4 cardamom pods, cracked
- 4-5 black tea bags, or ¼ cup loose black tea
- 2 cups whole milk or half-n-half
- ¼ cup sugar
Instructions
- Press the cardamom pods until they crack. Bring the water, tea, star anise, cinnamon, and cardamom to a boil.
- Boil for 3-5 minutes until the tea is black and has reduced to about 2 cups. Strain and add the sugar. Add the milk and stir until hot.
- Place the used cardamom pods in the bottom of the cups for good friends.
- Makes 4 American-sized servings or 12+ Indian-sized servings.
Preparation time: 1 minute(s)
Cooking time: 5 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 4
Hmm. The proper chai has the perfect blend…..
Thank you for spreading the chai love!
Our founder, Amanda Hamilton, fell in love with chai when she visited Indian, and she has now developed Drink Me Chai to be the U.K.’s No. 1 chai latte.
Our chai is a powder that you add hot water to to make an instant and authentic chai. Simples!
Chai latte’s are my favorite! This recipe is lovely. Great idea!
I love chai. I used to drink quite a few of them every day but now it’s come down to just one mug a day
My father grew up in Calcutta, India until he was 18. He’s been in the states since but still always talks about the “street food.” Chai actually just came up last weekend when he was over for dinner when I asked what kind of tea he wanted with dessert and he gave me a long tirade about how these bags of chai are BS compared to what they were in India. haha Now I know what the difference is
My goodness. This looks absolutely delicious. What a great post and beautiful pictures!
Would be so warming and delicious, gorgeous pictures!
Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous photos, Sommer! I have made authentic chai a couple of times and there really is no comparison to the “fake” stuff.
This is so wonderful and useful! I never knew how to make chai!
I Love chai! Beautiful photos, love those glass mugs!
proper, authentic chai recipe – I will definitely be making this! Gorgoeous phots too.
I like your version! Nothing charges me better than a nice masala chai
Mmmm, that looks amazing! My wife loves chai, I’ll be sure to share this with her
I love chai. I always order it when I go to Indian restaurants because theirs tastes so much better. Now I know why!
One of my daughter’s friends had her over for a playdate when she was in preschool. Her Mom, from India, made me the most incredible cup of Chai I have ever tasted. I still long for a cup of it. Now I may be able to make it myself. Thanks!
Loving this, Sommer! I guess I have probably never had authentic chai but I’m definitely trying this!!
Oooh this looks amazing. I love chai tea but the thought of making a true authentic chai is awesome and I need to try this!
Gorgeous photos and maybe an inspiration for me to try making chai tea. My daughter loves it and will sometimes bring some with her from Starbucks and I’ve not been a fan but then she makes it so sweet I would not be a fan if it were coffee!
We’re a bit later getting started than originally planned but I and two cohorts are doing an #IndianFoodPalooza starting Monday…please come and link up this beverage on my site then; it would be a fabulous addition. They are the experts but I’m excited about seeing everyone’s Indian dishes and trying out many things new to me.
Sounds great, I need to try cardamom. Can you believe I never had it? Not even sure what it tastes like. Love the recipe and your photo’s are gorgeous!
This is now in my to do list. I love Oregon Chai Tea (hopefully I’m not offending any Indians). I love love cardamom, so I will have to try this.
That is such a sweet tradition! And I just bought those same exact napkins from Pier 1! Love them…
Ha! Um… I just have ONE of a lot of napkins for photos. But I especially love this one.
What a lovely chai tea. I can so see myself enjoying a cup of this with some biscotti. Thanks for sharing, Sommer. This is an interesting and informative post!
I love anything chai. Hope you’re well!
Sommer, Loved reading your rendition of over doses of Indian chai..
Chai is part and parcel of the basics of hospitality in India. When someone comes home, chai is always a saving grace when you have nothing else to offer in a jiffy..
VIP nut! Hah… so very true.. brought a familiar smile to my face
Ginger (fresh or dry) is a more common additive..
ginger& cardamom is something that is very common in Indian chai -loved this spicy version too ! nice post sommer
Wonderful! Sounds so comforting…thanks!
I’m so thirsty!!! You certainly made this look WONDERFUL!
This looks so inviting. With all the blustering going on outside my window I would really go for one of these to warm up. Looks fantastic.
How funny about the “vip” bit, I guess it’s really a special spice!
I love chai and your recipe sounds fantastic!
Definitely an interesting take on it! Your recipe is very similar to my mom’s except she doesn’t use the star anise. But there are so many varieties of chai! Thx for sharing
Just beautiful!
Delicious love your recipe
I LOVE Chai tea. Better yet, made at home so I save some money!
Had to lol at the servings…Chai is my fave, Sommer!
Thanks for posting this. Can’t wait to try it! I was in India (for the first time) about two months ago. I’ve been told it’s very different now than it was even a few years ago. But I loved it.
Kinda funny (or at least mildly interesting) that American traditions largely revolve around those once-a-year type things (Thanksgiving dinner, dressing up for Halloween, Easter Egg hunts, fireworks for the 4th of July), while the rest of the world has traditions that they serve up each and every day. Wonder why that is. The melting pot aspect?
I love chai and it is really hard to find a great cup here in Texas. Who knew how easy is it to make, kinda embarrased I never searched out a recipe. Lucky me there it was in my Google reader, yay!
Love Chai Tea! I’ll have to make this!
Our LA food bloggers’ group just went on a tour of Little India and at the place we met, we were served chai. I had it before, but this one was so much better. I have all the ingredients and I will definitely make it, as I am switching from coffee to tea gradually.
And I am more inclined to drink like Indians do, in smaller cups, but with the obligatory cardamom pod (I love and respect myself, of course)
Love the photos!
Yes please! I’m a chai addict, but have never tried making my own. Thanks for the recipe!
I made this last night and I thought it was just ok. I think I would boil the spices a bit longer and then add the tea since 5 mins of boiling didn’t seem to be enough to bring out the flavors of the spices. It was very mild. I think this is a good starter recipe but I think there’s plenty of room to experiment, possibly add some ginger too. It could be that I’m just use to stronger spiced tea. Thanks for the recipe though!
No problem Lynn. I’m wondering if there is a chance some of your spices are old. If so, it might take longer to release there flavors…