Loved the world over, Masala Chai is the ultimate comfort brew, embodying all the warmth and merriness of winter festivals.

In fact, Masala Chai was the tea that inspired me to enter the tea world in the first place. I learnt a special Keralan recipe when hiking in Nepal in 2011, and brought it back to Hong Kong where I ended up opening a cafe called teakha. Masala Chai has consistently been our best-selling brew, and to this day our recipe continues to evolve, as we take comments from thousands of people who have tasted it and ramp up our tea and spice quality whenever we have the chance. 

For the festive season, we've added a twist to our classic Masala Chai. Merry Masala is made from a fine Assam CTC black tea blended with a rare Keralan spice mix of cardamom, aniseed, cloves, black pepper and rose petals—with the addition of dried orange peel to give that Christmas feel. 

Brew it as you would a black tea, or for that perfect masala chai texture, try boiling it the traditional Indian way: 

1. In a medium pot on the stove, bring 500ml water to the boil.
2. Add a few pieces of fresh ginger and cardamom.
3. Add 16g of Merry Masala and boil on a medium heat for 3 minutes or until the tea tastes nice and strong.
4. Add 300ml of fresh milk and simmer for another 3 minutes or until it thickens.
5. Turn off the heat and strain out all the ingredients.
6. Add sugar to taste and serve it hot!

Feel free to add more/less spices and more/less sugar, according to your taste preference.

I hope this festive brew adds an extra spice to your winter gatherings and helps you feel the comforting warmth of home. 

Nana Chan
Founder of Plantation by teakha


PS- You may also like our Winter FestiviTEA Gift Set, which features our Merry Masala and Mulled Roselle - our non-alcoholic version of mulled wine. The perfect Christmas gift!