A new season, a new chai ritual. And in the summer, its roses, cardamom, star anise, cloves, and vanilla. An alchemy of sweet, bitter, cooling, pungent, and warming spices infused with milk, black tea leaves, and unrefined, raw sugar cane —hello, rose chai.
While we may think of roses as a sweet-tasting herb, these dried petals taste bitter. The taste combined with their sweet scent is why the Rishis’ of Ayurveda consider roses to be a pitta reducing plant. Their sugary aroma calms the passionate pitta mind, and the bitter taste gently cleanses fiery pitta from the liver and small intestine. In the summer, when pitta can arise within us all, roses are embraced by Ayurveda as an ingredient, used for aromatherapy, skincare and in rituals.
Click here to read more about the healing power of roses or about creating your own rose rituals.
Happy brewing, happy digestion.
Rose Chai, Ayurveda Inspired
an aromatic chai, made with our rose masala mix, for the summer aka pitta season
ingredients
- 2 tsp rose masala
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup whole cow's milk*
- 11/2 tsp raw sugar or maple syrup
- 2 tsp black tea leaves or tea bags
- 2 tsp rose water
instructions
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In a small and covered pot, bring to boil water, raw sugar* and rose masala. let simmer for about 5 minutes for spices to infuse, letting the water reduce down by about 1/2 a cup
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Uncover the pot, and then add milk, and bring to a boil for 2-3 minutes to infuse the milk and herbal infusion together
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Then add the tea and rose water to the boiling mixture, and let simmer for 1 minute. Cover the pot and let it steep to prevent the chai from becoming too acidic or bitter. Strain and serve.
recipe notes
- for this recipe we used unhomogenized, vat pasterized milk. If using raw milk, you can add the milk with step 1.Â
- if using nut, seed or grain milk you may want to reduce the amount of water for a richer consistency
- for a creamier heavier milk, add 1 cup of milk instead and reduce water to 1 1/2 cups
- if using maple syrup, add it at the time of serving
- succanet, panela or jaggery can also be used instead of raw cane sugar
- a fresh ginger slice can be added to step 1 if desired, for a spicer rose chai
