Warm spices, strong tea and steamed milk swirling around in my tummy make chai lattes a favorite during the winter months. It warms me from the inside out in a way that puts coffee and tea to shame. Unfortunately, the chai concentrate from certain coffee chains is too sweet. But there is something better.
It never occurred to me to make my own chai. (Certainly it must be too hard.) But when I saw this recipe from thecatnipcat for this Amazing Spiced Chai Concentrate, something about the whole thing seemed doable. If I had known how easy it was, I would have started making my own years ago. Needless to say, this version is delicious! And I love that I can up the quantities of the flavors I like more and reduce the quantities of the flavors I like less. For example, we used less sugar and doubled the cinnamon. Make the original version, then tweak the recipe based on your preferences. I wouldn’t be surprised if you find her recipe is just right for you.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, star anise, cloves, black pepper, nutmeg, orange zest, tea bags, brown sugar, honey, and vanilla.
Start by bringing 4 1/2 cups water to the boil on the stove.
Then you need some orange zest. If you don’t have a zester, you can use a vegetable peeler.
The recipe says to use a piece of ginger. For us that meant three large coins which we smashed to release more flavor.
Once the water has come to a boil, remove the pot from the heat and add the tea bags.
Then add your cinnamon sticks (we only add two—it just looks like we’re using four because we broke them in half).
Then add your star anise and seven cardamom pods. We only had cardamom seeds so we looked up how many seeds there are in a pod. The answer is “about 12” so we added roughly 80 cardamom seeds (no we did not count them out).
Then add the rest of the spices: the whole cloves, freshly ground pepper, zest (or peel), smashed ginger, and freshly grated nutmeg. Stir the pot to mix all the ingredients. This is the point at which Mom said, “This is starting to look like a witch’s brew.” I concurred.
Add sugar, vanilla and honey and then let this steep for 15-20 minutes. Our family likes our chai concentrate like we like our tea and coffee, strong and dark. So we let it go the full 20 minutes.
When the chai concentrate has reached desired taste and color, strain out the spices and zest.
Now you are left with delicious, homemade chai concentrate.
We added the chai concentrate to steamed milk, but you could mix it with ice cream or yogurt to give plain vanilla a flavor kick.
All I know is that I will never pay $3.25 for an overly-sweet chai again.
Thanks again, thecatnipcat!
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Description
All the flavor of a mix, with no funky additives or preservatives! The benefits to making your own mix are obvious: you can customize it all you want, you know exactly what’s in it, and if you buy them in bulk, the spices can be dirt cheap!
Ingredients
- 4-½ cups Water
- 1 stick Cinnamon
- 1 piece Fresh Ginger Chopped
- 7 whole Cardamom Pods
- 2 whole Star Anise Pods
- 10 whole Cloves
- ¼ teaspoons Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- ½ teaspoons Freshly-ground Nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Orange Zest
- 10 teaspoons Green Or Black Tea Or 10 Tea Bags
- ⅔ cups Brown Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Honey
- 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
Preparation Instructions
Bring the water to a boil. Add the spices and tea, remove from heat and let steep 15-20 minutes, depending on how strong you want it. Strain and add the brown sugar, honey, and vanilla. Stir to combine.
Mix 1 part concentrate with 1 part milk, heat and enjoy or pour over ice.
For a stronger flavor, mix 2 parts concentrate with 1 part milk or half-and-half (if you’re like me).
This concentrate will keep in the fridge for around 2 weeks. Freeze it in an icecube tray and add to smoothies!
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Three Many Cooks is the always-entertaining food blog of Pam Anderson and her two daughters, Maggy and Sharon. Pam is a well-known and much-respected food writer and author, Maggy is a “hippy adventurer meets 1950s housewife,” and Sharon refers to herself as a recovering food snob learning to survive on a graduate student’s budget. Theirs is a strong relationship both inside and outside the kitchen, and it shows in the food they create and the stories they tell.
142 Comments
Comments are closed for this recipe.
april on 1.16.2011
I made this last night. It’s fabulous!
I too think the pre made stuff is too sweet.
I did everything as written except used 1/2 the sugar and it was plenty sweet. Next batch will 1/2 again, and then try with spenda.
Might add a couple more tea bags too. I like it strong.
I heat my milk in the microwave and hit it with my immersion blend to
get some foam.
Ericka on 1.15.2011
it was so so good! thank you!!
Cassie from Wisconsin on 1.15.2011
Kind of a weird question, but where did the author get the white mugs with the little lids on them? These are so cute!
Donna G on 1.15.2011
You can get cardamon pods at penzeys.com. I get all of my spices from them, they are top quality and less expensive than my local grocery store. Plus, they are delivered right to your house.
Thanks for the recipe, I love it!
Margie on 1.15.2011
I will have to try this. I never drink chai since I am allergic to cinnimon.
greg urbano on 1.15.2011
i just “stumbled upon” this site and my oh my how tasty does that drink look, fresh chai, i love it
Cecilia on 1.15.2011
That looks AMAZING! but how much sugar, honey and vanilla do we have to add?
Yasmine on 1.15.2011
You. are. fantastic.
Nat on 1.15.2011
Thank you for this recipe … I find the best chai at Indian restaurants and am excited to make this at home!
Starbuck on 1.15.2011
I hate all of you people who just call it “Chai” the fact that it is made with tea means that it is a tea. It has all of the caffine and antioxidants that are found in tea. So please, please, please, for the love of GOD call it what it is….”CHAI TEA!”
Katy on 1.14.2011
This looks alot more expensive and laborious than that $3.75 concentrate that you could have added more black tea to. Hmmm.
Emily on 1.14.2011
I made this yesterday and it is DELICIOUS! I didn’t even use the anise and cardamon (I didn’t want to buy them special). I used 1/2 the sugar and it is plenty sweet. It is wonderful mixed with skim milk. I think I’m going to be getting A LOT more calcium in my diet now!
Jessica on 1.14.2011
This sounds great. Will it keep it the fridge? Any idea how long?
teejay on 1.14.2011
How is Indian Black tea different from Chinese or Japanese Black tea?
Kristin on 1.14.2011
I am so excited to try this out! I love chai but my pocket book can’t support my habit. This looks like a great way to get my fix and not break the bank.
shapewear on 1.14.2011
Chai tea is ridiculously expensive here in our area. Thanks for this share, now I can regulate the taste of the chai tea to my liking.
Moni-Moni on 1.14.2011
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I love chai but that chai from the place that starts with Star and ends with Bucks is waaaaayy to sweet. I am making it this weekend and having some chai tea and making some chai ice cream for Saturday night dessert at the dinner party — spicy seafood gumbo followed by chai ice cream. Yum Yum – can’t wait.
gail on 1.13.2011
Looks yummy, I’m going to make this. You can smash small pieces of ginger in a garlic press.
MOV on 1.13.2011
Am I allowed to spike it with a teeny tiny bit of alcohol? Or will the chai police have me arrested?
Always an inspiration!
*
http://mothersofbrothersblog.blogspot.com
*
MOV
(knocking keyboard against head– “oh, she has sons, THAT’S WHY she drinks…”)
barb on 1.13.2011
The items for this wonderful recipe are going on my shopping list as I type.
I have a question I am lusting after that glass carafe. It looks like a small old fashion milk bottle. Where did you find it??
Anne L on 1.13.2011
Yum! Thanks for the recipe I am so excited to try it!
Natasha @ Saved by the Egg Timer on 1.13.2011
Oh this truley looks amazing! I can smell it through the screen. I will be making this for sure.
Promila on 1.13.2011
I’d recommend using loose tea rather than tea bags – chai made with loose tea just tastes better! Also, please crush the cardamom seeds in a pestle and mortar – it helps extract their yummy goodness more easily…
Lisa on 1.13.2011
This was amazing, even though I didn’t have ginger or an orange. I’m sure it will be even better when I have all the ingredients. I love that I can control the sugar and caffeine (I made it with half real and half decaf teabags).
Bethann Marchionna on 1.13.2011
I just ran out to the Whole Foods store and bought my star anise and cardamom! OH MY GOSH, my house smelled yummy, and it was so good! I actually forgot to put the nutmeg in and it was so yummy! I will never have to buy a chain tea latte again> Seriously, this was an answer to my prayers for our budget!
Trista on 1.13.2011
Oh. my. goodness. I am absolutely in love with chai and you’re right, some chain’s chai is too sweet. I like to get that spicy flavor. I will definently have to try this out!
Linda on 1.13.2011
My Mother’s duck dinner and her apple pie–none better–Oh that I could go back….
Shannon on 1.13.2011
I can’t wait to try this recipe. I love chai flavours and can rarely find a chai tea in my area. Thanks so much.
DeaMariella on 1.13.2011
It’s fairly easy to make a big-ass pot of chai and then keep it in the fridge. Do pretty much the same thing, only 50/50 milk and water. It’s pretty delicious.
zart on 1.13.2011
if you’re going to the trouble of gathering the spices you need for this, you really ought to spend the effort and use loose leaf tea.
trust me, you’ll taste the difference.
Katrina on 1.13.2011
This looks so good! I’m going to try it right now
rachelle. on 1.13.2011
i can’t wait to try this.
Michelle on 1.12.2011
Yay!!! I’m SO excited!!!! THANK YOU!
Dana on 1.12.2011
O.M.G. I LOVE Chai! I have to try making this recipe.
Allison on 1.12.2011
This was so easy to make and sooo good! I reduced the amount of sweet and added some more spice as well, this is really worth making!
LauraFry on 1.12.2011
Oh wow this got my attention. My husband and I just returned from India where we drank the best chai in the world…everyday for three months straight. Oh how we miss it. We actually went to a tea factory before we flew home and got all sorts of chai teas. If you ever go to India..you can get cardamom extremely cheap. We were able to buy a huge bag for $20 there.
hoosierhomemade on 1.12.2011
I’m so tickled to find this!! I buy the concentrate at Walmart, and it’s almost $4 a box…I use about 2 or 3 boxes per week. Which, of course, is cheaper than the coffee shop, but still…
I’m adding these ingredients to my list for the next shopping day!
Thanks SOOO much!!
~Liz
Carina on 1.12.2011
How long will this keep and should it be kept refridgerated?
Thanks
Tracy on 1.12.2011
I’m absolutely going to be trying this! I was just craving a chai latte the other day.
Jill Erickson on 1.12.2011
Hey! I have that same teacup!
spoiledmom on 1.12.2011
Wonderfully delicious! Enjoyed making–as well as just plain ‘enjoying’–on this, our 3rd Snow Day here in the South! My 16 y/o daughter loved it as well. As it was 19 degrees outside today, this was the perfect treat today.
Is delish in Almond Milk as well!
Thanks for the share!
Wenderly on 1.12.2011
I feel all warm and relaxed just reading this…can’t even begin to imagine how incredible I’ll feel when I taste it!
angela m. on 1.12.2011
this sounds amazing……can’t wait to make it!~
jonimarhula on 1.12.2011
Oh this is great! as an ex-starbucks employee….I’m so excited! I don’t know why I never looked up the recipe…. as a variation, you can make a “dirty” chai…. that is add a shot of espresso….. i found the best little espresso maker and very inexpensive too!
check it out here http://www.iliveinacabininthewoods.blogspot.com
Carrie on 1.12.2011
I am printing and going to the store tomorrow after work! It is so cold and I am getting tired of coffee! This will be perfect! Thanks! I bet my house will smell yummy too.
Mary on 1.12.2011
I’ll be the house smells fabulous when this is cooking. I’ll be giving this a try this week.
Lisa on 1.12.2011
Can I just come over to your house?
KB @ Home-Baked Happiness on 1.12.2011
Y’know, I have some really good loose-leaf chai in the cupboard… I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me until now that if I brewed it extra-strong and cooled it, I could probably do other stuff with it, like lattes. I’ve just been drinking it hot, straight.
cath on 1.12.2011
I love chai and have been waiting to find a comparable recipe to the premade that is hard to find here. Will be trying this out this weekend! Thanks!
Coralie on 1.12.2011
Thank you from a Chai addict..