Indian Cooking Hacks: It would be an understatement to say that Indians love their cup of milky kadak masala chai. Tea lovers in India like their tea prepared in a certain specific way. Some enjoy it with full-fat milk while some like it with skimmed milk, some others may like it cloyingly sweet while another group of people may like with just one sugar cube. There's a section of people who don't like their tea flavoured with any spice barring fresh ginger, while some others may want a whole range of spices to be cooked along with the milk and the tea, lending their cup an aromatic quality. Some may even demand special maska chai with a generous helping of fresh cream or malai, while some others can't even stand the sight of malai in their mugs of chai!
Whichever camp you may belong to, you will probably agree on one thing- there is perhaps no 'best way' to prepare masala chai. The characteristic feature of Indian chai is the presence of one or more spices in it, giving it a unique soothing and perhaps nutritious quality. Some of the most popular spices that are used to prepare masala chai include ginger, cinnamon, green cardamom (elaichi) and cloves (laung). You may mix and match and use these spices in combination, or put all of these in, while preparing your tea. While it may be a task to individually store and use all these spices for preparing chai daily, some people prefer the sight of whole spices brewing in their tea pots to conveniently skipping them out.
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Tips To Get Kadak Masala Chai Every Single Time
For those who want to go all the way and use all the spice ammunition in their kitchen arsenal, there is a way of ensuring that their cup of chai is perfectly aromatic and strong or kadak to boot! Follow these tips to get a strong cup of masala chai every single time:
1. Spice Mix: Although a lot of people nowadays go for store-bought chai masalas, it's always better to make your chai masala at home from fresh and whole spices. You can simply grind all the whole spices of your choices together in a grinder until they form a fine or medium-coarse powder. Make sure you grind equal quantities of all spices together and store it in an air-tight jar for daily use.
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2, For Milky Tea: If you like your chai kadak, but still creamy and milky, then make sure you boil the milk and the water together until it comes to a boil, before putting the tea leaves in.
3. For Chai With Less Milk: For those who like their chai with just a smidgen of milk, boiling the tea leaves and spice mix in water before putting the milk in, is ideal. Let the spice mix and the tea leaves brew in plain water for just a few minutes, until it starts bubbling. Then add little bit of milk, as per your requirement and then boil again for a few minutes.
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You can also adjust the quantity of tea leaves, depending on how mellow or strong you want your tea to be. Also, make sure you don't put too much masala in your tea, otherwise it may end up overpowering the taste and flavour of the leaves.