Spiced Black Tea
Photo: Sagar Mali / Pexels
Masala chai is black tea simmered with milk, sugar, and a mix of warming spices — usually some combination of cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper. In India, where it originates, it’s simply called “chai,” since chai just means tea; “masala chai” is the more specific term used outside South Asia to distinguish it from plain tea.
The spice blend isn’t fixed. Every region, household, and street vendor has its own ratio, and the spices are usually crushed fresh rather than pre-mixed, which is part of why homemade or street-stall chai tastes so different from bottled versions. What stays constant is the method: the tea, milk, and spices are boiled together rather than steeped separately, which is what gives real masala chai its thick, creamy body.
Masala chai’s popularity outside India grew through diaspora communities and later through coffeehouse “chai lattes,” which are often sweeter and lighter-bodied than the traditional version, made with a concentrate or syrup rather than whole spices simmered with loose tea.
How to Make It
A basic method: simmer black tea leaves with water, milk, sugar, and crushed spices together for several minutes, then strain. The ginger and pepper are often cited in Ayurvedic tradition as warming and digestive, though these are traditional uses rather than settled clinical claims. Because the tea is a true black tea base, masala chai carries a similar caffeine level to a standard cup of black tea, cut somewhat by the milk.
Simmered, not just steeped
“Chai” simply means tea in Hindi
