Having tea outside doesn't suit me. I am not a coffee lover like my hubby, so it becomes tough when I travel.
At home, I usually add a tiny bit of ginger or cardamom or both and bring it to a boil. If the tea isn't good, it brings headache to me!
When hubby offers tea, I mostly refuse in restaurants, but sometimes I give in. But, no restaurant has ever met my requirements!
That doesn't mean, I set high expectations, but I need the tea to taste like tea!
Either the milk is over boiled, or tea is too strong or the sugar is beyond measures and I doubt what I jus sipped was payasam or chai!
Even in Kerala, I couldn't taste a good tea. So I decided to renounce it during travel and have only at home! One day, during travel, I had a bad headache and after having lunch at the restaurant, hubby offered tea. I said I'll have if they serve ginger tea looking at the menu card. Luckily, the waiter said they do have and served the perfect ginger tea as I was quick enough to say less sugar please.
It took so many years to ask what I want! Ginger tea with less sugar or masala chai with less sugar. When in Ooty, no tea stall or restaurant served both! They had some brown liquid renamed as chai and my mom said, you won't even touch the glass if you saw how he made it!
At some houses, the tea filter shows their experience in life! Its tough stained, the original color forgotten like the brown cloth they use in tea shops! Instead of boiling the milk and tea powder, some people are so ingenious to add the decoction to milk! That equation works for coffee and not for tea! I feel like saying it loud!
Some boil the decoction with milk only to have a over boiled milk chai! Or worse are the tea bags! Keep dipping it and the color never changes! One bag, add one more, still it isn't working! Now you add another, you feel its too strong! Finally, you feel like spending too much time for a cup of tea!
When in US, hubby said the tea tasted so good in star bucks! I was surprised! He said its called chai latte and brought one. I sipped and said, this is cinnamon chai and while making at home, added a pinch and gave it to him! He was impressed! I then said, don't waste your dollars on that light tea, instead have it at home so I'll have company!
Finally, I found the secret recipe. I buy two 100g packs of my favorite tea powders, mix them together and store it. Then make tea the usual way but this mixing gives color, flavor and taste. Now, you get that taste in every cup, every time! Any added masala is a plus and it never brings down the taste of chai.
Now I take leave as it's time to have my yummy tea!
Dedicated to all tea lovers, like me :)
--Vishnupriya
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