morsels45

morsels45 said

Masala chai

Boiled, not steeped, with the milk in from the start.

That was somebody else’s answer. Yours takes about twenty seconds: a handful of either-ors, then one dish.

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How to make masala chai

2 genuinely different takes — a classic, and a faster or lighter route. The same ones the app hands you once you have decided.

Boiled, not steeped

12 minutes · serves 2 · Very easy

What you need

  • 300ml water
  • 200ml whole milk
  • 2 tsp strong black tea
  • 4 cardamom pods, crushed
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • Thumb of ginger, sliced
  • 2 cloves
  • Sugar to taste

What you do

  1. 1Bring the water to the boil with the crushed spices and ginger and let it go 3 minutes. Crushing matters — whole pods give you nothing.
  2. 2Tea in, boiled another 2 minutes.
  3. 3Milk and sugar in, brought back to the boil. Let it rise up the pan and pull it off, three times. That is what makes chai rather than spiced tea.
  4. 4Strain from a height into the cups.

With a paste, quicker

6 minutes · serves 2 · Very easy

What you need

  • 300ml water
  • 200ml milk
  • 2 tsp tea
  • 1 tsp chai masala powder
  • Sugar

What you do

  1. 1Boil the water with the tea and the masala powder for 3 minutes. Ready-ground spice gives itself up faster than whole, so this is the one place the shortcut costs nothing.
  2. 2Milk and sugar in, brought up to the boil and pulled off twice rather than three times.
  3. 3Strain into the cups from a height. Thinner than the boiled version, and still a good cup of tea.