A cozy, warming chai latte is a no-brainer on a blustery day. In fact, you’d be drinking them just about all the time if it weren’t for the hassle of hauling yourself to the closest coffee shop. For those days where you simply refuse to put on pants (some of us have those more than others), you need an at-home chai concentrate recipe that’s going to produce the same – if not a better – cup of masala chai than what you can wrap your hands around from a store.
The best chai concentrate is easier to throw together than it may seem, and it’s something you can make in batches so that you always have some on hand to pour over ice or add to your steamed milk or espresso, depending on how you’re feeling on any given day. A tantalizing mix of cinnamon, clove, ginger, cardamom, and black tea, this DIY chai concentrate is easily customizable depending upon how strong you like your latte, or if there are other flavors that pull you in (think vanilla or orange). Store-bought chai concentrates tend to be really sweet, so learning to make it at home will not only save you some coin but also let you experiment with the exact proportions for your perfect chai latte.
And if you prefer pumpkin spice to chai, well, you can see yourself out. (Actually, both sound pretty good right now.) Follow this chai latte concentrate recipe for the perfect year-round treat that will elevate your at-home barista game beyond your wildest dreams, or at least enough that you can cut down on those daily trips to Starbucks.
Authentic Chai Concentrate
Eats By Ramya
Notes
You can grind your spices up before heating them using either a mortar and pestle or the flat side of a knife, but it’s not necessary. To make a larger batch, just double or triple the proportions here. For a chai latte, combine your chai concentrate with some steamed milk and sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 quart water
4 tbsp loose black tea leaves (or 6 black tea bags)
15 whole green cardamom pods
3 whole cinnamon sticks
2 inch ginger, thinly slice
10 cloves
Optional: 1-2 peppercorns, 10 fennel seeds, 1 star anise, orange peel, 2 tsp vanilla extract
Directions
- Add the dry spices (not including the ginger) to a medium size pot and turn the heat to medium. Move the pot around on the heat for 1-2 minutes. The heat releases the oils and intensifies the flavors while also cutting down on the bitterness.
- Add your toasted spices to a blender and pulse until coarse.
- Add the ground spices back to the pan along with the water and ginger. Bring it to a boil, cover with a lid, and simmer on medium for 20-30 minutes. Optional: If adding vanilla extract and/or orange zest, turn off the heat and add once simmered.
- Bring everything to a boil once again, turn off the stove and add the tea leaves. (If using tea bags, drop those in.) Cover, let steep for at least five minutes and up to 10. Strain the liquid, but do not squeeze the tea bags (it will make your tea bitter). Optional: For a sweeter chai concentrate recipe, add in 1/4 cup brown sugar and stir until dissolved.
- Let your chai concentrate cool and store in mason jars in your fridge.
Emma Glassman-Hughes (she/her) is the associate editor at PS Balance. In her seven years as a reporter, her beats have spanned the lifestyle spectrum; she’s covered arts and culture for The Boston Globe, sex and relationships for Cosmopolitan, and food, climate, and farming for Ambrook Research.
