In this month's recipe, Naaz delves into the history of Chai (tea), exploring its roots in resistance and colonialism. She also shares her nostalgic recipe, perfected over years of trial and error, best followed with a touch of intuition.

By Naaz Sidhu | Photos by Syeda Sadaf Anwar

Chai (tea), also known as chaa in Punjabi, is a shared cup of happiness that originated across the southern regions of Asia and is now loved around the world. Chai has always been an integral part of South Asian culture, however, its significance surpasses a mere beverage. In South Asia, chai carries a profound historical narrative shaped by colonialism as well as British influence on black tea production and consumption. South Asian chai represents a form of resistance and resilience against colonial dominance as people made chai their own through the ‘simple’ act of brewing tea leaves, water, milk and adding spices, creating a tradition and a way of life. Nevertheless, it has undergone local adaptations and there has been a continuous evolution of culture surrounding tea since the 18th century, but in recent decades there have been trends surrounding ‘chai’ specifically.

Originally chai was just an affordable beverage in South Asia and the South Asian diaspora, but with consumer culture in Western style coffee shops, “chai tea” is often centered around gentrified versions of the beverage. Although a Starbucks Chai Tea Latte can be nice, in efforts to boycott on behalf of our Palestinian brothers and sisters, decolonise and re-create accessibility around the drink, I would like to share my family's recipe for khaar de chaa, which means ‘home tea’.

The first time I remember having chai was on my trip to Punjab during Lorhi, which marks the end of the growing season, in 2007. I vividly remember the foggy dusk hugging the sprawling fields of green before morning prayer. I sat watching my beeji (maternal grandmother) take two steel beakers and move the hot liquid from one cup to the other, cooling it down and creating a layer of sweet milky froth before sitting down with me on the manjee (wooden bed) to share a cup. Chai is a welcome, it creates a safe space and good conversation while bringing together generations of tradition. For my family, chai is medicine and healing. We’ve never really had formal recipes in my house. It changes according to the weather, day and occasion, but this article has allowed me to be mindful, pay attention and be patient during the process of making chai.

Servings: 2-3

What you need: Small or medium pot, mugs or steel glasses, strainer, spoon

Ingredients:

½ tsp cinnamon powder or 1 cinnamon stick ਦਾਲਚੀਨੀ/چینی دار ●
4 green cardamom ਇਲਾਇਚੀ /االئچی
4 cloves ਲੌਂਗ /ونگ
½ inch of fresh ginger crushed to allow infusion or ½ tsp ginger powder / ਅਦਰਕ /ادر
3 black tea bags or loose leaf black tea, ਚਾਹ / چائے
sugar to taste (around 3 tsp if you like it sweet) ਖੰਡ / شکر
milk or cashew milk
water

Optional Ingredients:

● 2– 4 saffron strands ਕੇਸਰ / زعفران

● 1 black peppercorn ਕਾਲੀ ਮਿਰਚ / مرچ کالی

● 1–2 star anise ਸਟਾਰ ਸੌਂਫ / بادیانی

Method

In a small or medium pot, add green cardamom (crush open the pods before adding), 4 cloves, crushed ginger, cinnamon (and optional spices if you like) along with 3 – 3.5 cups of water. Place on the stove at medium to high heat and boil until water has reduced to around two cups.
At this point, there should be a strong aroma of the spices. Once the water has reduced, you can now go ahead and throw in the black tea.
Continue boiling on low to medium for 10-15 more minutes and then add in 2 or 3 cups of milk depending on how creamy you like it. After this step, it is important to stay close to the chai as the milk can boil out of the pot. Depending on how hot you like your drink, you can boil the milk, however, I like to stand by and turn down the milk before it reaches boiling point.
Once done, pour into mugs, and add sugar to taste. Tip, Brown sugar tastes the best! You may also add sugar before the milk in the boiling process or use honey or alternative sweeteners such as agave.
Enjoy your chai

Tip: Chaa tastes great with South Asian sweet treats such as barfi, halwa, Parle-G biscuits, butter cookies or cake rusk