Chai Pilgrimage
Chai Pilgrimage
Chai Pilgrimage
Shaw
Patrick
JennyKostecki-Shaw
Kostecki-Shaw
Jenny
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My Chai Guru 112 Chai Guru Chai 113
Elaichi Chai 114 Darjeeling Ginger Chai 115
Big-Batch House Chai 116 Vegan Rooibos Chai 117
Cinnamon Star Chai 118 Bala Chai (a Childrens Chai) 119
Spice Wallah Chai Masala 120 Chai Concentrate 120
Chalo! Chai 121 Sattvic Yogi Chai 122 Yogi Chai Biscuits 123
Super Spicy Gingersnaps 124 Auntie Kellys Cookies 125
Courtneys Maple Scones 126 Fennel Orange Shortbread 127
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Chai Means Tea 12 What Is a Chai Wallah? 14
The Origin of Masala Chai 20 God Is Everywhere 23
Namaste 24 Guest Is God 27 This Is India 28
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Chai with Phakard Baba 129 The Taj 130 Durga Devi Ma 134
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Ayurpak 140 Kichari/Ghee Recipe 141
Shivam 143 The Yoga of Chai 144
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Once Upon a Time 66 Jai Ram 68 Chai Sweeteners 72
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Holy Bug! 150 Cochrane Place 152 Green Fingers
Plucking 155 Ambootia 157 The Journey of a Tea Leaf 158
Tea Leaf Grades 160 Tea-Growing Regions 161
Darjeeling Town 164 Fair Trade 166 Mineral Springs
Communi-Tea 168 Pioneer of Organic Tea 171
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Babas House 78 Maharaj-jis Chai 79
Holy Cow! 81 Milk 82 Holi 87 Sari Lessons 89
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Spice Prana 95 Ginger 96 Cardamom 97 Cinnamon 98
Fennel 99 Clove 100 Pepper 101 Allspice 102
Nutmeg 103 Saffron 104 Tulsi 105
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Chaiyurveda 101 106 Ask a Chai Wallah 108
Chai Checklist 110 Chai Empowerment 111
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Hurry Burry Spoils the Curry 172 Tashiding 174
The Prayer Maker 178 Bungalow Oasis 180 Temi Tea 181
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Masi Ma 183 Metre Pour 184 Dollys 185 Last Cup 186
Glossary of Terms 188 Bibliography 190
Acknowledgments 191 About the Creators 192
You wake into a dream somewhere in the middle of India. The rhythmic
rocking back and forth that first lulled you to sleep is suddenly disrupted by
the high-pitched screeching of metal against metal and a jerking halt,
almost throwing you out of your bunk, followed by doors banging, cold
wind blowing and the frantic sound of foreign-speaking travelers
fighting to get on and off the train. Then, an echoing chorus of baritone
voices all singing the same repetitive melody chai-ee, chai-eeee,
chai-eeeeee! weave together into a cacophonous symphony cutting
through all the other noise.
The dream blends into reality as your eyes open to the blurry vision of a
steaming aluminum teakettle and a bucket of clay cups attached to a dark,
skinny man behind a thick black mustache moving up the aisle. You are not
dreaming! Desperately fishing your tired fingers through pockets wrapped
up in a twisted sleeping bag, you finally procure four rupees and return the
call, Ji, ek chai! One chai, sir! You meet eyes as he navigates through
the luggage-laden throng toyour bedside.
With pointed awareness, he pours a dark, thick stream of chai into a small
claycup, raising the pot as he pours, for a frothy finish, without spilling a
drop. He places the hot cup into your welcoming hands, warming your
fingers and dampening your face with tea-perfumed moisture. The earthen
cup touches your dry lips as the sugary, spiced chai rolls over your tongue,
awakening your taste buds, slowly spilling warmth across your throat and
down through the center of your chest and into your stomach, warming
you to the core. Ahhh, yes. All the painstaking travel has just paid off
again, with another perfect cup of Indian chai.
take pride
intheir chai. After all, making chai is what they
do for a living every day, all day long. Many
chaiwallahs develop a stylized preparation and
presentation for their chai. They put a little
something special in their blend: a pinch of spicy
garam masala powder, a smashed-up nub of ginger
or even a strand of saffron on top to make it
unique and keep their customers coming back.
Sometimes it is the performance that sells the
chai. Some let the chai boil until an instant
before it spills over the side; then, with great
agility, they swirl the pot an inch above the flame,
suspending it in an almost-boiling-over state
before removing it from the heat and repeating
the trick. In Kolkata, the metre-pour chai,
where the chai wallah blends the chai by pouring
it back and forth between pots two arm lengths
apart, attracts a thirsty crowd.
Most chai wallahs prepare their chai in small
batches on a per-order basis. In large cities,
however, the chai business is often divided into
one central chai wallah, who makes enormous
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Ginger has been used as a medicinal plant around the world since
antiquity. Called the universal medicine, it is used in Ayurveda, traditional Chinese Medicine, and Western herbalism for a broad range of
conditions. Gingers warming quality counteracts many cold-induced
illnesses brought on during the winter and is a common home remedy
for colds, flu, sore throat and sinus congestion. It can calm s tomach
nausea, vomiting and motion sickness, and it helps relieve intestinal
gasand abdominal cramping, including menstrual cramps. We found it
indispensable for these conditions while traveling in India and always
carried it in our daypack, even eating it raw when necessary, as a firstaid treatment.
Ginger burns up mucus and congestion and acts as an expectorant for
the lungs. It cleanses the body by burning up toxins or eliminating them
through the skin by stimulating perspiration. By neutralizing toxins and
promoting circulation, it helps treat rheumatic conditions and osteo
arthritis as well.
Ginger is a powerful digestive because it stimulates saliva flow, ignites the
digestive fire and tones the stomach. My ayurvedic teacher, Dr. Vasant
Lad, suggests enjoying a thin slice of ginger with a few drops of lime juice
and a pinch of mineral salt before eating to kindle digestion. As an
entire medicine chest in one plant, it is a good idea to always have some
on hand in your home.
Ginger is the primary spice in masala chai. The fresh root (actually a
rhizome) is available at most supermarkets. As a general rule, a root that
is compact and bright yellow on the inside will be spicier and stronger
tasting than the large, watery, pale-looking variety. To use it, grate,
smash or thinly slice the fresh root and add it to the simmering masala.
Using a coarse grater is the simplest method, and there is no need to peel
it. For an extra-spicy chai, grate and squeeze some fresh ginger juice into
each cup. In a pinch, you can use dried ginger; but the whole, fresh
ginger root will offer the best flavor.
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For the best-tasting masala chai, use whole, plump, green cardamom
pods. The whole pod can be ground up in a spice or coffee grinder.
When using a mortar and pestle, smash the pods, remove the brown seeds
from within and grind them to a powder. The green shells can either
betossed in the pot or discarded. If you cannot find the whole pods, the
decorticated seeds (pod removed) can be used but may lack the fresh
flavor of the sealed pod. It is not worth buying the powder, because it
oxidizes quickly after being ground and has already lost its potency on
the shelf. I have found that it is best nottoboil the cardamom but to add
it to the masala after turning off theheat and letting it steep. The volatile
oils, and with them the flavor and medicinal value, diminish with boiling.
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Darjeeling tea is gentle and friendly, like the hill people who
livein this lower Himalayan region. To savor the exquisite,
subtle flavors, it is sipped without adding milk or sugar. Only
atrue connoisseur, with an earned discretion that comes with
years of tea tasting, can distinguish the delicate undertones of
afine Darjeeling.
It is an honor to be in Darjeeling in the spring to enjoy fresh
first-flush teas perfectly brewed at the estate tasting room.
Ithascertainly broadened my appreciation for the worlds
bestorthodox teas. The local street chai wallahs, on the other
hand,serve up a lesser-quality Darjeeling, adulterated with
milkand sugar. But I am not a tea snob. After all, I am here
todiscover chai in its native land.
But after a few weeks in the Darjeeling hills, I find myself
seeking out a stout Assam tea or even coffee. As an uncultured
CTC masala chai drinker, I must confess: the quaint Darjeeling
variety, although they say it nourishes the soul and uplifts
the spirit, only softly tickles my body and mind. I prefer the
Banaras, dark as night, creamy with buffalo milk chai, served
in a clay cup that I can smash on the ground. Right now, I
would gladly trade in my Darjeeling Champagne of Teas for
some boiled Indian CTC street chai, which I can comparatively
refer to as the Jack Daniels of Tea.
Soon, well be back on the plains again where I know my tea
cravings will be satisfied and I
can get some work done.
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they can be rolled with the least amount of damage. This can
take from 14 to 20 hours, depending on humidity, temperature
and other conditions. Only the trained senses of an experienced
tea producer can discern the precise fragrance, color and texture
of the leaves that indicate when they are ready for rolling.
Rolling Traditionally, tea was rolled by hand, but the
process has been mechanized for large-scale tea production.
Some of the rolling machines we saw at the Makaibari factory
are still being used after 100 years. The rolling machine applies
gentle pressure to the wilted leaves while rotating them around
each other. This breaks open the cell walls of the leaves and
releases the botanical chemicals stored within, initiating the
oxidizing process that gives black tea its characteristic color
andflavor.
Oxidation The leaves are then laid out again, so the
natural chemicals in the tea leaf can react with the air. Again,
timing is essential. The leaves must oxidize long enough to draw
out the complexity of flavors; but if oxidized too long, the tea
becomes too strong and loses its subtle qualities. This step takes
about two to four hours. The oxidation process is the main distinction between black tea and green tea, which is not oxidized.
Firing To halt the oxidizing process and dry the tea
completely, the leaves are then put through a drying machine.
They pass by conveyor belt through a charcoal-fired heater
atatemperature of 220 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit for about
20 to 40 minutes.
After the tea is thoroughly dried, it is ready to
besorted by leaf grade. This is done by a machine
that shakes the dried leaves over varying gauges
ofmesh to sift out the tea according to size. The
largest, superior tea leaves may also be handsorted again. It is critical to keep the same size
leaves together, because when the tea steeps,
smaller pieces steep quickly and larger, full-sized
leaves infuse more slowly. If they are mixed, the
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Patrick Shaw has devoted his life to making the healing wisdom of the East accessible
toWestern culture. As well as being a seasoned India traveler and chai wallah, Patrick is
apractitioner of Ayurveda, cranial sacral and traditional Thai massage. He has been
making homemade masala chai for more than 20 years, having taught many others along
the way. He teaches Ayurveda, Ayurvedic cooking and traditional Thai massage at the
University of New Mexico in Taos.
Jenny Kostecki-Shaw is a mother and a homesteader by day, and a freelance illustrator
and author/illustrator of childrens books by night. Her picture books include My Travelin
Eye (Henry Holt, 2008) and Same, Same but Different (Christy Ottaviano Books/Henry Holt,
2011). Same, Same but Different was the winner of the 2012 Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator
Award and New Author Honor, the 2012 South Asian Book Award and the 2012
Frostburg State University Childrens Literature Centre Award. She illustrated The
Mothers Wisdom Deck, A 52-Card Oracle Deck with Guidebook, written by Niki
Dewart and Elizabeth Marglin (Sterling, 2012). She also creates canvas art for Oopsy
Daisy Fine Art for Kids.
Photo by Jerry Schwartz
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