This is my all-time favourite warm beverage. I’ll bet once you’ve tried making your own chai concentrate, you’ll be hooked. I make twice this recipe every week in a slow cooker. You can use a large pot or Dutch oven if you don’t have a slow cooker. Feel free to adjust spice levels to your liking.
The grub:
6 cups water
2 cinnamon sticks
10 x 3mm thick fresh ginger slices
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
1 1/2 tsp whole cloves
1 tsp allspice berries
1 1/5 tsp green cardamom pods
2 star anise pods (optional)
6 tsp loose leaf black tea (my favourite is Indian Assam)
1 tbsp agave nectar
The how-to:
Place all ingredients except the tea and agave nectar into a slow cooker or large saucepan. Cover and cook on low for four hours if using a slow cooker, or two hours if using a saucepan on the stove.
Add the loose-leaf tea and steep for five minutes. Using a fine sieve or mesh strainer, strain the mixture into a large pot.
Add agave nectar and stir to dissolve. Once cooled, the concentrate can be stored in a pitcher in the fridge for up to two weeks.
To make a chai latte, combine half a cup of plant-based milk (soy is my favourite) with one cup of the concentrate. Enjoy it chilled or hot.
Makes six cups of concentrate (six to eight servings of chai latte).
Karina Inkster is a qathet region health and fitness coach, author of five books, and host of the No-B.S. Vegan podcast. For more information, go to karinainkster.com.
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