I never thought I liked chai. Turns out, I just didn’t like the overly-sweetened, overly-creamy ones found at most coffee shops. But then we were lucky enough to have a tea shop open near us that specialized in chai–warm, delicious, simple chai.
We’ve moved since then, and even though I would hardly call this a ‘copy cat’ of the authentic chai found at our local tea spot, I still enjoy a cup for this from time to time. This recipe is adapted from the Tibetan-Style Chai recipe in Moosewood Celebrates cookbook. I would love to provide an online link to the original, because I never like to share someone else’s recipe on my site. But since this one is modified, I’ll share it here.
Modified from Moosewood Celebrates
2 1/2 cups water
1 tsp (or less) dried ginger (I like way less than the original recipe calls for, which was 2, I think? and I keep it simple with the dried ginger)
1/2 tsp (or a bit more) cardamom seeds
2 cinnamon sticks
2 tsp loose black tea
Bring above ingredients to a boil, then simmer for 10-15 minutes
Then add:
2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar (I’d love to say I add less, but sometimes I find that more than this amount actually makes the whole thing better)
Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer for 5 minutes
Strain.
Serve.
I once thought it would be clever to strain the spices before adding the milk and sugar, but that didn’t work out well for me. I do recommend waiting until the end.
Above is the modified version, cut in half, but it still makes a lot. I usually cut it in half again. (shown below)
1 1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp or less dried ginger
1/4 tsp or more cardamom seeds
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp black tea
later, add
1 cup milk
1/8 cup sugar (or 2 Tbsp)