How to Make Bombay Tea

Last Updated: January 12, 2023 Tested

Authentic Bombay Kadak Chai is a popular drink in the street stalls and households of Bombay.^{[1]
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Research source} Bombay is now known as Mumbai, so you may find this drink labeled Bombay or Mumbai chai tea.^{[2]
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Research source} Regardless of the name, traditional Bombay chai tea is a delicious warm drink for a cold day, or to settle your stomach after dinner. Even better, it’s easy to make.

Ingredients

2 cups water
⅓ cup milk
2 teaspoons loose chai tea (or 2 chai tea bags)
2-3 cardamom pods
Fresh ginger
2 tablespoons sugar
A small dash of cinnamon
3 cloves
A teaspoon of SOANP, which are small seeds that look like cumin seeds that can be found at an Indian grocery store

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Preparing the Ingredients

1
Choose your chai. You can make Bombay tea with loose leaf chai tea or tea bags.
- For a good cup of chai, buy chai from a high quality tea brand.
2
Decide on your milk. Full fat milk gives the chai a nice creaminess. But you can also use low fat, skim, powdered, or condensed sweetened milk.^{[3]
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- If you decide to use condensed sweetened milk, dilute it first with several tablespoons of water.
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3
Grind up the cardamon pods. Traditionally, you use a mortar and pestle to grind up the pods into a fine powder.^{[4]
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- If you don’t have access to a mortar and pestle, you can use a bowl and a flat headed spoon to grind up the cardamon. But it will be more difficult to grind them up this way.
4
Grate the ginger. Use a fine grater to grate the ginger.
- Grating the ginger will create a stronger ginger flavor to the tea.
- You can also mince the ginger or cut it into thin strips. This will create a lighter ginger flavor to the tea.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Making the Bombay Tea

1
Place the saucepan on the stove on medium high heat. Now, some chai makers put the water in the saucepan first and let the tea steep in the water. Other chai makers put the milk in first and let the tea steep in the milk.
- For the sake of this example, we are going to start with the water first. If you would like a richer, creamier chai, try starting with the milk first.^{[5]
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2
Add the water to the saucepan. Then, add in the tea bags or the loose tea. For two cups of chai, use 2 tea bags or 2 teaspoons of loose tea.^{[6]
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3
Add the crushed ginger, the ground cardamom and the sugar. Then, turn the heat up to boiling.^{[7]
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- Let the ingredients boil for 3-4 minutes on high heat.
4
Add the milk. Once the tea has boiled for 3-4 minutes and has turned a nice brown color, add the milk.
5
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir the tea to combine the milk with the tea.
- If you like your chai tea very strong, you can place the saucepan back on the heat and brew it for a few more minutes.^{[8]
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6
Strain the tea into teacups. Place the strainer on the top of the cup. Hold the handle of the saucepan (and likely an oven mitt as the handle will be hot) and pour the tea into the strainer.^{[9]
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- Fill the two cups and enjoy your Bombay chai tea with a bun maska' (traditional Indian bread and butter)^{[10]
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  Research source} or your favorite cookie.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Making Masala Bombay Tea

1
Gather your ingredients. In addition to the ingredients used in a traditional Bombay tea, a masala chai also contains:^{[11]
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- A small dash of cinnamon
- 3 cloves
- A teaspoon of SOANP, which are small seeds that look like cumin seeds that can be found at an Indian grocery store.
- Masala translates to "spicy", so masala is known as a chai tea with more spice and flavor than a traditional cup of Bombay tea.
2
Bring two cups of water to boil. Then, add in all the ingredients to the water, including the cinnamon, the three cloves and the teaspoon of SOANP.
- Do not add milk to the masala at this point, just the other ingredients.
3
Let the masala boil for about 15 seconds. Stir the masala to combine the ingredients as it boils.
- Warm the milk in a separate pot as the masala boils.
4
Filter the masala into two cups. Then, add the milk and sugar. Adjust the sweetness of the masala according to your preference.