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ChaiChai (written चाय in Hindi) is an Indian term for tea from India. Chai (pronounced /ti/) is actually a generic word for tea in many South Asian countries, and also in Swahili, an Eastern African language, where it was brought by Indian merchants. The character for tea, 茶 is pronounced in Mandarin Chinese as "chá", giving rise to words for tea in many Eastern languages, hence "chai" in Indo-Iranian languages, Russian and Arabic. In the United States, many people refer to Indian tea as Chai tea, which becomes redundant if you consider that Chai means tea, and that the two words originally derive from two different Chinese dialects. In India, prepared Chai is sold in many varieties, the most famous being "Masala" (मसाला), which is the Hindi word for spice. Chai is incredibly popular in India, even more popular than coffee is in the United States. Chai is also a relatively popular beverage in coffeehouses in other countries. There is no fixed recipe or preparation method for Masala Chai tea. In fact, many families in India have their own special versions of the tea. Due to the huge range of possible variations, Chai can be considered a class of tea rather than a specific kind. But all Chai has four basic components: - Tea: The base tea is usually a strong black tea, so that the various spices and sweeteners do not overpower it. However, a wide variety of teas can be and are used to make chai.
- Sweetener: Plain white sugar is sufficient, though unprocessed sugar, molasses, honey, and other sweeteners can be used for various flavors.
- Milk or other such creamers.
- Spices: cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, peppercorn, and cloves are some of the most common elements, though chai can be made with such varied ingredients as nutmeg, chocolate or licorice.
Chai can be prepared in many ways, but a typical sequence might include boiling the spice mixture with the sweetener, adding tea and milk and bringing back to a boil, and then allowing the tea mixture to steep for several minutes. See the external links for many example Chai recipes. See also External links - What is chai? -- a brief introduction to chai on Chai! The Enthusiast's Online Chai Resource.
- Masala chai -- a detailed article about chai on Culinary Teas.
- Silk: History of chai -- information about chai from Silk, makers of soy chai.
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