Spice Things Up With Chai Tea  

Just loosen up, shut your eyes, and breathe deeply. As you inhale, take in the tantalizing flavor of freshly prepared tea that you are going to sip. Now this hot beverage is really calming and heart-warming. It conveys a very invigorating aroma that helps settle your nerves as well as lets you unwind after a hard day’s work. 

All it takes is black tea, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and pepper; put in hot water, honey, milk, and you have a remarkably delightful form of Chai tea. This in fact is a healthy option to your regular mug of morning coffee.

In the word Chai, the first two letters are pronounced like “church” while the last two letters rhyme with “sky”. In America, Chai is actually an abbreviated form of Masala Chai. The term “masala” denotes an assortment of spices. Tea lattes, which are actually tea with milk, are some other derivatives. In fact, Chai is in no way a particular variety of tea; it just signifies a certain way of making tea with milk as well as spices.  

Now Chai tea is considered the brainchild of the Hindus, who had mastered the naturally healing technique, which relied heavily on herbs and spices, and is believed to possess natural curative properties.  

Tea is referred to as Chai in Asian terminology. Generally, it is prepared by boiling water and milk along with tea. Based on an individual’s tastes, an assortment of additives like lemon, honey, and spices like cinnamon can be put in. In fact tea is more widely favored than coffee in certain countries.  

The strong aroma of tea can definitely be a refreshing and a pleasant experience. Following an extremely taxing day, there is certainly nothing more inviting than settling down, unwinding and savoring a piping hot beverage. In freezing winters, snuggling cozily in front of a cheerful fire and sipping hot tea, surely beats anything.  

Usually, Chai is made from black tea in combination with cardamom, molasses, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger. In India, the best way of preparing chai is by boiling the tealeaves along with milk in order to obtain a rich flavor.  

Now, the spices that are added to the Chai have numerous health advantages like containing antioxidants, which aid in warding off cancer. Besides, tea also assists in reducing cholesterol levels as well as reducing blood pressure levels. Further, cloves facilitate the production of body heat and hence you feel all warm in the winter months as well as during the viral infections’ season. Ginger has a favorable influence on the respiratory and digestive system. Every single drop of this particular tea has a beneficial effect and therefore drink a couple of cups of Chai and let the warm, good feeling spread all over you! A 5-ounce mug of coffee contains more than 100 mg. of caffeine while tea contains half that amount.  

People who sell Chai tea are called Wallahs. The tea is prepared in very large kettles placed over the fire. Once made, the Chai tea is then served in tiny containers known as ‘kullarhs’ that are actually unglazed pots. Now a part of this Chai drinking ceremony is to destroy the container after consuming the tea.  

Thus, whenever you wish to have a hot beverage, opt for a hot cup of the aromatic Chai tea. You will feel good that you went in for it!