Lets Talk Chai

I'm a bit of a Chai snob. 

I normally decline offers of Chai that other people have made by either pretending I'm not a tea-drinker or by exaggerating my caffeine-intolerance. Most of the time I get away with it (Ssh! Don't tell anyone!). 

Chai, for me, has to be a strong brew and not predominantly milky. If I'm making it only for myself, I flavor it with cinnamon or green cardamom (I love Masala Chai for this reason). 

Not everyone gets it right. My husband, who is too polite to decline a offensive to the senses  cup of tea when offered, will always drink up any weak, watery, colorless concoction. But he invariably always asks me to make him a 'real' cup of tea as soon as we get back home. 

 

Here's how I make Chai with tea bags. 
For 1 strong cup of Chai, you need:


2 tea bags
2 tbsp regular or low-fat evaporated milk (don't use regular whole milk or low-fat milk if you want a creamy cup of Chai)
boiling water
sugar to taste
 
Place the two tea bags in a cup. Pour boiling water over them to come up 3/4 of the way up your cup/mug, cover with a saucer or small plate and let steep for exactly 3 minutes. 

Covering is optional, but I feel like it traps in more flavor. 
Uncover, remove tea bags (squeeze well before you do), add sugar and evaporated milk. Stir, serve. 


If you like spiced chai, like I do, throw in your flavoring of choice with the tea bags before adding the boiling water so they can steep together. Use a stick of cinnamon or 2-3 pods of green cardamom, crushed. Remove & discard spices before serving. 

Kenyan Chocolate Tea

I was 16 when I first discovered a box of this loose tea in a store and bought it on a whim, imagining that when I'd make it, it would taste very chocolaty; like a cross between hot chocolate and tea.  

Wrong.

It's just plain black tea with a very mild but definite hint of chocolate. I had no idea back then, how to brew this tea. And I still don't - I just wing it. But it didn't stop me from brewing a pot now and then, buying it each time I saw it on a shelf in a store and even begging a Kenyan colleague, years later, to send me a tin through anyone coming back from Kenya! 

 

It isn't that addictive. Seriously. I don't even know why I like it so much. And I've never known anyone (other than my Kenyan friend) who has even heard of it, let alone anyone who buys it. [btw, it never occurred to me to ask this person how to make this tea :P ]