 |
|
But what is it?
Do not forget that there are no fixed recipes or preparation methods for this popular drink. Many families have their own special recipes or preparation methods. The key to making a good chai tea is to leave the leaves in the hot/boiling water long enough to get the flavor of the tea but not too long. If the tea leaves are left for too long, the tea will be too strong and bitter.
The Masala chai has the following basic four components:
- Tea.
The tea that you use should be a strongblack tea,such as Assam. By using a strong black tea, the various spices and sweeteners will not overpower it. Most chai in India is brewed with strong black teas, but Kashmiri chai is brewed with gunpowder tea (Green tea).
Rooibosmay even be used to make chai tea.
- Sweetener.
Plain white sugar will usually do the trick. However, unprocessed sugar, molasses, honey, and other sweeteners can also be used.
- Milk.
Milk or other such creamers are used in the making of chai. Usually, whole milk is used because of its richness. Soy milk offers an excellent alternative for vegetarians or lactose-intolerant people.
- Spices.
Traditionally, Masala chai tea is a strongly spiced beverage. Most of the Masala chai include one or more of the following ingredients: cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, star anise, peppercorn, and cloves. Other possible ingredients include nutmeg, chocolate, cocoa, vanilla, licorice or saffron.
A recipe for making chai tea in the comfort of your home.
Ingredients:
- 2 teaspoons fresh ginger root; grated.
- 1 whole star anise; broken up.
- 1 teaspoon orange peel; grated.
- 4 pieces cinnamon sticks; 1 1/2 inch.
- 1 teaspoon cardamom seeds.
- 10 whole cloves.
- 5 whole peppercorns.
- 5 cups water.
- 1/4 cup black tea leaves; (such as Assam or Darjeeling).
- 1 teaspoon vanilla.
- 1/4 cup honey.
- 3 cups skim milk.
Instructions:
1. Put together the first seven ingredients in a length of cheese cloth and tie it together with a string. This is called a bouquet garni (pronounced "boo-KAY gar-NEE").
2. Place the bouquet garni in a pot of water. The string should be tied to the handle for easy removal later on.
3. Bring the water to a very low boil, then reduce the heat and simmer. Boiling water may extract too much bitterness from the tea leaves.
4. Add tea leaves and continue simmering for 15 minutes.
5. Remove the bouquet garni.
6. Strain the remaining liquid through a sieve to remove tea leaves.
7. Add honey, vanilla, and milk.
8. Serve. Pour the mixture over crushed ice if you're serving it cold. This will make eight servings.
Tips:
- Pay close attention to when you are infusing the tea leaves. You don't want the tea to be bitter. Feel free to experiment and see what works best for you.
- Feel free to experiment with other teas such as green or white tea instead of black tea leaves. You can even use prepared chai tea leaves. They already have the spices mixed in, all you need to do is place them in water.
And if you don't want to bother with loose tea leaves, then use this Black Vanilla Chai Tea in triangle tea bags.
- You can experiment with the milk as well. See if using soy milk instead of skim milk works best for you. You can even experiment with the sweeteners. Try honey, rice syrup, or maple syrup.
- If you don't have a cheesecloth, or find it too messy to deal with, you can purchase empty paper tea bags from a tea shop. Fill it with your spices, and another with tea leaves if you wish, and close it with an inexpensive bag clip. Discard it when you are done. You can also get cloth bags made of unbleached muslin that are reusable.
- The proper name for chai or chai tea is in fact Masala chai. Masala is the Hindi word for spice, hence, if you are making chai tea, you are making it with spices.
- But, in Urdu, Hindi, Mandaring Chinese, and Russian, the word chai means tea. So if you use the word chai, it means that you are making plain tea.
