Beverages

Serving

Beverages Kid-friendly Quick & easy

Chai Tea Latte

Name: Chai Tea Latte
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Beverages
Ingredients: 2 black tea bags; 1 cup water; 1 cinnamon stick; 4 cardamom pods, crushed; 4 whole cloves; 1 inch piece fresh ginger, sliced; 1 cup milk; 2 tablespoons honey

A fragrant, spiced black tea latte simmered with cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves.

10 minutes

Serves 2

Breakfast

5 min prep

8 min cook

Contains common allergens

Dairy

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Good to know

One-pot
Ready in under 30 minutes

Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: one-pot dinners 30-minute meals

Instructions

4 steps

1
Combine water, cinnamon stick, cardamom, cloves, and ginger in a small saucepan and simmer 5 minutes.
2
Add tea bags and steep for 3 minutes, then remove tea bags.
3
Stir in milk and simmer gently for 2 minutes.
4
Strain into mugs, sweeten with honey, and serve hot.

Chai Tea Latte — plated and served — Serving moment. How Chai Tea Latte looks plated and ready to eat — a representative photo, not a step in the recipe.

Listahan Family Score™

79/100

Good fit for most families

Allergen-friendly 90

Kid-friendly 85

Weeknight-easy 96

Budget-friendly 72

Great leftovers 56

Pantry-friendly 41

Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.

Nutrition

per serving

145

Calories

4 g

Protein

25 g

Carbs

4 g

Fat

Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.

Listahan cooking guide

Chef notes & practical guide

Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.

Cultural context

Masala chai, meaning "spiced tea" in Hindi, has been a daily ritual across South Asia for generations, made by simmering black tea with whole spices and milk rather than steeping a plain tea bag. The Western "chai latte" version, built on the same idea, became a café staple once espresso bars started offering it alongside coffee drinks.

Listahan note

This version simmers the whole spices in water before adding the tea and milk, the traditional order, which pulls more flavor out of the spices than steeping them all at once.

Technique cues

Crush the cardamom pods and lightly bruise the ginger before simmering, so more of their oils release into the water.
Add the milk after the tea has steeped, then simmer briefly together, rather than boiling milk and tea from the start, which can make the drink taste flat.
Strain well through a fine mesh sieve to catch all the whole spices before serving.

Kitchen flow

Parallel prep: Crush the cardamom and slice the ginger while the water comes to a simmer.
Make-ahead: Simmer a spiced tea concentrate ahead, refrigerate, and heat with fresh milk when ready to serve.
Leftover move: Chill leftover chai and pour over ice for an iced chai latte the next day.
Cleanup rhythm: Rinse the saucepan promptly, since the whole spices and milk residue can stick if left to sit.

Ingredient brief

Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.

Black tea bags

Tea base

Purpose: A robust black tea holds its own against the warming spices without disappearing into the mix.

Handling: Steep for about 3 minutes in the spiced water; longer can make the tea taste bitter.

Adaptation: Loose-leaf Assam or English breakfast tea both work well, using about 2 teaspoons in place of the bags.

Cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and ginger

Spice blend

Purpose: This combination of warming spices is what gives chai its distinctive, cozy flavor.

Handling: Simmer in the water first, before adding tea, so the spices have time to release their oils.

Adaptation: A store-bought chai spice blend can replace the individual whole spices.

Milk

Creaminess

Purpose: Milk mellows the spice and tea into a smooth, comforting latte texture.

Handling: Add after the tea steeps, then simmer gently together for a couple of minutes.

Adaptation: Oat milk is a popular dairy-free option that complements the spices well.

Technique notes

Simmer the milk and tea together gently, not at a full boil, to avoid scorching the milk.
Taste before straining and adjust honey to taste, since spice strength varies with how long everything simmered.
A cinnamon stick garnish in the mug adds aroma with every sip, beyond just flavor in the liquid.

Ingredient swaps

Dairy-free direction: Use oat or coconut milk in place of dairy milk; both pair naturally with the spices.
Caffeine-free direction: Use a decaf black tea or rooibos tea for an evening-friendly version.
Lower-sugar direction: Reduce the honey and let the spices carry more of the flavor.

Serve alongside

Spiced shortbread
Banana bread
A warm scone
Ginger cookies
Golden milk for another warm-spice option
Hot apple cider for a fall-flavored alternative
Iced chai for a cold-weather-to-warm-weather swap

Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.

Storage & reheating

Refrigerate the strained chai in a sealed container for up to 4 days.
Reheat gently on the stovetop, stirring well since it can separate slightly.
Serve cold over ice as an iced chai latte without reheating.

Equipment

Small saucepan
Fine mesh strainer
Wooden spoon

Make this household-aware

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