This is absolutely one of my favourite ways to have tea. Masala Chai is absolutely gorgeous. It has this wonderful creamy texture mixed with the warming glow of spices.What is so great about this class of tea is that it can be different every time you drink it. Traditionally there is no fixed recipe and you can adjust it to suit your tastes. It is made up of a few basic components that are easy to find in your local supermarket. All you need is a black tea (such as Assam or Ceylon), milk, a sweetener of some kind and warm spices such as cinnamon cardamon & ginger.
The milk is usually full fat to add creaminess however you can use lower fat milk. Sometimes condensed milk is used to act as a sweetener. The sugar can be any kind including brown, white, honey, syrup. While sugar can be left out some spices work better with it.Spices such as cloves and nutmeg can also be added. Allspice is also a nice shortcut and works well. This is definably one where there is no set rules to the combinations and flavors you add.
The method of preparing it is also different everywhere you go but a good rule of thumb is that you need to release the tannin in the tea. You must boil or simmer the ingredients together for a while but also you need to be careful not to burn the milk. The solid tea and spice residues are strained off before serving.
There are so many recipes out there for chai it is difficult to choose only one so I have decided to give you a good link to a chai recipe website which has a recipe to suit all tastes and will help you to get started with preparing this delicious drink the way you like it.
Madina on Mary's Street (http://www.madina.ie/) served my first proper Chai, and it was absolutely lovely. One of the guys told me he grew up with his mum always having a pot on the stove, stewing the spices over a low heat.
ReplyDeleteI've been experimenting with chai this week. The trickiest part is knowing when to add the milk (after steam starts coming off the tea leaves and spices) and when to take the whole concoction off the stove. I've been using Darjeeling leaves but because they're not true black tea leaves (closer to green), I'd probably be better off with the Assam. -Ponder- Still, with enough ginger, anything is delicious.
ReplyDeletegood to know..I agree that knowing when to add the milk & when to take it off the stove is the hardest part.I find regular teabags work well too as a shortcut. Thanks for your comment seriously tips & ideas are very welcome because it's the details that make all the difference :)
DeleteChai is one of my favorite drinks and I like all types of teas too. I need to follow you to learn more!
ReplyDeleteHi Heather thanks a million for your comment and great that you are following. :)
ReplyDelete