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Homemade Chai Tea Concentrate

I am sure I am not alone here when I say one of my all time favourite pastimes is to curl up on a couch in the sun and read a good book or magazine (or knit/ crochet) and sip on a hot drink. I make this chai tea mix all through winter in a large batch to last the week. This recipe is a combination of several chai tea recipes I have used over the years. However, I found if the recipe called for more than a handful of spices I rarely made it. The base recipe contains only 4 whole spices, palm sugar, and black tea or red bush (rooibos). It would also make a lovely Iced Chai with a scoop of vanilla ice cream added for those reading this from warmer climes.

Ingredients

  • 1 cinnamon quill
  • 6 cardamom pods
  • 6 whole cloves
  • 2 - 4 tablespoon grated ginger root - depends how spicy you like it, 2 tbsp for mild, 4 tbsp for spicy chai
  • 4 cups/ 1 litre hot water
  • 1/4 cup / 50g palm sugar or 3 tablespoons honey
  • 4 teaspoons loose fair-trade black tea or red bush (rooibos) for non-caffeinated
  • OR 4 tea bags

Optional flavour additions:

  • 1 vanilla pod - I save scraped vanilla pods for adding to chai (there is still plenty of flavour)
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 1/3 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 star anise

Instructions

  • Combine the whole spices in a large saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes to extract the flavours from the spices. Add the sugar and stir to dissolve, then simmer for a further two minutes to slightly caramelise the sugar. Turn off the heat and add the loose tea. Steep for 5 minutes then strain through a sieve into a 1 litre bottle. Cool and store in the fridge, it will keep for several weeks.
  • TO SERVE: gently heat 1 part chai tea mix with 1 part water and 1 part milk* of choice. Pour into small mugs and add a small pinch of cinnamon per cup to prevent a skin forming on the surface.

Notes

IMPORTANT: If you are making this with *cow or goat milk bring it to a boil first, the flavour of milk changes when it boils which adds to the complete chai experience. *If using other milk - oat, almond, rice, coconut - DO NOT BOIL or it will curdle.