Masala chai
Black tea simmered with milk, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and black pepper, sweetened with allulose.
- Hands-on
- 8 min
- Total time
16 min, show breakdown
- Prep 3 min
- Cook 10 min
- Clean up 3 min
- Pans
- 1
- Ingredients
- 7
- Cost/serving
- $0.46
Per serving
- Calories
- 69
- Protein
- 4.1 g
- Fiber
- 0.4 g
- Net carbs
- 6.9 g
- Fat
- 2.5 g
High in (% Daily Value per serving): Vitamin B12 27%
Whole recipe (): . Full nutrition facts, vitamins and minerals. All nutrition is estimated; check your own labels.
Everything else is scaled from this.
Nutrition per serving is the whole batch divided by this.
Already vegetarian, egg-free, gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free.
Ingredients for 2
Tap an ingredient for other units and forms.
You changed this recipe. Nutrition and cost include your changes. This combination hasn't been tested.
1 cup brewed black tea (237 g), made in the pot from 2 tea bags or 2 tsp loose Assam and 1 cup water
Same amount as: 240 mL.
1 cup milk, 2% (244 g)
Same amount as: 240 mL.
2 tsp fresh ginger, grated (4 g)
Same amount as: 10 mL, ⅛ tsp ground ginger.
½ tsp ground cardamom (1 g), or 4 crushed green pods
Same amount as: 2 mL.
¼ tsp ground cinnamon (0.7 g), or a small piece of stick
Same amount as: 1 mL.
- 2 pinches black pepper (0.4 g)
1 tbsp allulose (12 g), to taste
Same amount as: 15 mL.
Use the menu next to each ingredient to skip it, halve it or add more. Nutrition updates as you go. The main ingredient changes with servings instead.
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Healthier swaps
Optional. Nutrition and cost update as you choose; the recipe was written with the original.
Optional
Adds about 0 kcal per serving.
Quantities are for 2 servings. Use a pot at least twice the volume of the liquid. Milk rises fast when it boils.
Nutrition Facts
2 servings per recipe
Serving size 1 plate (250 g raw)
| Nutrient | Per serving | % DV* | Whole recipe |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 69 | ||
| Total fat | 2.5 g | 3% | |
| Saturated fat | 1.6 g | 8% | |
| Cholesterol | 10 mg | 3% | |
| Sodium | 61 mg | 3% | |
| Total carbohydrate | 13 g | 5% | |
| Dietary fiber | 0.4 g | 1% | |
| Total sugars | 5.9 g | ||
| Net carbs† | 6.9 g | ||
| Protein | 4.1 g | 8% | |
| Vitamin D | 1.5 mcg | 7% | |
| Calcium | 153 mg | 12% | |
| Iron | 0.16 mg | 1% | |
| Potassium | 233 mg | 5% | |
| Vitamin A | 67 mcg | 7% | |
| Vitamin C | 0.46 mg | 1% | |
| Vitamin E | 0.05 mg | 0% | |
| Vitamin K | 0.67 mcg | 1% | |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.05 mg | 4% | |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.24 mg | 19% | |
| Niacin (B3) | 0.14 mg | 1% | |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.05 mg | 3% | |
| Folate | 12 mcg | 3% | |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.65 mcg | 27% | |
| Magnesium | 20 mg | 5% | |
| Zinc | 0.66 mg | 6% | |
| Selenium | 3.1 mcg | 6% |
Estimated, not verified. These numbers are calculated from typical ingredient data and haven't been checked against a lab or your brands. Check the labels of what you buy and confirm anything that matters to you, especially sodium, sugar and allergens.
* % Daily Value shows how much one serving adds to a 2,000-calorie day. † Net carbs is not on US labels; it is total carbs minus fiber, allulose, erythritol and half of other sugar alcohols. "To taste" amounts are counted as written. Counted items (eggs, cloves, spoons) use the rounded amount shown in the ingredient list. Vitamins and minerals are from raw ingredients; cooking lowers some, especially vitamin C and folate. How this is calculated.
Steps
Put 1 cup water, the ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and pepper in the pot. Bring to a boil.
Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer 2 minutes.
Done looks like: The water is pale gold and the kitchen smells of ginger and cardamom. Add the tea and simmer 2 minutes more.
Done looks like: Dark reddish-brown, almost opaque. Pour in the milk. Raise the heat to medium and stay next to the pot. When it foams up toward the rim, lift it off the heat until it drops, then put it back. Do this 2–3 times.
Done looks like: The colour of milky caramel. A skin starts to form on top. Stir in the allulose. Pour through a sieve into two cups. Each cup has about 50 mg of caffeine.
Equipment
Medium pot with lid, about 2 L (2 qt) $15–35
What to look for
- Lid that fits snugly
- Thick base so it does not scorch
Skip: Glass lids that fog up are fine; copper is not needed.
What goes wrong
| What | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Boiled over | Milk foams up in seconds once it boils. | Stay at the stove after adding the milk and lift the pot off as soon as it rises. |
| Bitter and harsh | The tea simmered too long before the milk went in. | Keep the tea's simmer to 2 minutes. For stronger chai add more tea, not more time. |
| Weak and milky | Too little tea, or it wasn't boiled up with the milk. | Use 3 bags next time and let the milk rise at least twice. |
Versions
| Version | Changes | Per serving |
|---|---|---|
| Original | As written. Hands-on 8 min, total 16 min. | 69 kcal 4.1 g protein 0.4 g fiber 6.9 g net carbs 2.5 g fat |
| Dairy-free | Soy milk instead of milk. Also vegan. Hands-on 8 min, total 16 min. | 48 kcal 3.6 g protein 0.9 g fiber 2.6 g net carbs 2 g fat |
Notes
Allergies: removing an allergen from the recipe does not remove it from your kitchen or from other products. Check labels for "may contain" warnings.
Pregnancy: About 50 mg of caffeine per cup. Count it toward the 200 mg a day usually advised in pregnancy.