“Chai Chai Pani Chai!!” You all know the remarkable voice of the “Chai Wallahs” these busy guys that walk up and down the trains of the Indian Railways to serve you that sweet,hot and  milky national drink in small plastic cups. Although Chai can never be a replacement for Coffee Junkies the consumption of this milky tea comes very close. Most traveller have a couple of Chais each day at several street stalls. It is the first thing you get offered when visiting a families home and even in any shop you hang out for a bit the staff will order a Chai for you. It is part of daily interaction. Chai is just all over the place, every day, always near!

Many of us do miss that original flavour when we arrive back home from India. This is for all you low budget Nomads and Vagabonds who have been travelling around this  incredible and magic country for ages and now sit at home dreaming of the days in India. Maybe this recipe will help you to refresh your memories 🙂 I have added some photos of my friend Sushma who taught me boiling delicious Chai! You can see how she is doing it!

For 2-3 Cups of Masala Chai you will need:

A thumb size piece of fresh Ginger

3-4 Cardamon pods

fresh cinnamon in pieces

1 big tablespoon black loose tea leafs ( Darjeeling or Assam)

Sugar ( depending how sweet you like)

250ml milk

How to do the Chai!

Crush the cardamon pods with a morter or a huge knife.

Next grate the ginger and break some cinnamon rolls.

Now get a small pot and start boiling the milk and add the crushed Caramons, grated Ginger and cinnamon to the milk along with the sugar.

When the milk is almost boiling add the tealeafs. The milk will come up..swirl the pot and put it back on the stove. Turn the heat off!! The Chai is ready!!

Now get 2 or 3 tiny cups, or one big jug for yourself if you are alone .

Pour the Tea into the cups through a strainer. Done! It is super easy and super delicious! 🙂

 Enjoy!!

Only use the green tiny Cardamons.Not the big brown ones.

The milk is getting hot with the spicemix inside.

When the milk is almost boiling add the tea leafs. Wait for the milk to raise up and swirl the pot. The tea is done!

You can now pour the chai into small glasses and serve it to your loved ones.

If it´s only you drinking i suggest you getting a cup! It is unusual in India to serve chai in big cups. But don´t worry..it is easy to finsih this magic drink!

And this is Sushma, the lovely lady who taught me so many nice recipes. Thank you so much for all your patience with me Sushma Ji !!

I hope you will enjoy her Chai. See you soon for another home recipe

Your Foodvagabond,Michael