Masala Chai

Ingredients

• 2 cardamom pods
• 4 cloves
• 2 black peppercorns
• A thick 4 cm slice of fresh ginger, or a teaspoon of ground ginger
• A whole nutmeg, or one teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• A cinnamon stick, or one teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 500ml/5dl/just under a pint/2 cups of milk
• 500ml/5dl/just under a pint/2 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 2 tablespoons of black tea leaves, or 2 teabags (preferably Assam)

Make it vegan: substitute the milk with soya, almond or oat milk

Special equipment

• A large, heavy bottomed saucepan with a lid
• A pestle and mortar
• A tea strainer
• A warmed teapot

Method

1. Prepare the spices: crush the cardamoms, cloves and peppercorns using a pestle and mortar. If you don’t have a pestle and mortar, try to gently break the cloves and peppercorns apart with your fingers and split the cardamom pods open with a knife. If using fresh ginger, cut it into thin slices and if using a whole nutmeg, grate it. You only need about half a teaspoon of grated nutmeg.
2. Add the cardamoms, cloves, peppercorns, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon to a large, heavy bottomed saucepan along with the milk and water.
3. Place the pan over a medium heat and bring its contents to a boil. Stir the liquid before placing a lid on the pan and turning off the heat. Leave the spices, milk and water to infuse for at least 20 minutes. If you have time, leave them for a few hours- the longer the better!
4. When ready, turn the hob back on and bring the contents of the pan to a boil before, once again, turning off the heat. Add the tea and sugar to the pan and stir before replacing the lid. Allow the Chai to steep for five minutes.
5. Carefully strain the Chai into cups using a tea strainer. Alternatively, pour the Chai into a warmed teapot, then strain it into cups when ready to serve.
6. Bon Appetit!

Tips

• The spices listed here are just some of the spices you can use to make Masala Chai. You can alter how much of each spice you use according to taste, or substitute these spices with others of your choice. Other commonly used spices and flavourings include bay leaves, star anise, fennel, black cardamom, saffron, chili, coriander, cumin or liquorice root: for sweeter flavours, try vanilla, honey, rose petals or almonds. To make Noon Chai, use green tea leaves instead of black.
• If you are a fan of Masala Chai, you can make the spice blend in advance. Prepare ten times as much of each spice as you would use to make one serving of Masala Chai. Pour the spices into a large, airtight jar, close the lid firmly, and shake the jar until the spices are thoroughly combined. Then just use a few teaspoons of the spice blend when you want to make some Chai.
• For best results leave the spices, milk and water to infuse in the pan for as long as possible, preferably for at least a couple of hours. And try to avoid pre-ground spices if you can- grated whole nutmeg and sliced fresh ginger give much better results than their pre-ground counterparts!