Making traditional Masala chai with black tea.

[MEversbergII]

Bit of a bump, but I got re-bit by the DIY Chai Masala bug recently, so I hunted around for recipes. I found this one:

http://thehathicooks.blogspot.com/2011/ ... -ever.html

I'd was deliberating over Assam or Darjeling (which I've yet to try, actually), but that post gave me something rather specific: Mamari. I'd not seen that word used before, so I looked about and got a large off Amazon for not a lot of money. Also picked up a Turkish warmer, to make dispensing much easier.

Once the tea and pot come in, I'm liable to gather up the spice mix at the local grocers (0 of which are Indian, sadly) and give it a go.

It's really high on black pepper, so it might need some modification to pass the test with the other half. I'd also like to try it with palm sugar, a la Jay's suggestion, but the first go will be brown or white. Is honey a common sweetener in India?

I'll also experiment with bottling and fridging this for hotter days/always having some on hand. Figuring by next weekend, I should have data.

M.

[jayinhk]

I believe honey was always used in ayurveda, but I've never seen anyone use it in tea in India (except for my mom, and she's spent most of her life in Hong Kong).

I was just in Mumbai and wasn't in the mood for teabag tea...I took my own sencha and Chinese green, and my new kyusu too. I actually brought back 1.25 kg of coffee (primarily beans, but 500g of ground coffee with chicory too).

[Pig Hog]

Bring a couple of scoops of tea, some cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, maybe black peppercorns, maybe some ginger to the boil in half a cup of water. And half a cup of milk (can play with the water/milk ratio) and sugar to taste and allow to simmer for about 5-10 mins.

Done.

[MEversbergII]

Started giving this a go last weekend, and it turned out pretty good! Got better when I started using brown sugar instead of white (still need to try palm sugar or honey, though).

As a heads up to anyone present or in the future trying the above recipe, it makes a large amount of spice mix. I saw the amounts but didn't make the connection evidently. When you're using it only 1/8 - 1/4 tsp per cup, it is a HUGE supply. Dampens how much upfront the spices cost for sure. Also, a spouted pot or "Turkish Warmer" is a fantastic tool to have.

I'll probably be making little containers of some of this for others to try (ooo, maybe a teaswap thread?), and maybe playing with a few different types of mixes (maybe something lighter on the pepper).

M.

[john.b]

I just experimented a little more with making masala chai and wrote about it here:

http://teaintheancientworld.blogspot.co ... -from.html

No need to read that, though, I'll tell you what it adds beyond what's already been discussed here. That initial article was one I reviewed for the first post on making masala chai, referenced there (different post).

One recipe mentioned adding salt, and it actually does work well. Of course it relates to preference, and it only takes a trace of it, and it would be a bit scary adding it to a large batch like that one out of fear of screwing it all up. Maybe better to add it separately, to a little afterwards, since it wouldn't change flavor through cooking like the other ingredients. That recipe mentions using ginger powder, which works, but since ginger root is inexpensive and ginger flavor is so fundamental it would be nice to add both a little powder and some fresh ginger, added grated in or shaved.

I didn't make the tea boiling milk with the tea and spices, as in that recipe, which might make a difference. One would need a recipe with fixed amounts to get to that and I tend to just keep adjusting related to sweetener and milk, or even tweaking the spice blend.

I experimented with mixing a little lapsang souchong into the other black tea, to add a little smoke, and that worked out well (again as always, relates to preference, and a little would go a long way).

[Psyck]

Some online sites that offer masala chai:

With CTC Leaves:
Golden Tips (India)
http://www.worldtearoom.com/collections ... asala-chai
Golden Tips (Worldwide)
http://goldentipstea.com/products/maste ... asala-chai

With Whole Leaves:
Udyan Tea (Worldwide)
https://www.udyantea.com/tea-shop/india ... -chai.html

I've purchased teas from these sites, though not masala chai.

[JAMES353]

Hello,

I read the Indian Tea recipes on your Chai Recipes page. ... Brooke Bond Red label, Mamri, or Tajmahal Black tea

[leslietomb95]

Thanks for sharing the black tea experience. This is the best idea of making black tea out of masala chai.

[zoey]

Just spent three weeks in India and almost all the tea I drank (aside from the tea I gong fu'd at home) was extremely milky with lots of sugar...didn't have any masala chai at all, although I did have some masala soda.

Yes, I have heard tea in India is super milky. Do they offer lactose free milk I wonder. When I first studied about lactase, the biomolecule that speeds up the breakdown of lactose in
biology textbooks in college, I was not a tea drinker. Once I started drinking tea, I started having it with milk which is how my boyfriend liked it. Although I loved the taste, I was never happy with the aftereffects. It took me a couple of months to figure out that I was lactose intolerant. Now I always add lactose free milk or I just eat a supplement to neutralize the effect before having my tea. It is a nuisance, but its a small price to pay for the tea I like!
Masala soda - never heard of that.
Your post brought back memories of my ex-boyfriend!

[Tea_Rex]

I spent six weeks in India in 2016 and drank lots of chai. We drank it not only in chai shops and restaurants but also in virtually every kind of retail store we visited. And chai in India is not just milky, it's brewed in hot milk. Usually water buffalo milk according to many of the people we talked to. And the black tea itself was an Indian tea called CTC which stands for "cut, tear, curl" a very hearty, deep black tea. I came home with two pounds of the stuff and now make my own chai using my own spice blend that I grind for each motor cup. And I do add sugar - thinly tea I add sugar to..

[Bridgette]

Oooh, I love the idea of brewing chai in hot milk! How lovely and rich sounding... must make a huge difference!

[Tea_Rex]

Oooh, I love the idea of brewing chai in hot milk! How lovely and rich sounding... must make a huge difference!

It does. I make it this way.

Measure the milk into a saucepan. I use whole milk. Heat until milk is simmering and begins to rise in the pan - you have to take it off the heat immediately when that happens or it will boil over. (In fact, I stay with it until the point I add the tea because it can boil over very fast.) Turn off fire. Add tea and spices, give a quick stir to mix them into the milk, cover, steep for five minutes. You'll want to use a filter when you pour it into the cup or pot. Steeping would probably vary depending on the tea you're using. As I mentioned I use CTC tea.

[Bridgette]

Oooh, I love the idea of brewing chai in hot milk! How lovely and rich sounding... must make a huge difference!

It does. I make it this way.

Measure the milk into a saucepan. I use whole milk. Heat until milk is simmering and begins to rise in the pan - you have to take it off the heat immediately when that happens or it will boil over. (In fact, I stay with it until the point I add the tea because it can boil over very fast.) Turn off fire. Add tea and spices, give a quick stir to mix them into the milk, cover, steep for five minutes. You'll want to use a filter when you pour it into the cup or pot. Steeping would probably vary depending on the tea you're using. As I mentioned I use CTC tea.

Ah how lovely! Trying this once I'm finished with my current cup. Thank you!

[ceistu]

not traditional, but I share how I make it:
the tea 1 tbs+ the spice mix brewed together the turkish way (sustained concentrate infusion) then I dilute it with plant milk