Dishoom’s Chef Naved always tastes the masala chai as soon as he sets foot into any of the Dishoom kitchens. Here, you can try the much-loved Dishoom recipe in the comfort of your home.

Serves 4 

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp Assam or Darjeeling tea
• 12 slices fresh ginger
• 1½ tsp black peppercorns
• 12 cardamom pods
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 5 cloves
• 50 sugar
• 500ml whole milk

Method

1. Put the tea, ginger and spices into a saucepan. Pour on 1 litre boiling and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer until you can smell the spices, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the sugar and milk, turn up the heat and bring to the boil. Allow 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (A skin will form, but this is strained off at the end.) Taste to see if the chai is to your liking; boil a little more if you wish for a stronger flavour. Patience will be rewarded!
3. Strain, discard the solids, and serve immediately.

You can enjoy a free cup of chai every morning at PoliNations: sample Dishoom’s recipe whilst exploring the history of masala chai at our Tuk Tuk.

Tuk Tuk Chaiwallah
Every day of PoliNations
11am – 12pm and 3pm – 4pm

In the meantime, discover a brief history of masala chai in our second blog with Dishoom.

This recipe has been taken from Dishoom’s cookery book, Dishoom: From Bombay with Love.