By Simran Makkar
November 15, 2026
Everyone's got an opinion on how chai should be made: more milk, less milk, extra ginger, no ginger, some cloves or maybe not. But once you get the basic method down, you can tweak it however you like. This one's the base recipe: strong and the kind you'll end up making on repeat.
– 2 cups water – 1 cup milk – 2 teaspoons loose tea leaves – 1-inch ginger, crushed – 2-3 green cardamom pods, crushed – 2-3 cloves – 1 small cinnamon stick – 2 teaspoons sugar, or to taste
In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil along with the ginger, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon stick.
Let it boil for 2-3 minutes so the spices release their flavour into the water.
Add the tea leaves and let it boil for another minute.
Pour in the milk and bring the mixture back to a boil.
Lower the heat and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes, until the chai turns a rich brown colour.
Add sugar according to taste and stir well.
Strain into cups and serve hot.