Chai Latte From Scratch
This chai latte is milk tea along with chai spices made with ground ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, etc. It takes just 5 minutes to make it home. So you don’t have to drive to the store every time you need a delicious latte.
Chai is the Indian word for tea. Indian tea is a variety on its own. If you ever shop at an Indian store, buy a box of Indian tea bags and you will notice it is stronger than our regular tea bags.
The spices used in chai spice blends will also vary from place to place. If you buy an Indian brand, the dominating flavors are cardamom and ground ginger. But, in most commercial brands as well as the chai latte ingredients at Starbucks, the dominating flavor is cinnamon.
What is a chai latte? Similar to a latte made with coffee a chai latte is made with tea, skimmed milk, sweetener, and of course chai spices such as cardamom, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, etc.
Why make this latte
- It really is better than any store-bought chai you can buy.
- Commercial drinks are loaded with unnecessary sugars, making them so unhealthy. You are in control of this one!
- This recipe is very simple and gets ready in five minutes.
- Most of the ingredients are pantry staples plus chai spices.
- And the best part is, it is so versatile, and you can tweak it in any way you like. Or you can even add pumpkin puree to make a pumpkin chai latte. And, this is a hot chai latte, but you can also make an iced chai latte.
Ingredients for this latte
- I am using regular 2% milk. But, almond milk, coconut milk, or soy milk would also be delicious. Use soy milk to make this vegan.
- I am using regular English tea bags, but you can also use Earl Grey or Indian tea bags.
- To sweeten, I like using honey or maple syrup. And yet, brown sugar has a wonderful caramel-like molasses flavor and also adds color. Use a vegan sweetener to make this vegan.
- Today, I topped it with whipped cream because it looks so fancy and pretty. But, usually, I just have mine as is without any whipped cream on top. Just a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg works for me. You can even top it with milk foam.
Step-by-step: Chai spice latte
Using chai spice mix
- In a saucepan, combine milk, water, honey, chai spice, and tea bags.
- Heat over medium heat until the milk is infused with the tea and the spices. Keep the heat on medium so you don’t evaporate too much of the milk.
Pro tip – You can also do this in a microwave-safe measuring cup and heat it until it is hot and bubbling. - Strain into a chai cup. Top with milk foam or cream. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Enjoy!
Use chai spices from scratch
- In a saucepan, combine all ingredients: milk, water, honey, ginger, spices, and tea bags.
- Heat over medium heat until the milk is infused with the tea and the spices. Keep the heat on medium so you don’t evaporate too much of the milk.
Pro tip – I prefer to do this on the stovetop, but you can also do this in a microwave-safe measuring cup and heat it until it is hot and bubbling. - Strain into two chai cups. Top with milk foam or cream. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Enjoy!
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Frequently asked questions
You can keep any leftover latte in the fridge for up to 3 days. Then, you can have it as an iced latte or reheat it in the microwave or saucepan.
Commercial latte is loaded with sugar. So, even if you add skimmed milk, it still does not make it healthy. Instead, make it at home and use honey or maple syrup. That way, you can afford these lattes more often.
You can make your own chai spice mix. But, you can still make a chai latte using these individual spices for every two cups of chai:
– 1/4 tsp cardamom,
– 1/2 tsp of cinnamon powder,
– 1/2 tsp ground ginger,
– 1/4 tsp cloves, and
– 1/4 tsp white pepper powder
The amount of caffeine in chai tea will depend on the brand of tea bags you use and the number of tea bags you use. I personally prefer a deeper color for my chai, so I let it brew for a longer time, but you can use fewer bags or shorter brewing for less caffeine.
How to Make Chai Latte
This chai latte is milk tea along with chai spices made with ground ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, etc. It takes just 5 minutes to make it at home so you don't have to drive to the store every time you need a delicious latte.
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240 ml) Milk
- ½ cup (120 ml) Water
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 1 tsp Chai spice mix
- 2 Tea bags
- 2 cup (470 ml) Milk
- 1 cup (240 ml) Water
- 2 tbsp Honey
- 6 Tea bags
- 4 slices Fresh ginger (1 inch) Optional
- ½ tsp Cardamom powder
- ½ tsp Cinnamon powder
- ½ tsp Ground ginger (or 1 tbsp fresh ginger sliced)
- ¼ tsp Cloves powder
- ¼ tsp White pepper powder
Method
- In a saucepan, combine milk, water, honey, chai spice, and tea bags.
- Heat over medium heat until the milk is infused with the tea and the spices. Keep the heat on medium so you don't evaporate too much of the milk.Pro tip – You can also do this in a microwave-safe measuring cup and heat it until it is hot and bubbling.
- Strain into a chai cup. Top with milk foam or cream. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Enjoy!
- In a saucepan, combine all ingredients, milk, water, honey, ginger, spices, and tea bags.
- Heat over medium heat until the milk is infused with the tea and the spices. Keep the heat on medium so you don't evaporate too much of the milk.Pro tip – I prefer to do this on the stovetop, but you can also do this in a microwave-safe measuring cup and heat it until it is hot and bubbling.
- Strain into two chai cups. Top with milk foam or cream. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
- Enjoy!
Equipment you will need
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
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How I wish I had a cup of this delicious chai latte on my desk right now!
It is so easy to make Beth. You must try
I love that this is so quick to make! One of my favourite drinks at this time of year – your recipe is so delicious!
Thanks, Bintu.
This sounds so good – just the thing to drink on a cold, wet, autumn day like we’re having right now!
yes, definitely the thing to drink these days.
This is a lovely drink. Such a great thing to start your day with.
Thanks, Nart
This is my favourite type of drink at this time of year. So warming.
So true. Thanks