Talkin' Chai

Did I ever share how to make Chai from scratch? It is so super delicious; and I don't know if it is in spite of or because of the 5-8 minute effort over the stove that it is such a treat. I learned how from my wonderful Indian friends almost two years ago now.

Yesterday we went to Juanita and Frank's 70th Wedding Anniversary (you don't attend a "Platinum Anniversary" Celebration every day) -- more on that later -- and I think being around Juanita inspired me to make something with a little extra effort this morning. And OH was it worth it.

So here's how to make your own Chai at home as I learned it from Mita -and in the spirit of a Juanita recipe, I don't have exact measurements, just a general guide. Anyway, and all the best recipes seem to come that way:
-Start by measuring out your water to approximately how many glasses you intend to serve (for this example, I'll say two teacups) into a pan
-Boil this water along with:
-1-2 pods of cardamom, crushed to make sure the little black seeds come out and maybe a few of them are lightly crushed
-1-2 heavy sprinkles of cinnamon
-3-4 slices of fresh ginger - Mmmm (if no fresh ginger, go with 2-3 sprinkles of ground ginger if you must)
-2-4 cloves or about a 1/4 tsp of ground clove
-1-2 light sprinkles of nutmeg
(the more you make it, the more you'll be able to micro-adjust the spices to your liking)

Once this is boiling well, add a spoonful of loose black tea and stir. The length of time from now until the end will determine 1-how caffeinated and 2-how bitter your tea will be. the longer, the stronger. I usually let it go for about 1 minute or less.

If you are going to sweeten, you want to do this as close to the end as possible. So once it's boiled a little longer with the tea, add in your sugar and give it a couple swirls with a spoon. Because I'm already being fussy will making this lovely treat, I've only ever used turbinado (raw sugar), but I'm sure any sugar (oh, or even honey?!) would work. As an alternative, you can of course sweeten each cup after serving.

As soon as the sugar is dissolved, which isn't long-- or if no sugar, once you feel your tea has steeped long enough: you are ready for the final step.
-add milk (or half and half, which -surprise, surprise- is what I use) until it is a creamy carmel color.
-a dollop which might be ~1 teaspoon mexican vanilla (this is my modification since rarely have vanilla bean pods on hand and this adds lovely flavor. if you had a vanilla bean, you'd slice, scrape and boil with all the spices at the beginning)

this will temporarily cool off your water and it will quit boiling. a few seconds longer and you're done. let it heat back up until it is steaming and almost scalded, but don't let it boil again or your milk will separate.

remove from stove and strain either directly into heated tea cups (i have a lovely little 1/4 cup mesh strainer that works perfectly) or a pre-heated tea pot. I just swirl a little hot water in there first so it doesn't cool the tea too much.

Voila! You're done. Sniff, sip and enjoy. OH! and by the way.... your house is going to smell incredible for the next couple hours now.

Do me a favor? Let me know how it works out.