The art of making the perfect Kashmiri noon chai
The common varieties of tea are Black, Green, Cardamom Tea, Chocolate Tea etc but have you ever heard of Pink Tea?
The valley’s love affair with tea is well known, but of all the ways one can make tea, the pink preparation stands out—in colour, taste and drama.
Also referred to as Gulabi Chai or Sheer Chai, this tea preparation is known to provide warmth in the cold winter months of the year. But why is it pink? There is a constellation of factors that lend this tea its peculiar taste and appearance, the addition of baking soda or sodium bicarbonate being one of them. The soda reacts with the tea leaves while brewing which results in a beautiful ruby tone to the liquid. A lot of intense beating and aeration is required to the brewed tea water in order to incorporate air into the mixture, which also plays an important role in the pink colour.
The process is started off by boiling Kashmiri tea or green tea leaves in water. The temperature is critical: most prepare this tea starting off by bringing cold water to a boil and brewing it with baking soda (though some also add ice cubes to bring down the temperature once the tea has been brewed). While the tea is boiling with the soda, other flavouring ingredients such as green cardamom and even star anise are added for aroma and taste. At this stage, the liquid should have a blackish-red tinge due to the soda bicarbonate and on the addition of the milk and salt at the end, the colour changes to the characteristic pink shade.
What makes this tea so special?
Just look at the range of ingredients: tea, baking soda, and flavourful, aromatic spices! Though regular green tea can also be used, traditionally, a special type of green tea known as gunpowder tea is preferred.
Traditionally, noon chai is salty but for those who are not used to it, can be served with some sugar as well. Nuts like almonds and pistachios and edible rose petals can also be added before serving and sometimes malai or fresh cream is added to give the tea viscosity and richness.
Source: Internet
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