My contributions to the 'chai article'

The ‘chai article’ is something that, at the time of writing, has been an active project that itihas has been working on. Calra has kept their “best” chai recipes from the world out of respect for this project. Folks at IndieWebClub have been debating the correct way to make chai and failing miserably. I hope itihas brings peace and destruction to further debates at the club’s writing sessions.

I once read about laal sa, red tea from Assam. It might be interesting to itihas.

I grew up with everyone around me fond of nun chai. Everyone but me. I didn’t quite get why this bitter salty green tea was better than lipton chai which is black tea with milk and sugar. I eventually grew quite fond of it, the salt and the bitterness actually pairs quite well with quite a few breads and meats, possibly even a cigarette.

The way we make nun chai at home is rather unconventional, and some call this particular preparation bambai chai, refusing to call it authentic. We start by boiling two to three teaspoons of green tea in about 300ml of water for about 5 minutes, practically overcooking the tea and getting out the bitterness in it. This can very well be avoided but it is a taste me and my family have gotten quite used to, just like a lot of other Kashmiri folks. After this we mix about 175ml of milk in it and wait till it comes to boil. The tea is ready to be poured out and paired with long and flat breads of all kinds.

One of these breads I’m particularly fond of is the tshouchvuar, the torus with a flat base, cooked in batches in a tandoor. I like slicing it open and applying butter the spongy surface between the crunchy base and the crisp top layer seasoned with poppy seeds. It is a fine afternoon meal to keep you satiated till dinner.