Masala chai

During the colonization of India, tea with milk became widespread among the local population. Over time, the Indians improved their favorite tonic drink and masala tea appeared.

What is masala chai

Masala tea differs from ordinary tea with the addition of milk in some additives. They make it healthier than regular tea and provide an unusual pleasant taste. The ingredients of masala tea include: black tea leaves, milk, ginger root, cardamom, cinnamon, and sweetener.

The spices added to masala tea can be different. It all depends on taste preferences. Traditional spices cinnamon and ginger give a bright taste, but if a person prefers a softer aftertaste, then, for example, star anise is used.

You can take any kind of black tea, but still it is better to give preference to large-leaf varieties. They make the drink more aromatic and give a brighter taste. But tea with fruit additives or with a fruity aroma does not need to be added to the masala. Adding milk will distort the taste of the fruit.

The benefits and harms of masala tea

In addition to its unusual pleasant taste, this warming drink has many useful properties. Masala tea can give you vigor, especially if you drink it in the morning. This activates metabolism and starts the circulation of energy. In terms of its properties, masala tea can compete with morning coffee which is harmful in large quantities. In addition to these pleasant qualities, drink has other useful properties:

• Thanks to the warming spices, masala tea can play a role in preventing colds.
• It is able to resist poorly developing infections and enhances the immune defense.
• Prevents the development of atherosclerosis and helps in blood purification.
• If you add cloves to the drink, then it can be used to heal the liver.
• The cinnamon in the drink gives it a mild diuretic effect.
• Helps to cope with chronic fatigue.
• Helps to strengthen and improve the elasticity of the walls of blood vessels.
• Useful for vegetative-vascular dystonia to stabilize blood pressure and strengthen the heart.
• Promotes the digestion process, metabolic processes, eliminates the feeling of heaviness in the stomach.
• It has a positive effect on the functioning of the nervous system, improving memory, performance and mental activity.
• For a long time, this drink has been used to prevent tuberculosis.

It is believed that warming masala tea can be drunk by all people. But still it is worth giving it up if you have a special sensitivity to the components of the drink, chemical burns of the oral cavity or lactose deficiency.

Masala tea recipe

First, let's talk a little about the ingredients in masala. It is better to take Assam large-leaf or Ceylon tea, also with a blend of large leaves. Focusing on how strong the drink you want to prepare, you need to either boil the tea over low heat or add black tea leaves to boiling water and leave to infuse.

Any milk can be added, with different percentages of fat content, it all depends on your taste preferences. The proportions can be different, often milk is added last to the ready-made drink. In some cases, water and milk are mixed first, and then the rest of the ingredients are added. With the help of milk, all facets of taste and aroma of spicy additives are revealed. You can not just add spices to the warmed milk-water mixture, but boil them a little with low heating.

It is preferable not to add spices already ready-made. The taste and aroma are much brighter if the aromatic additives are ground immediately before brewing the tea.

In the classic version of making tea, oil must first be crushed in a mortar 2 large tablespoons of grated ginger root, 5 seeds of cardamom, 5 g of black pepper, half a cinnamon stick. Then this spice mixture is mixed with tea leaves (50 g) and poured into a saucepan for brewing. Half a glass of cold water is added there and put on a small fire. When the mixture boils, heated milk is poured into it and sugar is added to taste. Everything is mixed and poured into cups.