Memories of my days with Hasumati Patel in Switzerland and India come reeling back today. After the death of my mother 8 years ago, Hasumati became a mother to me and a grandmother to my daughter. Hasumati taught me about Aruyvedic medicine and the dance of Indian spices. To her I am forever grateful.
Chai Tea was a ritual of our days both in the morning and early afternoon. Chai in India is simple, Assam tea with white sugar and whole cow’s milk. I could never really enjoy the chai because of the white sugar and cow milk. It is funny my Yoga teacher used to say to me that rich people could never truly enjoy their food because of their preoccupation of is this good for me or not good for me question. “Poor people,” he said, “..are just grateful to have something to eat.”
Today my house is full with the aroma of spices. The joy of cold winter days and a tea gently steeping on the stove is here and I thought to share my evolution of chai tea with you.
I am a bit under the weather. Yes, I realized while speaking with a dear friend yesterday, even if you eat the healthiest food and take the supplements and drink the best water, you are human and vulnerable. It has been over ten years since I had a fever, and I revisited the sensation yesterday. I am truly amazed at how the human body functions. How it burns the pathogens from your body through a fever.
The evolution of chai tea for me looks like this.
Whole black peppercorns
Nelken or cloves
Cardamom
Cinnamon sticks
Fresh ginger slices
Whole mace
Goji berries
Whole fennel seeds
Fenugreek seeds
I place all these delightful spices in a large pot and add spring water and heat gently until it begins to steam and allow to steep for a few hours. The fast way is to allow to boil and then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. This is faster but not going to give you the same results.
These spices are warming and cleansing. I steep the herbs and then per cup add the steeped liquid to black tea (Assam), let steep for 3 more minutes, and then I add a very little bit of stevia and raw Brazil nut milk. I know, it is decadent, right? This has been warming my soul all morning.
Hope you try it too. Do you have any chai recipes that you love? How do you make your chai tea? There are so many spices to choose from.