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If youโre ready to replace your coffee shop Chai Latte, let this Masala Chai Tea Recipe be your guide. Learn how to create your own custom blend, then craft your own Chai ritual with the best cup of Masala Chai youโve ever tasted.
Masala Chai
Iโve always loved a Starbucks Chai Latte, but in the interest of lowering the sweetness, saving money, and learning new things, I did a deep dive on the fundamentals of homemade Chai Masala. As a classically-trained chef and culinary nerd, nothing sounded more fun.
I also consider tea time a ritual practice. I love creating a โmomentโ around my tea, complete with a tray, a great mug, tea infuser, sugar cubes, the tiniest creamer, a timer for steeping, and a pretty spoon. Iโve been doing this same practice with my PG Tips black tea for decades, and I was excited to infuse that moment with Chai spices.
After reading recipes and having discussions with friends from India, I realized that Masala Chai is crafted as personal blend. Everyone has their own version made from proprietary amounts of cinnamon, cloves, ginger, black pepper, and cardamom. Below I share my own personal blend, but you should consider it a starting point for negotiations. Start with mine, maybe, but then alter the ingredients and quantities as you see fit until you build the blend of your dreams.
Table of Contents
What is Masala Chai?
Masala Chai is a spiced tea blend made with black tea, South Asian spices, sweetener, and milk. The most popular spices are cinnamon, cloves, ginger, cardamom, and black pepper. Lemongrass, mint, and star anise can be included, too. Exact ingredients and quantities can and should be altered so everyone can create their own favorite blend.
Whole milk in general, and buffalo milk in particular, are the most common kinds added in India. As always, choose the milk you want to (even if itโs non-dairy). When it comes to sweeteners, granulated sugar, turbinado sugar, demerara sugar, honey, and even monk fruit work here.
Masala Chai is typically made on the stove, in a batch for 2 or more drinkers, and boiled in a small pot. I created this recipe to serve one, and to make it in a cup with an infuser basket, because thatโs how I drink tea.
Masala Chai Recipe Ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
- Ground ginger
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground cloves
- Ground black pepper
- Ground cardamom
- Boiling water: This is a great time to use an electric tea kettle, if you have one.
- Black tea:ย My favorite black teas areย PG Tipsย andย Yorkshire tea, while Darjeeling, Assam, and Nilgiri are the most popular teas in India. Choose your favorite brand or whatever you have in the cupboard. I make Chai with caffeinated tea and the morning and decaf in the afternoon. Itโs always tea time somewhere!
- Sugar:ย I love sugar cubes because they make tea time fun, and 1 cube is the perfect amount for me. 1 teaspoon granulated sugar should be the equivalent, but in my opinion, thatโs too much sugar and itโs too sweet. Use your favorite sweetener and add to taste.
- Milk: You can use any dairy or non-dairy milk that you like. Half and half and heavy cream also work.
How to Make Chai Masala
- In a small jar, combine ginger, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, and cardamom. Store covered in the pantry for up to 6 months.
- To make a cup of Masala Chai, in a tea infuser basket, add tea bag and chai masala spice mix.
- Add boiling water to cover and let steep 5 minutes (I use a 12-ounce mug and add about 8 ounces water).
- Remove tea strainer and discard the contents. Stir in sweetener to taste (I like 1 sugar cube) and milk (I like ยผ cup).
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield:ย This recipe makes 5 tablespoons (just over ยผ cup) of chai spice mix. I like to use ยผ teaspoon spice mix per cup of chai, so this small jar will yield about 60 cups of masala chai tea.
- Whole spices:ย To substitute whole spices, in a spice grinder, grind 3 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, 1 tbsp. whole cloves, 1 ยฝ tsp. whole black peppercorns, and the seeds of 10 green cardamom pods (pods split open, seeds removed and ground, pods discarded). Do not substitute fresh ginger.
How to Store this Masala Chai Tea
Store homemade chai spice mix in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 6 months.
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Chai Masala Recipe
Equipment
- Tea infuser basket optional (see note 1)
- 12-ounce mug I use this KeepCup brand mug every single day.
- 5-minute hour glass For those who see tea time as a ritual.
Ingredientsย
For the chai spice mix:
- 2 tablespoons ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon ground cloves
- 1/2 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon ground cardamom
Instructionsย
- In a small jar, combine ginger, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, and cardamom. Store covered in the pantry for up to 6 months.
- To make a cup of Masala Chai, in a tea infuser basket, add tea bag and chai masala spice mix. Add boiling water to cover and let steep 5 minutes (I use a 12-ounce mug and add about 8 ounces water).
- Remove tea strainer and discard the contents. Stir in sweetener to taste (I like 1 sugar cube) and milk (I like ยผ cup).
Notes
- Tea infuser: Or add everything to your mug and strain after steeping, before adding sugar and milk.
- Black tea: My favorite black teas are PG Tips and Yorkshire tea. Choose your favorite brand or whatever you have in the cupboard.
- Sugar: I love sugar cubes because they make tea time fun, and 1 cube is the perfect amount for me. 1 tsp. granulated sugar should be the equivalent, but in my opinion, thatโs too much sugar and itโs too sweet. Use your favorite sweetener and add to taste.
- Whole spices: To substitute whole spices, in a spice grinder, grind 3 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, 1 Tbsp. whole cloves, 1 ยฝ tsp. whole black peppercorns, and the seeds of 10 green cardamom pods (pods split open, seeds removed and ground, pods discarded). Do not substitute fresh ginger.
- Yield: This recipe makes 5 Tbsp. (just over ยผ c.) of chai spice mix. I like to use ยผ tsp. spice mix per cup of chai, so this small jar will yield about 60 cups of masala chai tea.
- Storage: Store homemade chai spice mix in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 6 months.