Chai

I lived in Kenya, East Africa, for a year and that is when I was first introduced to Chai. Chai actually just means tea, so often when you are asked if you want chai, you just get black tea with milk and sugar, other times you get the spicy, milky, sweetened tea. Chai, as we are discussing here, was actually brought to East Africa by the many emigrants from India. I had it served to me two ways while living there, sweetened and unsweetened. Usually the chai that was already sweetened was on the very sweet side. The unsweetened gave you the opportunity to stir in your own sugar after it was served. I observed it being made on many occasions (I'll spare you some the the less than sanitary conditions within which we often found ourselves...no health departments! :eek: ) and it was always made in a pot over a fire or on a stove. I never saw a tea bag used, only loose tea and chai masala.

Since chai was always prepared from scratch, I think it tastes the best that way. I have yet to find a "Chai" here that measures up. When I make chai, I usually get some chai masala from an Asian/Indian store and have some sort of loose black tea on hand (Ceylon or English Breakfast are fine, but I think Darjeeling is too light, and you don't want to use a flavored tea like an Earl or Lady Gray). I try to choose a masala that isn't instant and that has no black pepper in it. I don't like the way it tastes with the black pepper in it! I make this as I make my hot cocoa, not a real recipe, just put it all in a sauce pan, heat and keep adding until it tastes just right! I made it for a friend who grew up in Kenya and she couldn't stop raving about how much it tasted like home. Here are a few you can try, but remember, I think the key is to keep tasting until you get it just right.

********
Chai
*******
This is the plain kind with no spice.

Heat together in a 3 to 4 quart saucepan:
1 cup water
1 1/2 tsp tea leaves (or 1 tea bag)
Boil 10 minutes. Add:
1 cup milk
Heating near boiling. Add to taste:
2 to 4 teaspoons sugar

Serves 2.

******

Chai
******
6 cups water
1/2 cup sugar (or more if you would like)
6 tsps. loose black tea leaves
2 tsps. Masala spices
2 cups milk (whole milk)

Add water, sugar and masala in a pan. Bring to boil and simmer for a few minutes. Add milk, and tea . Simmer for 3-5 minutes. Strain tea into a teapot or six cups.

*******
Chai
*******
3 cups water
1-2 cinnamon sticks
8-10 cardamom pods
8-10 whole cloves
3 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar (or to taste)
6 tsp loose black tea

Put water in saucepan. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Add the milk and sugar and bring to a simmer again. Throw in the tea leaves, cover and turn off heat. After two minutes, strain into a tea pot or into tea cups. Serve immediately.

Be sure to serve your Chai with Maandazis, East African doughnuts, that go perfectly with the spiciness of the tea!

***********
Maandazi
***********
1 1/4 cups flour
2 tbs. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cardamon
Pinch of salt
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
oil for frying

Mix together dry ingredients and mix in egg and milk until well mixed. Roll out to about 3/4 " thick. Cut using a round cutter or drinking glass turned upside down. Fry in hot (365 degrees F) oil until golden brown. Makes 1 dozen.


Or if you want something along the more savory lines, try making a few Chapatis (Indian flat bread) with your chai.

*********
Chapatis
*********
2 cups flour
3/4-1 cup water
1/4 tsp. salt
melted butter

Mix the first three ingredients together; divide into fourths. Roll each one into a circle; spread it thinly with melted butter. Roll the circle into a small jelly type roll, then roll it up from one end
making it into a coil. Roll this flat again. Fry in a heavy gauge skillet until brown on both sides.

*Note: none of the photos used in this post are mine.