Kashmiri Chai
کشمیری چائے
Kashmiri chai, also called noon chai or pink tea, is the creamy, rose-coloured tea served at Pakistani weddings, winter evenings and family gatherings. Its colour comes from no food colouring at all: green Kashmiri tea leaves are boiled with a pinch of baking soda, then aerated by ladling and pouring until the brew turns a deep wine red. When milk goes in, that red turns pink. This version is the sweet, nut-topped style most Pakistani homes make, with salt as an option.
- ⏱ Total: 35 min
- Prep: 5 min
- Cook: 30 min
- Medium
- Serves 4
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Put the water, Kashmiri tea leaves, cardamom and cinnamon in a . Bring to a boil over high heat and boil for 5 minutes.
Add the baking soda. It will froth up at once, so lower the heat to medium and keep boiling for 10–12 minutes, until the liquid has reduced to about half and turned dark red.
Pour in the ice-cold water. Now aerate the tea: lift a ladleful high and pour it back in, again and again, for about 5 minutes, until the brew is a deep wine red and frothy.
Add the milk and bring it back to a boil over medium heat. The red will turn pink as the milk mixes in.
Lower the heat and simmer for 5–8 minutes, ladling and pouring a few more times, until the chai is creamy, slightly thickened and evenly pink.
Stir in the sugar and a pinch of salt, taste and adjust.
Strain into cups and sprinkle crushed pistachios and almonds on top. Serve hot.
Kitchen notes
Use only a quarter teaspoon of baking soda. More will not make it pinker; it makes the tea taste soapy.
Do not skip the aerating. The ice-cold water and the ladling are what develop the deep red, and without them the chai ends up brownish rather than pink.
Make a double batch of the red concentrate and refrigerate it for up to 4 days. Heat a portion with milk whenever you want a cup.
The pink tea of weddings and winter
Kashmiri chai comes from the Kashmir valley, where it is drunk salty with bread through the cold months and is known as noon chai, from the Kashmiri word for salt. In Pakistan it travelled into city kitchens and changed a little: here it is usually sweet, finished with crushed pistachios and almonds, and served at wedding functions, winter gatherings and on cold evenings. Tea stalls in Lahore and Karachi sell it by the cup all winter.
Where the pink comes from
The colour is pure chemistry, not food colouring. Kashmiri green tea is rich in compounds that turn red when boiled in a slightly alkaline liquid, which is what the small pinch of baking soda creates. Reducing the brew concentrates that colour. Adding ice-cold water and then ladling the tea high and pouring it back mixes air into it, which deepens the red even further. Only then does milk go in, and red plus white gives that famous soft pink. Rushing either the reduction or the aeration is the most common reason the chai turns out a dull brown.
Sweet, salty and other versions
- Salty noon chai: leave out the sugar and add about half a teaspoon of salt. It is often served with a little butter or cream floated on top.
- Richer chai: replace half a cup of the milk with cream, or add a tablespoon of milk powder while simmering.
- More fragrant: add a star anise or two cloves with the cardamom.
Making ahead and serving
The red concentrate (everything up to adding milk) keeps in the fridge for up to 4 days, which is how many families prepare for guests. Heat about half a cup of concentrate with a cup of milk per person, simmer until pink and creamy, then sweeten. Serve in cups or small glasses with the nuts sprinkled on top, alongside cake rusks, nankhatai or bakarkhani.
Questions people ask
Why is my Kashmiri chai brown instead of pink?
Usually the tea is not real Kashmiri green tea, the baking soda was left out, or the brew was not reduced and aerated enough. Ordinary black tea will never turn pink.
Is Kashmiri chai sweet or salty?
In Kashmir, noon chai is traditionally salty. In most Pakistani cities it is served sweet with nuts on top. A pinch of salt in the sweet version rounds out the flavour.
Can I use green tea bags?
Regular green tea bags do not give the same colour. Look for loose Kashmiri chai patti, sold in most Pakistani grocery shops and spice markets.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 135
- Protein
- 6 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 12 g
