Masala Chaiमसाला चाय

Name: Masala Chai
Prep time: 3 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 11 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Uttar Pradesh
Ingredients: 1½ cups water; 1 cup whole milk; 2 heaped tsp CTC Assam or dust tea leaves (chai patti); 1-inch piece (about 1½ tsp grated) fresh ginger (adrak), peeled and grated; 4 green cardamom pods (elaichi), lightly crushed; 2 whole cloves (laung); 4 black peppercorns (kali mirch), lightly cracked; ½ inch cinnamon stick (dalchini); 2 tsp, or to taste sugar

⏱ Prep 3m🍳 Cook 8m🍽 Serves 2🌿 Vegetarian

Video: amateurprochef (YouTube)

Across Uttar Pradesh, no morning, no meeting, and no conversation begins without a glass of masala chai. The UP version is assertively ginger-forward, generously sweetened, and brewed with CTC tea until the colour deepens to a warm amber-brown. The spice blend here — cardamom, ginger, clove, black pepper, and cinnamon — is old and deliberate, each element pulling its own weight to warm the body from the inside out.

📍 Make it in Plano

This recipe is the same everywhere — but where you buy the ingredients and eat the dish is local to you.

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Ingredients

▪water1½ cups
▪whole milk1 cup
▪CTC Assam or dust tea leaves (chai patti)2 heaped tsp
▪fresh ginger (adrak), peeled and grated1-inch piece (about 1½ tsp grated)
▪green cardamom pods (elaichi), lightly crushed4
▪whole cloves (laung)2
▪black peppercorns (kali mirch), lightly cracked4
▪cinnamon stick (dalchini)½ inch
▪sugar2 tsp, or to taste

🌍 Cooking abroad? Substitutions

CTC Assam tea (brands like Wagh Bakri, Taj Mahal, or Society) is sold at most South Asian grocery stores abroad and is essential for the colour and body of this style of chai — loose-leaf Darjeeling will produce a far thinner, more delicate cup.
Ground ginger (½ tsp) can replace fresh ginger if unavailable, though fresh gives a brighter, more pungent heat that is characteristic of the UP style.
Pre-ground chai masala powder (such as MDH brand) can substitute the whole spices at ½ tsp per cup — add it with the tea leaves rather than at the start.

Method

11. Pour water into a small saucepan and bring to a rolling boil over medium-high heat.
22. Add the grated ginger, crushed cardamom pods, cloves, cracked peppercorns, and cinnamon. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 2 minutes to let the spices bloom in the water.
33. Add the tea leaves and sugar. Stir once and allow the tea to steep for 1 minute — the water will deepen to a dark reddish-brown.
44. Pour in the milk, increase the heat, and bring the chai to a full rolling boil.
55. Once it rises, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally. The longer it simmers, the more cohesive and less raw the spice flavour becomes.
66. Taste and adjust sugar.
77. Strain through a fine-mesh strainer into glasses or kulhad (clay cups). Serve immediately while steaming hot.

A Desi.Net original recipe · part of our Indian Cuisine library. Confirm details and adjust to taste.