How to Make Chai at Home (the Everyday Way)
Chef PashaShare
Chai is simmered, not steeped. For two cups, bring 250 ml of water to a boil with your spices, add 2 teaspoons of strong black tea, then pour in 250 ml of whole milk and simmer six to eight minutes. Sweeten at the end.
Key points
- Simmering is the whole difference. A bag in hot milk is not chai.
- Whole milk. Low fat gives you a thin, gray cup.
- Boil the water with the spices first, then add tea, then milk.
- Strong black tea, not a delicate one. It has to survive milk.
- Sugar goes in near the end, once you can taste the strength.
The ratio people get wrong
Equal parts water and whole milk is the everyday Pakistani ratio. More milk gives you a heavier cup, more water a sharper one.
Two teaspoons of loose black tea makes two proper cups. If you use bags, use two, and tear one open for faster color.
Method
- Boil the water with the spices. Crack two or three green cardamom pods and drop them in. Simmer two minutes so the water takes the scent.
- Add the tea. Two teaspoons. Simmer two minutes until the water is deep copper.
- Pour in the milk. Equal to the water. Raise the heat until it climbs the pan, then pull it back. Repeat two or three times for a stronger cup.
- Simmer and watch the color. Four more minutes on low. You are looking for a warm tan, not beige.
- Sweeten and strain. Sugar now, not at the start, so you can taste the strength first. Strain into cups from a height.
If you want it masala
Cardamom is the backbone. After that it is personal.
| Add | How much, for two cups | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Green cardamom | 2 to 3 pods, cracked | The classic chai scent. Start here |
| Fresh ginger | A thin slice | Heat at the back of the throat. Good in winter |
| Black pepper | 2 or 3 whole corns | Sharpens everything. The kadak chai trick |
| Cinnamon | A small piece of bark | Sweetness without sugar |
| Cloves | 1, no more | Powerful. One too many and it tastes medicinal |
Use whole spices and crack them. Ground spice turns chai cloudy and slightly bitter.
One caution: do not reach for a garam masala blend. Most include cumin and bay, which belong in a curry and not in your cup.
What goes beside it
Chai is rarely served alone. In most homes something crunchy lands on the table with it.
Nimco and dal moth are the usual answer: savory, spiced, and they keep in the cupboard for weeks.
The chai-time snacks
Pasha Mix Nimco is gram flour crisps, roasted chickpeas and peanuts with chili and clove. Dal Moth is roasted lentils with the same warm spicing.
Both come in 50 g canisters, which is about right for two people and a pot of chai.
Shop chai-time snacksFour things that go wrong
| Mistake | What you get | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Steeping instead of simmering | Pale, thin, no body | The pan, not the mug. Six to eight minutes |
| Low fat milk | Gray color, watery finish | Whole milk, every time |
| Boiling it hard the whole way | Scalded milk, flat taste | Let it climb, pull it back, repeat |
| Sugar at the start | You cannot judge the strength | Sweeten in the last minute |
Where to buy the ingredients
Pasha is stocked at eleven grocers across greater Houston. The store locator lists each one with directions.
Everything is also available online, with free delivery across the Houston area on orders over $25 and shipping anywhere in Texas.
Questions people ask
- What is the difference between chai and tea?
- Chai is tea simmered with milk, sugar and usually spices. English style tea is steeped in water with milk added after.
- How much tea do I use per cup?
- About one teaspoon of loose black tea per cup, or one bag, with a strong blend rather than a delicate one.
- Why is my chai bitter?
- Usually too long at a hard boil, or ground spices. Simmer gently and use whole spices.
- Can I make chai without milk?
- You can make spiced black tea, which is lovely, but it is a different drink. The milk is what makes it chai.
- What do you serve with chai?
- Something savory and crunchy, like nimco or dal moth, or a biscuit. Most families keep a tin of one or the other.
