Katie Silcox's Chai

14 grams of ginger (powdered or fresh)

16 grams cardamom (you can use the powdered version, or even better, fresh pods that you can crush with a mortar and pestle)

20 grams cinnamon (powdered, or sticks)

4 grams coriander (powdered)

2 grams nutmeg (whole or powdered)

2 grams whole cloves

14 grams of black tea (whole leaves best, or use regular bagged tea - or try vanilla rooibos)

Couple of pinches of black pepper

Sweetener to taste, ideally coconut nectar, or honey, or a date boiled with the spices

2 litres whole milk for the real Indian chai experience, but milk substitutes work fine

Slow boil (decoct) all of the herbs in a medium to large pot in 600ml water (do not add the tea yet). Boil this mixture down to about 500ml of liquid.

Turn off the heat and add black tea. Stir, cover the pot and let sit for no more than 10 minutes (any more than that and the tea will become bitter).

Strain all of the tea and herbs with a fine strainer, and add the whole milk to the remaining mixture. Heat again until the new mixture becomes hot, but not boiling.

For perfection, add a tiny sprinkling of nutmeg to each cup of tea.

1 serving: ¼ spice mix, 150ml water, 125ml milk

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