Chai is one of those drinks that evokes strong memories of childhood for me. There is nothing quite like a cup of chai to help lift my spirits. The secret to a great cup of chai is the masala, the spice mixture. Chai masala is an essential Indian spice blend.
You can buy chai masala from the store, but I prefer a freshly ground chai masala from spices I have toasted myself. When it comes to stocking an Indian spice cabinet, these masala spices are simple necessities that I always have on hand.
I don’t make a new batch of chai masala every time I make chai. I make sure to always have some on hand. That has led me to experiment with using it in other ways.
Other Uses of Chai Masala
While distinctly Indian, chai masala has a very similar flavor profile to pumpkin spice blends. That is because of the shared flavors of ginger and cloves. I use chai masala a lot when baking in the fall.
I love the way this spice blend tastes in cinnamon rolls, cookies, and, of course, the classic cup of chai.
Making Chai Masala
This chai masala comes to us from a great aunt. For the best flavor, it is important to start off with whole spices. In India, my mom would have them specially ground at our local mill in small batches.
I use a coffee grinder that I use exclusively for grinding spices. But if I don’t have the whole spices, I won’t hesitate to create a mix from store bought powered spices. In fact, I did this a lot in my 20s when I didn’t own a spice grinder.
Make sure to clean out your grinder between use. Grind some white rice in the grinder a few times to clean it out between spices you don’t want to mix.
Feel free to experiment with the proportions depending on the flavors you like most.
When I made this batch of masala, I did not have any dried ginger on hand. So I just cut up a ginger root into slices and stuck it in the oven at 200°F for about 2.5 hours. Perfectly dried ginger! Then I just ground that up in the coffee grinder.
Chai Masala, A Family Recipe
Ingredients
- 21 g cinnamon sticks (3 Tbsp ground)
- 12 g ginger (2 Tbsp ground)
- 6 g cardamom seeds (1 Tbsp ground)
- 1 g nutmeg (1 tsp ground or grated)
- 3 g cloves (1 1/2 tsp ground)
- 5 g black pepper (1 1/2 tsp ground)
- ¼ tsp saffron (1 big pinch)
Instructions
- Add all whole spices, except saffron, to a spice or coffee grinder. Grind to a fine powder.
- Add saffron and any powdered spices. Pulse 3 times.
Notes
Nutrition
(Originally posted February 25, 2013; updated August 16, 2022)
Beautiful work of photography, beautiful mortar and great recipe 😉
Thank you so much! I love your photos as well! 🙂
Tea is incomplete without this masala.
It sure is! 🙂
I’ve been seeing recipes for chai so many time now that it would be a sin not to make it! Love the sound of this recipe and will definitely try it. Thanks so much in sharing yours for the home made challenge! Loving the photos!
Thanks Simone! I am so glad you’re going to make this chai. I’d love to hear how it works out! 🙂
Thank you for this beautiful post, but how do you use the masala spices, tea, and milk into chai? What are the proportions and do you need to strain out the spices before serving in a cup? Thank you!
Hi Claire. Here’s the post I did for chai.
Let me know if you have any questions. 🙂
Thank you so much for this recipe! It sounds delicious and with cold winter coming up around here, it will be perfect for a cosy evening :).
Hello, I’m on a mission to make the perfect cup of chai.
The best chai I ever had in America was from Kasa eatery. Their chai has a wonderful pop of cardamom in it, along with other spices and a rich tea taste. I’m wondering if ground spices are better to use than whole spices? I heard that grinding the spices in small batches can bring out the flavor a little better.
Hello,
This ground spice mix is what my mom uses to make chai. I know I’m biased, but I think my mom makes the best chai around!
Grinding the spices increases the flavor and aroma of the spices. Because ground up spices lose flavor faster, I grind mine in small batches (just as the recipe above). This recipe makes about 1/2 cup of chai masala. If you don’t think you can use up that much within a couple of months, just halve the recipe when you make it.
What a lovely page. I am also a true chai fan in Vancouver missing my mum’s homemade recipe, but I discovered Trudy Ann’s Bombay Masala Chai. She’s Vancouver-based and only really sells at local Farmers Markets and stores, but she now sells online and her recipe is spot on! I like your suggestion of saffron – will definitely try it!
Lovely recipe and beautiful pictures!!! Thanks m1tal for the mention of my chai. Well done Puja.
Where do you get your cinnamon?? It is beautiful!
Thanks Sarah!
I just get it at the local ethnic market. 🙂
Namasté!
I have been a spice nut since I don’t know when… Visiting India, Nepal and Sri Lanka was a spice nut dream come true!!! It could be interpreted as weird but I put chai masala in my homemade bread. I just can’t live without it!!! Very destabilizing, very unusual taste but once tasted: there is no coming back to white bread. Dhanyavard!
Marc. Lamarre, [email protected]
Hi Marc,
Thanks for your comment! Adding chai masala to bread actually sounds really good. I’ll try it the next time I make bread. Thanks for the tip!
Puja
Sounds like a wonderful fall recipe! Do you measure the cloves and pepper before or after you grind them?
Thanks
Hi!\Namasté!
Take all desired spices and weigh them before grinding. After, I mix them with flour before adding wet liquids (water/milk). Marc
How much black tea would you recommend adding to the masala and what kind?
Hi McKenzie. I have a recipe for chai that you can refer to. Any black tea would work but an Indian Darjeeling or Assam is always nice. Enjoy!
This is the greatest chai Masala I’ve ever seen, it include saffron.
Thanks alot for this post. Could you believe that, after making your own recipe, I had to discard the previous spice.
Beautiful picture, and lovely cinnamon stick.
Hi Puja, just what I was looking for. I have to say I cheated and used pre-ground spices, so it’s not as good as it should be, but I do go through a lot, so to feed my masala chai addiction every day at work without having to resort to expensive pre-made spice blends or “chai” tea bags (which here in Scotland seem to be uniformly bland and disappointing no matter how much money one spends on them) this is perfect. The next best thing to being able to pop out to the chai wallah, thank you!
This chai masala is exquisite! I would like to know how much to use in combination with tea and water please.
Hi Lisa! I’m so glad you like it. We love it too! I would recommend using about 1/2 teaspoon per 3 cups of liquid and adjust based on taste. Here’s a chai recipe.
//stuck it in the oven at 200 degrees for about 2.5 hours//
Ginger will lose a lot of its flavour. Instead use sun-dried ginger. This is true for any spice.
Do cardamon seeds have a shell that needs to be removed before grinding?
I normally grind Cardamom with the shells intact as I love their flavor.
I grind whole cardamom with a little sugar to grind the shells completely, and give it a finer texture.
This Chai Masala is mind blowingly delicious. The saffron adds something special to the mix and I don’t recommend skipping it! My fiance and I love it so much that we’re going to bottle it for favors at our wedding. Thank you for this!
what proportion require for 1kg. chai masala (each)l
Hello, Do you toast the whole spices in this chai masala recipe before grinding them? Thank you for sharing this recipe! I am very excited to try it!
Hi Jody! I usually toast the to toast the black pepper, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. I’ll update the recipe to clarify. Thank you and let me know what you think once this try it.
I add this to my apple butter and it’s delicious. The only change I make is to grind up 4-5 dried vanilla pods and add that to the mix. I make my own vanilla so I always have plenty of beans around.
That sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing, Tara!