The sun is setting earlier and earlier as the leaves are changing from lush hues of green to rich arrays of red and orange. The shorter days and colder nights are a gentle reminder of the soft comforts of knitted blankets and warm sweaters beckoning us indoors to our cozy corners. It’s time to snuggle up with a hot cup of something soothing for the soul.
Now what to pour in your cup? Perhaps the aromatic warmth of a spicy chai tea would do the trick… But, alas, you find yourself trying to avoid caffeine, which leaves little room for a traditional chai tea blend. Ho hum. Whatever does one do in these situations?
Enter the no-caffeine chai tea blend. A rich blend of delectable spices from across the globe all perfectly paired to warm the body and soul, minus the caffeine content. It gives the same spicy kick of chai tea without the kickback of caffeine. Perfect for cozy-night warm ups!
A Brief History of ‘Chai’…
Before we start to obsess too much over making the PERFECT cup of chai, it helps to know a brief history of how ‘chai’ came to be…
First off, let’s begin by acknowledging the fact that the word ‘chai’ is a Hindi word that simply means tea. So when you say “I’ll have a cup of Chai Tea, please.” You’re actually just asking for a cup of “tea tea.” Who knew??
Legend has it, the first ‘masala chai’, or ‘spiced tea’, was created when a king in what is now modern-day India ordered a healing spiced beverage to be made for use in Ayurvedic medicine. The various spices were said to have healing qualities to them, some of which included: pain relief, increased blood circulation, improved respiratory functioning, and anti-septic properties, to name a few. The beverage eventually spread throughout the land, reaching all parts of what is now India, evolving little by little as each new village improvised their own takes on the warm healing beverage.
Though it isn’t quite clear what the very first blend consisted of, one thing is known. The first blends of ‘spiced tea’ did NOT contain any black tea, the key ingredient that brings caffeine to the Chai Tea as we know it- that was added later by the British. While most of the best known blends today contain black tea, the spice blends vary greatly between the numerous places around the world that consume it.
So why is this information relevant to making yourself a cup of chai?
Simple. It lets you know that there is no ‘wrong’ way to make a masala chai blend, because technically, there is no single ‘right’ way. So have fun with it! Take my recipe and get creative with it. Take out what you don’t like, add more of what you do, and throw something new in there if you want. The possibilities are endless!
Blending Your Chai
What you’ll need…
5 Cinnamon Sticks
1 Tbsp. Whole Clove Buds
7 Star Anise
1 Tbsp. Cardamom Seeds
1/2 Tbsp. Dried Ginger Root
1/2 Tbsp. Black Peppercorns
9 Whole Nutmegs
Honey (or other sweetener) (optional)
Vanilla Soy Milk (optional)
The first thing you’ll need to work on is acquiring your ingredients. Most of these items were easy enough to find at my local grocery store. Some in the spice aisle, some in the foreign foods section, depending where you go. The one ingredient I struggled the most to find in-store was whole nutmeg. But after doing some digging, I was able to find them at my local Bulk Barn. I was also unable to find plain old dried ginger root without any added sugars or processed ingredients attached to it, so I just made my own in the oven. It was a fun and super easy experiment I was able to accomplish with a quick google search.
I like making large batches at a time so I can pull from it for a while. The above recipe made about 1/3 of a Ziploc freezer bag worth of loose tea, so it’ll last you a while. Of course, if you’re not sure what you’ll like, feel free to start in smaller test batches until you get a blend that’s right for you. I personally LOVE cardamom and nutmeg, so my blend is pretty generous on the two.
Once you have all your ingredients, gather them up and crush them up with a kitchen mallet until the pieces are small enough to fit into a tea bag or strainer, whichever you prefer to use to steep your tea. For this step, I placed all my ingredients in a plastic bag to contain the crumbly mess, but if you’d rather stay away from potential micro-plastic contamination, a cheese cloth wrapped around your ingredients works just fine.
Steeping Your Chai
Personally, I’m a little impatient, but I usually try to steep my tea for a minimum of at least 5-7 minutes. Keep in mind, of course, that the longer the steep, the richer the flavour. So if you have the time, I recommend going anywhere up to 15 minutes; It really does make all the difference. I also always crush my loose tea a little bit more just before steeping to give it a “fresher” taste. I learned that trick from the locals in Nepal almost 10 years ago now, and I’m still amazed at how well it works!
There is also something to be said about the rich, robust flavour that can be achieved when you simmer your ingredients in a kettle on the stove. Simply simmer a handful of loose tea in a kettle on the stove for about 5-7 minutes. If you enjoy your tea with milk, you can also fill you kettle with milk instead of water. I personally use soy milk just because my tummy can’t handle lactose, but I’ve tasted it with regular milk as well, and I gotta say, it is just as yummy no matter what milk you choose.
Of course, the honey or other sweetener is completely optional and can be added during or after the steeping phase. I prefer to have at least a little bit of something sweet in my tea to help take off the bitter edge that can come from some of the richer spices of this blend.
Other Fun Things to Try With Chai
While I prefer using whole ingredients for my teas, I did attempt to experiment with a powdered version as well. I put together 1tspn of everything, except black pepper and ginger (I only added a 1/2tspn for each of those two). Turns out chai powder just doesn’t steep very well for a tea. However, I had a lot of fun trying to find uses for my new powdered chai concoction. Here’s some of my top favourites:
Vanilla Chai Yogurt
Adding a dash of chai spice to my vanilla yogurt was an absolute **chef’s kiss** of perfection. There’s a reason why vanilla chai is so popular. I tried it out in both a lactose-free dairy-based yogurt as well as a vegan yogurt. I preferred it in the lactose-free option, but both were quite tasty.
Chai Hot Chocolate
I just took a regular old powdered hot chocolate and added a dash of chai spice to the mix. It gave the chocolate a more robust flavour, and almost felt like I was drinking a mocha-latte. It ended up being a great option for me on days when I was missing having my coffee fix.
(Decaf) Chai Coffee
As much as I try to keep myself in check when it comes to my caffeine consumption, I am only human! Sometimes I just need the flavour of a coffee to trick my brain into thinking it’s getting a boost. The chai spice gives me a yummy little treat to look forward to and gives me all the warm fuzzies that make my brain happy.
Conclusion
Overall, I had a lot of fun experimenting with chai spice. I enjoyed letting my creativity run wild, especially making my “happy accident” powdered version which gave me more variety in how I use my chai blend. I also loved learning about the history of chai along the way. I’m such a sucker for a snack-sized history lesson!
I hope you enjoyed reading my post and feel inspired to get creative in the kitchen sometime soon. And, of course, I’d love to hear how your adventures went! If you’re willing to share, comment below and tell us about your creations!
Thank you for sharing this present moment with me.