Make Ahead

Homemade Masala Chai

February 18, 2013
4
3 Ratings
  • Serves 1
Author Notes

The classic sweet and spicy Indian tea, sure to make your home smell fantastic, and the number one way to bribe friends to come over in the wintertime. —One Tough Cookie

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Ingredients
  • 1 cup milk (or soy milk)
  • 1 splash water
  • 5 whole cloves
  • 5 green cardamom pods
  • 5 peppercorns
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 pieces star anise
  • 3 pieces allspice
  • 1 "thumb" of fresh ginger, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon loose-leaf black tea
  • 1 tablespoon sugar (or more, to taste)
Directions
  1. Bash all the spices (minus the ginger) in a plastic bag with a rolling pin — or if you want to be classy about it, you can always use a mortar & pestle.
  2. Place all your ingredients — milk, water, spices (with ginger this time), tea, and sugar — into a large pot.
  3. Cook on med-high until boiling, then simmer for 5 minutes or until the milk has turned a milky-brown colour, like cafe au lait.
  4. Strain & sip!

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3 Reviews

Angie H. September 11, 2014
Nice to see the addition of allspice and star anise in this recipe. I didn't see it in many of the other recipes on here, but I add it to my own mix, since it brings back memories of my visits to the ethnic markets. Something about the star anise... reminds me of char siu bao, which I miss tremendously since going gluten-free!
AntoniaJames February 18, 2013
Always happy to see the word "bash" in recipe instructions; and your description of the alternate method made me chuckle. Been thinking about putting together my own masala chai (having lazily relied on Peet's for the past fifteen years), so I'm looking forward to trying this soon. Thanks for posting this recipe! ;o)
One T. February 18, 2013
You're welcome! Let me know how you like it!