Easy Chai Tea on a cold day

It’s a miserable, damp day so I needed something comforting to drink.

One of my favourite hot drinks is chai tea. I don’t like the overly sweet stuff sold in tetra packs, and teabags will do in a pinch, but when I have a few minutes to spare, and some room in the fridge, I like to make  a batch.

Easy Chai Tea

I start with my Dutch oven, and 4-6 cups of water. I turn the heat to high, and toss in the following:

• peel of one orange (white removed)
• 5 or 6 slices of fresh ginger root
• 5 or 6 whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• half a stick of cinnamon
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon cardamon seeds, crushed

I let it boil for about four minutes, then add:

• enough milk to bring the total to 8 cups of liquid
• 2 tablespoons black tea leaves
• 1/4 cup brown sugar or honey

When it returns to the boil, I remove it from the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. Then I pour it through a strainer and into a large container. Sometimes I add a teaspoon of vanilla at this point- sometimes not. Either way, it is delicious. I keep this in the fridge and heat a cup as desired.