Masala Chai

This tea drink of India is brewed in milk with a mix of spices ranging from pepper to cardamom to cinnamon. The proper name is masala chai, because chai literally means tea, so to say chai tea is redundant. Masala is also referred to as a spice mixture in Indian cooking. Often, a lower quality, 100-percent dried black tea is used in the making of masala chai, which is cooked for a long time. Masala chai is usually served from backpack samovars by street tea vendors called chaiwallas, who seem to be at every train stop or bazaar in India, offering a bit of nourishment for pennies. This peppery tea blend is also good with a base of fine Indian Nilgiri. Chai is available in concentrates, powders, ready-to-drink, and loose-leaf with spices to which you add sweetener, water, and milk to taste. A lingering, spicy sweetness is its strength as an ingredient in cooking. The concentrates are convenient for baking because you can use just a tablespoon/15 milliliters or more to give dough a wonderful kick without the necessity of cooking up a big batch of masala chai.