Authentic Karak Chai (Karak Tea)

A cup of Karak Chai is just what you need in the morning. Strong, spiced and mildly sweet, this easy Karak chai recipe takes less than 10 minutes to make. Make this strong tea using loose black tea, sugar, whole spices and milk.

The word Karak or Kadak means ‘strong’ and Chai means ‘tea’. This aromatic tea is also known as Chai Karak, kadak chai or Qatari Tea. It is a hugely popular drink in India and Pakistan, but I have learned that it is enjoyed in Arab countries such as Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.

Karak Chai is prepared with strong black tea, evaporated milk or regular milk, cardamom, ginger and sugar. It differs from an authentic Indian Masala Chai (traditional Indian tea) by using fewer spices.

Indian chai is typically flavoured with different types of spices: cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom, ginger and clove such as Indian ginger chai and cardamom chai. On special occasions, you'll find milk tea with saffron also served.

Karak Tea is thick and caramel coloured, and has a stronger flavour compared with a regular cup of tea you get in the western world.

Ingredients

Tea – a good tea is the main ingredient for delicious karak tea. The original karak tea, is made with black tea leaves. You can use strong black loose leaf such as PG TIPS or the Indian strong tea WAGH BAKRI which is commonly used to make Indian Masala Tea.

Milk – Use fresh milk or evaporated milk. I like to use evaporated milk as it is thick and slightly sweet. For a milky tea, you can add more milk to the recipe.

Ginger – Fresh ginger is a key ingredient in karak chai. You can use ginger powder also but fresh is best!

Aromatic spices – the chai spices used here are cardamom and cinnamon. I have used crushed green cardamom pod and cinnamon stick.

Sugar – use normal granulated sugar or brown sugar. Optionally, use condensed milk which has a high sugar content and reduce the amount of milk added.

Water - regulat tap water.

For a vegan version, swap for a dairy free or plant based alternatives. Oat milk is great as it can be boiled without splitting.

How to make Karak Chai

1. First, boil water in a kettle or in a saucepan over the stove. Use 1 cup of water for each person so increase the cups of water depending on your guests. Meanwhile, you can use a pestle and mortar to crush the spices or bash with a rolling pin.

2. Add strong loose black tea (1.5 teaspoon for a cup), crushed ginger, cardamom pods and cinnamon bark.

3. Bring the mixture to the boil on medium-high heat, add milk and let it boil for at least five minutes (make sure it doesn’t boil over the pan) until you see a beautiful caramel colour and the tea thickens. Switch to low heat if the tea keeps boiling over.

4. Add sugar (if using) and once again bring it to boil.

5. Using a tea strainer, pour tea into cups and enjoy.

Serving Suggestion

Karak Tea can be served for breakfast, at brunch or as afternoon tea.

It is best enjoyed the Indian way with Indian snacks such as these air fryer frozen samosa or pakora.

Tea and biscuits are also the perfect marriage enjoyed this way in both South Asia and all regions of the world. Whether it’s a Eggless Linzer Cookies or an Indian variety, such as Nankhatai, Coconut and Cardamom Wholewheat Cookies you need to serve the tea with biscuits.

In our house, we often serve handvo, Gujarati thepla, masala lachha paratha, masala bhakhri or bajri na vada as well. 

Storage

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge and reheat on the stove the next day.

As always if you make this recipe, be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe and tag me on Instagram @jcookingodyssey or #jcookingodyssey. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!

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📖 Recipe

Note – This recipe has been updated from our recipe archives with new images and content, but the recipe remains the same. First published in May 2019.