Simple, practical, and full of everyday flavour, Masala Chai Recipe (Indian Spiced Tea) is a gluten-free, vegetarian Indian breakfast made with simple everyday ingredients in about 10 minutes. The recipe lays out the ingredients and each cooking step clearly, so you can adjust seasoning, texture, and serving size for your own kitchen.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 1 minutes
  • Cook time: 9 minutes
  • Total time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 2
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 2 cups water
  • 4 teaspoons raw sugar (or add as per taste)
  • 2 teaspoons black tea (- granules or tea leaves, preferably Assam CTC tea)
  • ¼ cup milk (or add as per taste)
  • 1 inch cinnamon (- true cinnamon and not cassia cinnamon)
  • 2 to 3 green cardamoms
  • 2 cloves
  • 1 inch ginger

Method

  1. Take cinnamon, green cardamoms, cloves and peeled ginger in a mortar-pestle.
  2. Crush coarsely and set aside.
  3. In a sauce pan or a small pan with a handle, heat water.
  4. Let the water come to a boil and then add the crushed spices.
  5. Boil the spices along with the water for 2 to 3 minutes.
  6. Add sugar as per taste. I usually add 4 teaspoons of raw sugar. You can add more or less.
  7. Now add 2 teaspoons of assam tea powder. Boil for a minute. This boiling time depends on how strong you want your tea. If you prefer a strong intense tea, then boil for a few more minutes.
  8. Add milk. After adding milk boil for 2 to 3 minutes.
  9. If using chilled milk, then boil with tea for 2 to 3 minutes. If using hot milk, then add the milk and switch off the heat.
  10. Pour the tea through a tea strainer directly in the cup.
  11. Serve Masala Chai hot with some Indian snacks or cookies or biscuits.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.