Tea · Recipe
Chai ya tangawizi, at home.
In Swahili, chai means tea and tangawizi means ginger, so chai ya tangawizi is ginger tea. Ours simmers black tea with fresh ginger, then brings it back to the boil with milk.
Kenyan black tea suits it. Most of it is made by the CTC method, which breaks the leaf into small pieces that brew dark and fast, with enough strength that milk doesn’t wash it out.
The recipe
Chai ya tangawizi · ginger chai · serves 2
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tsp Highland Black Tea
- A thumb of fresh ginger, grated
- Sugar to taste
- Bring the water and ginger to a boil.
- Add the tea and let it simmer for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the milk and bring it back up to the boil. Stay close, because milk rises fast.
- Strain into cups and sweeten to taste.
Steep timer
Time the simmer.
Start it when the tea goes in. We’ll tell you when to add the milk.
Kenyan chai2:00
Step 2 of the chai recipe: simmer the tea with the ginger for 2 minutes, then pour in the milk.
A few notes from our kitchen
- Grate the ginger straight into the pan, juice and all.
- Equal parts water and milk make a creamy cup. Use more water for a lighter one.
- Stay close once the milk goes in, because milk rises fast.
- Sweeten in the cup, so everyone can take it how they like.
Prefer it the British way, steeped in a pot with a splash of milk? The brew guide has that one too.
Sources
Keep reading
More from the journal.
Why Kenyan black tea brews so brisk.
Most Kenyan black tea is made by a method called CTC. Here is what that means, and what it does to your cup.
AA, AB, PB. Reading a Kenyan coffee grade.
The letters on a bag of Kenyan coffee describe the size and shape of the bean. Here is how to read them.