How to make tea

Tea making method Chai is like religion for many people in India. The day does not start until you have a warm cup of kadak Chai (strong tea). If you have any visitors or guests coming to your house, it would almost be considered rude if you don't ask for a cup of chai. All the fun conversations are surrounded around chai!

You will find street vendors everywhere simmering a large pot of tea. You will hear the popular term in Mumbai "cutting chai", which just means half a cup of tea. You might find it interesting that people have chai multiple times in a day, however the quantity they drink is very less, just a few sips.

I am a complete chai person, and need my morning and afternoon cup of tea. My favorite is Masala Chai with a blend of whole spices and lots of ginger. It is a perfect way to kickstart the day right. What is your preferred beverage to start the day?


What makes an authentic Masala Chai is the use of freshly ground whole spices. Fresh ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves...all the flavorful warm spices. Lightly crush them and add them when boiling water for tea.

Instant Pot Applesauce
Like the popular Garam Masala, every single family in India has their own unique blend of spices they prefer in their masala chai. But one thing is sure, this chai is definitely not like the chai latte you have at Starbucks or Peets. This is authentic Indian Masala Tea with Milk.

You might also enjoy the very popular Mango Lassi and Masala Chaas (Buttermilk) recipe.

To say "Chai" or "Chai Tea"?
You might hear people saying "Chai Tea" commonly in US. However "chai" translates to "tea". So you are almost repeating the same word again
Best to use either "chai" or "tea" when asking for your favorite latte or masala tea next time!
What is Masala Chai?
Masala means a blend of spices. and the tea brewed along with spices is called Masala Chai.

You can make Masala Chai with freshly crushing the whole spices when making tea or using a Chai Masala Powder.

If you make tea everyday, I like the convenience of having the chai masala powder ready and available. It makes it so much easier to make the Chai.

Ingredients to make masala tea. Masala tea powder, tea leaves, sugar, spices, milk
What are the ingredients to make Masala Chai?
The main ingredients to make Masala Tea are very basic and pretty much the same in all recipes. What varies is the quantity of spices or add-ons to flavor the tea. Some like to add lots of ginger, others lots of cardamom and others may prefer only whole spices.

Basic tea ingredients:

Water
Milk - Use whole milk or 2% or even non-fat depending on your taste. You can also use almond or oat milk.
Sugar - You can also use another sweetener such as honey or maple syrup.
Tea leaves - I prefer Wagh Bakri brand as it has the strong flavor we prefer. You can use tea bags too.

Ingredients to flavor tea:

Fresh Ginger
Green Cardamom pods
Cloves
Cinnamon
Black Peppercorns
If you are using an already prepared Chai Masala Blend, you ca