Recipe
Image: Wikipedia
Masala Chai Tea
Foraged Dish
Ingredients:
12 cardamom pods
4-5 whole cloves
8 black peppercorns
3 whole allspice berries
Pinch whole anise seeds
1 cinnamon stick (about 2-3 inches long)
3 tablespoons black Assam tea (English breakfast works too, if it’s all you can find!)
2 tablespoons dried ginger tea
For serving: water for brewing tea, and honey and milk to taste
Directions:
Place cardamom pods, cloves, peppercorns, allspice berries, anise seeds and cinnamon stick in a small skillet. Toast over low heat, stirring, until spices are fragrant.
Scrape spices into a mortar and pestle, and roughly grind the spices.
Combine Assam tea, ginger, and ground spices in a bowl or jar. Stir to combine.
Tea can be stored at room temperature in an air tight jar for quick some time — it may start to loose some of it’s flavor after a few months.
To brew: Heat 8 ounces of hot water. Place tea in a fine mesh tea stainer in a mug, and pour water into mug. Allow to steep for 5 minutes, then remove tea and strainer from mug. Sweeten with honey and milk to taste.
You may find that the bottom of your mug had spices in it — that’s where all the flavor comes from! I avoid drinking that very last sip, just like I might avoid taking the very last sip of sludgy French press coffee. Personal preference!
Masala Chai History (Teafloor)
History of the Traditional Masala Chai
Historically, in India, tea was viewed as an herbal medicine rather than as a recreational beverage. Some of the masala chai spice mixtures known as “Karha” that are still in current use are derived from Ayurvedic texts. The tea leaves which are used for making masala chai come from the long-leaved Assamese variety of the Camellia sinensis plant. These tea plants have grown wild in the Assam region since antiquity. During the 1830s, the British East India Company became concerned about the Chinese monopoly on tea. The tea production in China constituted most of the British trade and supported the enormous consumption of tea in Great Britain. The enormous consumption of tea in Great Britain was approximately one pound (by weight) per person per year. During the same time period, the British colonists noticed the existence of the Assamese tea plants. Since the British traders wanted to find an alternative source for their tea trades, they began to cultivate tea plantations locally in India. In the year 1870, over 90% of the tea consumed in Great Britain was of Chinese origin. This dropped to 10% by the year 1900 largely replaced by tea grown in British India (50%) and British Ceylon (33%).
Until the promotional campaign by the Indian Tea Association in the early 20th century the consumption of black tea within India remained low. The promotions worked positively and encouraged factories, mines, and textile mills to provide tea breaks for their workers. The campaign also supported many independent chai wallahs (tea sellers) throughout the growing railway system.
During the early days of tea promotions in India, the tea was as served in the English mode, with small added amounts of milk and sugar. In fact, in the initial days, the Indian Tea Association disapproved of independent vendors’ tendency to add spices and increase the proportions of milk and sugar. The British owned Indian Tea Association disapproved this since by doing so, it greatly reduced the usage and thus purchase of tea leaves per liquid volume. However, in the later days and as it is in its present form, masala chai firmly established itself as a popular beverage.
While there is no fixed recipe or preparation method for masala chai. It differs from family to family and greatly depends on personal preference. This also shows how versatile masala chai can be. There is no right or wrong formula. Many families have their own versions of the tea. However typically, most chai contains some caffeine content which is more or less 1/3 that of coffee if chai is made with a black tea base. Extremely hot water can also be used to steep the tea leaves steep long enough to extract the intense flavor, ideally without releasing the bitter tannins. Since there is a large range of possible variations, masala chai can be considered a class of tea rather than a specific kind. However, that being said, all types of masala chai have four basic components: milk, sugar, cardamom, and ginger.
Variedades receta india te ingles bebida gastronomia
Variedades receta india te ingles bebida gastronomia