Ingredients
Tea Base
- 2 cups hot water (just boiled)
- 10 Tazo chai black tea bags
Syrup Mixture
- 1 ¼ cups unbleached sugar (or regular white sugar)
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Spices
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon cardamom
Instructions
- Steep the tea: Pour 2 cups of just boiled water into a heat-resistant bowl or large cup. Add 10 Tazo chai black tea bags and steep for 15 minutes, occasionally stirring the tea bags to fully wet them without dunking, to avoid bitterness.
- Extract chai concentrate: After steeping, squeeze the tea bags well and discard them. If any tea bags split, strain the liquid through a fine tea strainer to remove tea leaves or spice particles, yielding about 1 ½ cups of strong chai concentrate.
- Combine syrup ingredients: Pour the chai concentrate into a small saucepan. Add 1 ¼ cups unbleached sugar and whisk in ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar to prevent crystallization.
- Heat and simmer: Place the saucepan over medium to medium-low heat and bring the mixture to a light boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes, whisking occasionally to dissolve the sugar completely and blend the flavors.
- Add vanilla and spices: Remove the syrup from heat. Whisk in 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and the spices: ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground cloves, and ⅛ teaspoon cardamom for a warm, balanced chai flavor.
- Cool and store: Allow the syrup to cool completely at room temperature. Transfer to a jar and store at room temperature for convenient use in drinks and recipes.
- Serve: Use about 2 to 3 tablespoons of chai syrup per 8-ounce drink. For a stronger chai flavor, use 3 tablespoons.
Notes
- Do not dunk tea bags while steeping to prevent bitterness.
- If tea bags break, strain the liquid to avoid tea particles in the syrup.
- Cream of tartar helps prevent sugar crystallization during simmering.
- Syrup can be stored at room temperature in a clean jar.
- Adjust syrup quantity in drinks to suit taste preference.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Beverage Syrup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Indian-inspired
- Diet: Vegetarian
