Kashmiri (Pink) Chai
Also known as gulabi chai, kashimiri chai uses a special tea leaf that turns the tea pink when cooked. Cooked with a special blend of spices, this tea is a showstopper tea for your next tea break.
Servings: 10 Cups
Ingredients
For the Tea Concentrate
- 4 cups water
- 2 tbsp kashmiri tea leaves
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 star anise
- 1-2 cinnamon stick
- 5-6 cardamom pods
- 1 cup ice water
To Serve
- 4 cups milk (non-dairy works too)
- 4 tbsp sugar (optional)
- chopped almond & pistachio (for topping)
Instructions
Kashmiri Chai Concentrate
- In a large pot, on medium heat, bring to a boil: 4 cups water, 2 tbsp tea leaves, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1 star anise, 1-2 cinnamon sticks, and 5-6 cardamom pods, slightly crushed to release the seeds.
- Cover, and allow to simmer on medium low for 10-12 minutes till the liquid has reduced by half.
- Turn off the heat. And have 1 cup of ice water ready.
- Cold shock the tea by quickly adding the ice water. Using a heat proof glass or mug, carefully scoop out the tea in the pan, and pour it back in - do this scoop and dump 25- 30 times. This will encourage the pink colour to develop - trust me you need to do this a lot - don't skimp on this!
- You should see the colour changing as you mix.
- Strain the tea concentrate. This tea concentrate can now be refrigerated or frozen till you are ready to make kashmiri chai. Use about 1/2 cup of tea concentrate for each cup of tea.
Make the Kashmiri Chai
- Return the tea concentrate to a large saucepan on medium heat.*
- Add 4 cups of milk, and 4 tbsp sugar (if using) and bring to a boil - about 5 minutes.
- Pour into tea cups, and sprinkle with some crushed pistachios and almonds just before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
This is enough to make a total of 10 cups of kashmiri tea - if you want to make less, just measure out 1/2 a cup of tea concentrate and 1/2 cup of milk for each cup of tea you want to make.