Recipe: A cup of Cha (chai)

by Elizabeth Sullivan March 22, 2018 4 Comments

It's no secret that I love tea - which I think pairs perfectly with knitting! Most of the time I drink regular old orange pekoe, or roiboos if I don't want the caffeine, but a cup of chai is always a nice treat and changes things up a little bit.

I recruited my husband for his "recipe" for this post since he makes the best chai (he actually calls it cha since his background is Punjabi). He laughed as I tried to write down measurements while he made the tea. He adds what he feels like that day and goes by colour rather than measuring anything. So with that in mind, please use this as a guideline only and do play around with the proportions to make it to your own taste.

Cha (spiced tea with milk)

• 2-3 black tea bags
• 3-4 black peppercorns
• 4-5 whole cloves
• 5-6 cardamom pods
• 2" piece of cinnamon stick, broken up
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tbsp (or more) sugar

Directions:

1. Gently crush (not grind) the spices in a mortar and pestle. If you don't have a mortar and pestle, just make sure to open up the cardamom pods to release the flavour. 
2. Put the water, spices and tea bags in a pot. Bring to a boil and keep simmering for about 10 minutes until the water is nice and infused. You do not need to time this exactly.
3. Add sugar and stir until it dissolves. If you are making cha for several people who prefer different levels of sweetness, you can leave it out at this point and have each one add it to their own cup at the end.
4. Add milk and heat to almost boiling, but don't let it boil over!
5. Strain and serve, adding more sugar if needed.
6. Enjoy on its own or with your favourite Punjabi dessert!

Makes 2 large cups or 3 small cups

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