A Cozy Chai Recipe for Mornings at Home

If you’re missing your coffee shop chai right now, I have an easy solution for you: make this chai recipe at home.

There are innumerable benefits to making chai at home. I mean, for one, you don’t have to leave your house. It’s also significantly cheaper than spending five bucks at a coffee shop. And it’s easy!

But the very best part? Unless you’re going to a coffee shop that makes their chai from scratch (and that is very few of them), I can almost guarantee that this chai is going to taste more delicious.

What is chai?

Chai is the Hindi word for tea. (So saying “chai tea” is actually repetitive!) It’s black tea mixed with spices, milk, and sweeter. Traditionally, chai is quite strong and flavorful, and it’s served in small portions due to its richness. (Though let’s be honest, I definitely pour myself large mugs of this.)

I can’t truly claim that this recipe is authentic, as I am Scandinavian to the core and have never been to India or Pakistan or anywhere else where this is a part of the culture. But this recipe is largely influenced by the chai instruction I got from the lovely folks at the Chai Spot in Sedona, Arizona; the family recipe from the back of the book Ayesha at Last; and other authentic recipes I’ve found online. Plus, it’s very very close to the legendary chai from Dishoom in London, one of my favorite restaurants in the world. (If you find yourself in the UK, go there.)

There are many variations in chai recipes, even among the authentic ones, and precise spices and methods vary. This is my favorite iteration, developed over years of fiddling. I could drink every single morning with utter delight. And it’s easy enough that I make it at least once a week.

This recipe is more of a method than scientific and precise measurements. I’ll give you the proportions I use, but you’ve got entire freedom to make changes! If you find that this combination isn’t quite to your taste, add a little more spice or a little less sugar.

Now finally! On to the recipe!

Cozy Chai Recipe

Time: 10 minutes

Servings: adaptable! But all included measurements will be for approximately 4 small servings of chai.

Ingredients

2 parts milk (of any kind)
1 part water
Sweetener: sugar, honey, agave
Essential spices: cinnamon, cardamom, cloves
Optional spices: ginger, fennel, peppercorn
Black tea: I use basic and boring Lipton black tea, but English breakfast or basically any black tea will work

Method

1. Heat the liquids.

When I’m making chai on a normal morning, I use 2 cups of almond milk and 1 cup of water. This will give us enough for a generous mug each, plus a serving or two of leftovers. Pour them into a pot on medium heat.

2. Add your sweetener.**

Chai is supposed to be quite sweet, so I use ¼ cup white sugar. You can change up your sweetener and increase or decrease the amount to taste.

**NOTE: If you are using honey or agave, do not add them now. Wait until the end, or all the sweetness will burn off.

3. Add spices.

This is where you can really personalize your chai. Nearly every recipe I’ve read requires cinnamon bark or sticks, cardamom pods, and whole cloves. Then there are many variations, depending on your preference.

Want some freshness? Add fennel and ginger.
Like your chai spicy? Add more ginger and peppercorn.

You want your spices to be as close to their original form as possible. So instead of using ground cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and cardamom, use the whole pods and sticks. If you’re staying home and only have the ground variety, try the recipe anyway. You’re going to be just fine. I am currently using up my store of ground cardamom before buying pods, and I don’t use whole ginger because I do not have the emotional energy to peel things early in the morning. And this chai still turns out excellent.

I use one stick of cinnamon, 4-5 whole cloves, 2-3 peppercorns, and then ¼ tsp. of ground ginger, fennel, and cardamom**. You can play around with these quantities, but I like to keep it simple and not mess around with multiple teaspoons.

**OPTIONAL: If you’re okay babysitting your chai, wait to add the cardamom until it starts to gently boil. If you’re going for efficiency, just add it with all the other spices.

4. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil.

You’re going to need to watch it, because milk will foam up and boil over!

When it starts to foam, turn the heat down to low.

5. Steep your tea.

I toss in 5 bags of Lipton black tea. If you’re using honey or agave as sweetener, add it now.

If you have a gas burner and are using tea bags, please do not drop the bags in and drape the strings and tabs over the sides. Just speaking from experience here. Tear those tabs off, drop in the entire tea bag, and save yourself some minor flames.

You can set a timer for 3-4 minutes, but I prefer to watch the color. The darker the color, the stronger the tea. I like a good caramel color.

6. Strain into a cup

Pour the tea through some kind of strainer, unless you enjoy picking cloves out of your teeth. I’ve used a tea diffuser for this and it works just fine, but my favorite way to strain this is stealing the fine-mesh strainer my husband uses for cocktails.

Traditionally, chai is served in small portions because it is surprisingly filling. But you’re at home, so you’re in charge.

This is certainly not traditional, but I pour leftovers into a mason jar to store the fridge. Leftovers reheat just fine in the microwave.

7. Enjoy!

Making chai has been one delightful way to make mornings at home a little brighter.

Want more ideas to get you through self-isolation?

Want other delicious drinks? Learn how to set up your home bar to enjoy cocktails at home!
These 31 free ideas will help you figure out how to spend your time this weekend
My coronavirus care package has even more entertaining links and resources to make your time at home a little brighter. Get signed up below!