A delicious and easy dairy-free chai recipe made with whole spices. It's spicy, comforting, naturally sweetened, and made in just 1 pot with 8 ingredients!
Recipe by Minimalist Baker on February 3, 2020
Prep time: PT5M
Cook time: PT20M
Total time: PT25M
Rating
4.78 stars (31 reviews)
Keywords
chai
Ingredients
1 whole cinnamon stick
6-8 green cardamom pods
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
3-4 whole cloves
2 ½ cups water
2 Tbsp grated ginger ((for less intense ginger flavor, slice instead of grating))
3 Tbsp loose leaf black tea ((or ~3-4 black tea bags // use decaf as needed))
2 cups dairy-free milk
Sweetener such as stevia, organic cane sugar, or maple syrup to taste
Categories
Beverage
Cuisine
Dairy-Free
Indian-Inspired
Vegan
Steps
Add cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, peppercorns, and cloves to the bowl of a mortar (or cutting board) and use pestle (or heavy pan) to slightly crush the spices. You aren’t pulverizing into a powder, just slightly crushing into small pieces (see photo).
To a medium saucepan add crushed spices, water, and grated (or sliced) ginger and bring to a boil over high heat. (Note: For a less gingery chai, reduce amount of ginger and slice rather than grating). Then reduce heat slightly to medium/medium-low and maintain a simmer for 15 minutes or until it reduces by about one-third.
Add tea (loose leaf or bags) and dairy-free milk of choice (we love light canned coconut) and lower heat to low. Cover and continue cooking for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Then turn off heat and let steep for 5 minutes more (covered) or longer for deeper flavor.
Add sweetener of choice to taste (we prefer stevia or maple syrup, but sugar is more traditional). Strain through a fine mesh strainer before serving.
Keep strained, cooled leftovers covered in the fridge up to 3-4 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in a milk frother. Not freezer friendly.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 cup
Calories: 200 kcal
Carbohydrates: 19.4 g
Protein: 5 g
Fat: 13.5 g
Saturated Fat: 5.9 g
Sodium: 21 mg
Sugar: 4.9 g
Unsaturated Fat: 6.31 g
Reviews
Jos on 2025-01-11 (5 stars): Absolutely delicious! Made it with cow's milk since it's the only milk I buy and it was phenomenal! Thank you :)
Asha on 2024-10-28 (5 stars): This Masala chai recipe is divine! We also use the Masala Chai tea from Ahista Tea. Both options are household staples for us during the cold, winter months here in New York.
Dixon Cider on 2024-02-28 (5 stars): Made with coconut milk. So delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
Dawn on 2024-02-20 (5 stars): I’m making my 2nd batch right now. It is so delicious, I love ginger and followed the recipe 1st time, this time I’ve halved the ginger. I sweetened with maple syrup.
A great recipe thank you.
Eri on 2024-02-04 (5 stars): I love this recipe! Thx for sharing! I make a quadruple batch for the week and let it simmer longer so it’s really strong and can be diluted w a little water. Add the milk daily. Yum!
